With a chevron suit jacket draped over his shoulders, Karl-Anthony Towns walked up to the stage as the top cat on Thursday night.

The Minnesota Timberwolves selected the freshman Kentucky big man Towns with the No. 1 pick of the NBA Draft.

Then the intrigue really began.

The Los Angeles Lakers threw a curveball and took freshman Ohio State point guard D'Angelo Russell at No. 2, passing on freshman Duke center Jahlil Okafor.

The Philadelphia 76ers then scooped up Okafor at No. 3.

The two big men Towns and Okafor were considered to be the consensus top two NBA prospects for months.

Towns was the third Wildcat to be taken with the No. 1 selection since 2010. Washington took John Wall with the top pick in 2010 and Anthony Davis went No. 1 to New Orleans in 2012.

The 19-year-old Towns averaged 10.3 points, 6.7 rebounds and 2.3 blocks in just over 21 minutes per game as part of Kentucky's platoon system last season. He's a highly skilled player who can affect games on both ends of the floor.

The Timberwolves already have the last two No. 1 picks on their roster. Cleveland selected Andrew Wiggins with the No. 1 pick in last year's draft but traded him to Minnesota as part of the Kevin Love deal last August. Anthony Bennett, the top choice in 2013, was also included in the package.

The Chicago Bulls picked Arkansas forward Bobby Portis at No. 22 and the Portland Trail Blazers landed Arizona forward Rondae Hollis-Jefferson at No. 23.