Coming Wednesday and for only the next 15 years if all goes well, Timberwolves forward Andrew Wiggins and fellow rookie Jabari Parker will be linked by the shared promise of their rare talent and a history together that dates to last summer's draft and well beyond.
With dissimilar skills but very similar acclaim, they were clearly considered the best two players in NBA's June draft, when Cleveland selected Wiggins out of Kansas first overall and Milwaukee chose Duke's Parker next.
It's a pairing that, in whatever order, attracted well-versed basketball fans to AAU jamborees long before that, back when both were the most elite players in their national recruiting class.
Wolves rookie guard Zach LaVine — a member of that recruiting class himself — in a bit of hyperbole dates the two players' fate perhaps even to "grade school coming up" and says, "They were both No. 1, No. 2, just switching on and off their whole careers."
Now they are the early — maybe only — favorites for Rookie of the Year honors: Wiggins the one with more projected "upside" because of his sublime athletic ability and willingness to change games at both ends of the court, Parker the gifted scorer most scouts deem more ready to succeed in the NBA.
Wiggins answers questions about a player to whom he may always be compared as he does nearly all others, with very few words. He has known Parker much of his life, but came to understand him better when each went through the draft process together last spring.
He calls his rival a "hard worker, determined player, a great scorer" while Parker cites his season at Duke when he says, "I understand what it takes to win and be professional."
Earlier this season, Parker contorted his face much like someone just told they need oral surgery when asked about Wiggins — whom the Cavaliers traded to the Wolves for Kevin Love two months after they drafted him — and all they share whenever they meet.
"Everybody bringing it up is bringing a buzz," Parker told reporters then. "I got to answer y'all questions. Y'all tell me since you always ask me so much [about Wiggins]."
That was before either had played a regular-season NBA game. Now Parker is part of a resurgent Milwaukee team that arrives at Target Center a game over .500 during a season in which it already has won three consecutive games, including a triple-overtime victory, one year after it won just 15 games.
Parker has scored 23 points in a game and is averaging 11.7 points and 5.7 rebounds.
"I don't think people realize how athletic he is," Milwaukee teammate Nate Wolters said. "He's not the most athletic guy, but he's extremely skilled and he's pretty sneaky athletically. I think he'll be a really good player."
Now Wiggins is accelerating his rookie learning curve, due to both injuries and an absence that left him this past week the team's only healthy starter. Asked to do more, particularly offensively, Wiggins scored a career-high 29 points in Saturday's home loss to Sacramento. He is averaging 12.5 points and 3.5 rebounds.
Wolves coach Flip Saunders ran plays for Wiggins in that game and the night before after Martin fractured his wrist a week ago. Now Saunders wants Wiggins to assert himself for longer periods of time, and when the offense isn't always tailored for him.
"He had 29 the other night, and he has not even reached close to what he's going to be," teammate Corey Brewer said. "He has just learned he can be aggressive. We give him the ball, and he's learning. It's going to take a while. It took 12 games, now I think he's hitting his stride. With all the injuries we've had, he's getting a lot more opportunity. He's going to get thrown right in the fire. That's not going to be the last time he scores 29, I'll tell you that."
Wednesday's meeting between Wiggins and Parker is their first in an NBA regular-season game. It comes four months after fans lined up far outside the gym door for a chance to see them play each other at the Las Vegas Summer League.
Like Wiggins' 29-point performance, Wednesday's game will be the first of many.
New Bucks coach Jason Kidd still is associated with Glenn Robinson and Grant Hill. They were the first three players selected in the 1994 draft.
And that was 20 years ago.
"That's just the media's approach anytime with the draft, and especially with the draft we just had," Kidd said earlier this season. "Most of the time guys don't want to be linked to the other guy, but that's the way it is. It's something to talk about. It's natural to compare guys, I guess. That's just part of the business."
