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On the Ball
The Three-Pointer: Breakthrough
Photo copyright 2008 NBAE (Photo by David Sherman/NBAE via Getty Images)
Game #10, Home Game #5: Minnesota 102, Philadelphia 96
Season record: 2-8
1. Not Bad Enough To Lose
It looked like yet another hideous choke job. Up 11 heading into Wednesday night's 4th quarter against Philly, the Wolves once again began enacting their self-fulfilling mentality of doom. The team that had committed just 9 turnovers in the first 36 minutes sped through three--a Kevin Love offensive foul and Bassy Telfair first stepping out of bounds and then tossing a steal--in the period's first 92 seconds. Less than two minutes after that, Corey Brewer threw the ball away. The Sixers, who came in leading the NBA in fast break points per game, finally began to score in transition, grab offensive rebounds, and simply play more aggressively as the Wolves grew glassy-eyed with dread. With four minutes to play, the lead had been cut to two.
Minnesota fans had seen this happen more often than not over the course of the team's 8-game losing streak; now they were staring at yet another seizure of poise for consecutive loss number 9. Even in last year's putrid 22-win season, featuring no fewer than 9 losing streaks of five games or more, the ballclub never dropped 9 in a row. And the three-week interim between the Sixers contest and the Wolves' opening night win over Sacramento was already a longer stretch between victories than last year's squad had endured. Coach Randy Wittman paced the sidelines like his job was in the balance, and it seemed like rational behavior.
Then Al Jefferson broke the pattern. He did what he does best: Score in the low post against two or three people determined to stop him. First he spun and hit a short jumper while being fouled by center Samuel Dalembert, the seven-footer who gave Big Al so much trouble around the rim last season. Then there were two moves in a row on the left block: Feint, jab, upfake, and dervish baseline spin as he banks in the layup as the double (and then triple) teams were arriving. Sure the Wolves couldn't stop the Sixers at the other end: Andre Miller was toying with Randy Foye and Andre Iguodala was a warrior penetrating to the paint. But for the three straight offensive possessions in the 62 seconds between 3:35 and 2:33 to play, the Wolves had a counter, hanging on to the lead and feverishly trying to kindle their confidence. With less than 40 seconds to play it was a one-point game. Jefferson got the ball on the left block and Philadelphia's defense sold out trying to stop him.
Jefferson flicked it out to a wide-open Mike Miller. Up to that point, Miller had continued his absurdly unselfish ways, hoisting up a grand total of 6 shots in 39 minutes of play. In the previous four games, he'd played between 31:06 and 35:44 and averaged a titch over 7 shots per contest. Miller had proudly told reporters that he didn't take bad shots, and wouldn't take bad shots, which sounds dandy--"play the right way" and all of that--except when you consider that coming into Wednesday's game, Randy Foye was shooting 36.3%, Rashad McCants 35.8%, Corey Brewer 38.6%, Kevin Love 38.2% and Bassy Telfair 32.4%. By contrast, Mike Miller was making 51.7% of those good shots he was taking, which made one or two Wolves partisans interested in finding out what might happen if he threw up a few bad ones, because even if only 40% of them went in, it was better than the other alternatives on the wing. Fortunately for Miller's integrity, this dish from Big Al was a very good shot indeed, a three pointer with no distractions. Miller drained it, giving the Wolves a 4-point lead with 30.4 seconds to play. Ballgame.
"We made plays," Wittman said after the game, and then explained why: "We played through Al. He was a load. His three baskets down there when he was doubled were huge."
In the locker room, Jefferson was talking about his attitude after the recent slew of final period fades, saying that he told himself at the beginning of the 4th that if the Wolves were in that situation again, "I'm going to take over." And he did. "I got it out to Mike and he had a big shot. Randy did a great job; he kept calling plays for me," Jefferson added, with a trace of irony or false humility. "We did a great job with the ball going through me."
2. Night of the Rhino
Yours truly has been telling you how beneficial it was going to be when center Jason Collins finally became healthy enough to create a large front line with Jefferson and Gomes, and how much of a distraction, and thus irritant, wide-body 'tweener Craig Smith was to that strategy. So the Wolves start that big front line and get waxed, 19-8 on the scoreboard and 11-3 on the glass, before Wittman subs in Love for Collins after 5:56. It would be another 4 minutes, at 1:44 to play in the period, before the night's secret weapon stepped on the court--the Rhino himself. Ten seconds into his first possession, Smith used his telepathy with Shaddy McCants to take a feed and convert a lay-up. In the waning moments of the quarter, he got fouled and nailed both free throws. That's 4 points in 1:44, including rare perfection at the line. But that was mere prelude to the Rhino's second quarter. The only Timberwolf to play all 12 minutes during a 32-25 Wolves advantage, he racked up another 9 points on 4-5 FG and 1-2 FT, executed a steal and, the biggest eye-opener, dropped three dimes, including a beautiful bounce pass that set up a slam-dunk +1 for Love, the rook who hasn't been able to buy a bucket for a few games now. Then Smith was first off the bench in the third, and was second only to Jefferson in 4th quarter scoring for the Wolves, putting in 7 points (2-3 FG and 3-4 FT).
In a night with a fair share of pretty box score lines (Miller had a team-high ten rebounds and a tied team-high six assists along with ten points), Smith was 7-9 from the floor and an impressively active 7-10 from the charity stripe. In an odd twist, he didn't garner a single rebound in 25:53, yet not only scored 21 points, but doled out 5 assists, tying his career high, en route to a plus +5 on the court. When Philly went small and put Thaddeus Young at the 4 late in the second half, Wittman countered with the Rhino and forced the Sixers to revamp. The coach called it his best game of the year, although as a fairly consistent Rhino basher ever since KG (an ideal front line complement for him) split town, I've got to admit there have been two or three others in the past ten days that were strong, including the second Portland game. The numbers demonstrate that Smith is a matchup nightmare for the Wolves as well as their opponents, but he's been less foul-prone, is running the floor better, has extended his scoring range a tad, and, perhaps most surprisingly, is delivering gold-star assists (versus the garden-variety dish for a pop) once or twice per game recently. I still believe extended minutes for Craig Smith is not in the long-term interest of the ballclub. But that doesn't mean he should be denied credit for the substantial and subtle improvments in his game.
By the way, I asked Wittman why the Wolves were outrebounded 11-3 to start the game when they had the big front line on the floor. The coach probably thought I was looking to rip Collins (he doesn't read On The Ball--I'm shocked) and thus gave me one of those "how the hell should I know?" type looks and then indeed professed ignorance. Then he defended Collins' value in clogging the lane and being a staunch big man in the pivot. Maybe it was just the luck of the bounce (the Wolves were 11-9 to the good on the boards during Collins' second stint) or the fact that the Wolves were missing much more than Philly, creating defensive rebounds for the Sixers. But Collins is going to have to get to more caroms if this Tallball movement is going to have legs.
3. Mop-Up Impressions
Bassy Telfair looked better on paper than he did on the court. A game-high 8 assists in merely 14:14 buttresses his passing credentials, but his only shot attempt was wide-open midrange jumper that he clanked after Philly doubled others and laid out the welcome mat for him to shoot, and his cluster of 4th quarter turnovers got an already mentally-fragile team that much tighter. And the Wolves were fragile, which made Wittman's explanation for Minnesota's season-best 51.4% shooting--"Confidence. I thought we played with a lot of confidence tonight."--seem like blatant spin and/or wishful thinking.
Shaddy McCants was felled by back spasms when splitting a double team on the pick and roll in the first half tonight, but Wittman explicitly noted his 6:40 of play (which led to a game-best plus +9) and being "pretty good basketball by him. Patching up is easier after you win.
Wittman also claimed that Love "played better," but that's like saying the flu is better than the mumps. Love's game remains uncertain at the moment, which is especially damaging to a player who typically gets by on brains and savvy more than abundant athleticism. For example, he still know a shot is a good shot, but he's been making so few that he hesitates a split second and that gets him lunched.
To avoid a potentially ugly Mike Miller-Andre Iguodala matchup on defense, the Wolves switched over in transition so that Gomes was on Iggy and Miller guarded Thaddeus Young. Miller's stuffed stat line and game-clinching trey get the last laugh tonight, but I still maintain that when you're 6-8 and you're being guarded on the perimeter by backup point guard Louis Williams at 6-2, its better to shoot over him than dish the ball in the low block to the currently shaky Love.
On Friday night, Kevin Garnett plays at the Target Center for the first time since the trade. That the Wolves gave away free ducats to the Sixers game to entice further purchase of tix to the Celtics game--which should be sold out--indicates that this insipid, "he so square he's hip" marketing icon Don Overbay is no better than Sweetwater Jones.
61 Reader Comments
I can't see other people's comments. What I am supposed to click on to find comments? Is there something wrong with the new format?
I'm not gonna lie, I thought we were going to blow yet another 4th Quarter lead. I think that if it was anyone besides Big Al or Miller taking that last shot we probably would have lost. They were clutch last night.
Anyone that thinks Philly is going to be a contender has issues. Man, they are not that good. Brand is solid but I'd never pay him that much money.
The number and allocation of assists last night reminds me of the box scores from preseason - Bassy, Foye and Miller combining for about 20. Flow, movement and off-ball hustle was noticeably better throughout most of the game.
The notion of Smitty playing 14-16 minutes with the level of intensity I saw last night is really appealing. You are right, Britt to remark on both the quantity and quality of his dimes.
Particularly in the second half, Miller notched up his defense and rebounding. A few of his ten were serious boards. Foye captured a few meaningful ones off the glass too - reminding me of last spring a bit.
Rashad produced points in his brief appearance, but it was, again at the expense of team ball, flow and movement - it was almost entirely one on one (I do remember one nice assist from him).
Its chicken and egg with Love right now. He needs shots to fall and he needs more confidence out there. One moment I liked was in the second quarter where Kevin planted himself on the left elbow. He was a second early and I wasn't sure what he was doing until Miller grazed his side, ran his guy into Love, took two steps out to the three point line, took a pass from Foye and drained an open jumper. Nice work by Love.
Britt, I vigourously disagree with your point on Bassy. It seems like a cheap shot indeed.
Yes, he bricked an open jumper (the only shot he took). But he also played a big part in building the lead in the second period with solid defense and excellent floor generalship-setting up the offense and getting everybody the looks that Foye just doesn't have the recognition to create.
I think the Wolves were down about three when Bassy came in and had a mid single digit lead when he went back to the bench. I may be wrong, but the Wolves bench, led by Bassy, really took over in the second.
Bassy made a couple of unforced mistakes in the fourth. But what about Foye's terrible foul on the fast break, where he had no chance at all break up the play? Or the travel after which Al rightfully wanted to throw him into the third row? Or his turnover in first period? The matador defense on Miller, which you did note? The 0-5 jumpshooting, which included an airball? The two successive bricks from the exact same spot behind the arc?
If you can honestly say that based on Foye's getting a few layup buckets, he was the better playmaking PG last night, I'd love to hear your case. order.
man, did jefferson take that game on his shoulders or what? there is your key to victory any night - the star player wanting the ball and wanting (and able) to will his team to victory down the stretch and on the blocks - i grew up a sixers fan in PA and can tell you that a low post scorer with a will to win can carry a fourth quarter more often than not (see: malone, moses and barkley, charles) and big al's supporting cast is better than most of sir charles' playoff teams in philly (softie armon gilliam, injured johnny dawkins, old rick mahorn, et al) while maybe possibly a tad less talented than the early 80's sixers roster - i don't know, maybe foye, mccants and miller do match up well with cheeks, toney and erving - hard to say).
ok, enough nostalgia - point is, al jefferson willed the wolves to victory - and most promising is the postgame glare and fist pumps that seem to say "this is how we're going to do this, through me" and especially the matter-of-fact quotes about how the coach and team got it right by going through him down the stretch - wouldn't be a bad thing for jefferson to be the one calling out and on the rest of the team to step it up and to do so through him. he's the only wolve in position to be unquestioned by teammates or even the coach - any sustained winning by team this year wil be on al's shoulders, me thinks. i hope he continues to lead the way.
Great points, Tom. (and as always, great recap, Britt.)
Everybody gets down on everybody when the team is 1-8, but Jefferson has played really good ball, this year. He is absolutely right to want the offense running through him in the 4th Quarter.
Man, I hope tomorrow night is a good game. In all likelihood, it'll be the only packed house of the year.
If you had told me that Craig Smith was capable of getting 25 minutes of playing time without getting a single rebound, I'd say you're crazy. But there it is, right next to his 21 points.
I'm a big Craig fan, but even I recognize his weakness on D, which is why I was very surprised to see the Wolves go to him when things started to fall apart. Not that we had much of a choice - Collins wasn't producing, and Love's tentative play was paralyzing our offense. Craig and Al were the only truly aggressive players on the court to close out the fourth.
Surprised to see you didn't mention the stellar D of Gomes - as weak as this Philly team is, it's a tough cover for just about everyone involved. I thought Gomes and the rest of the Wolves played great D on some very tough matchups.
Not sure what you're trying to say with the "confidence as spin" idea, but I thought the team played much more confidently last night - of course there were some obstacles (like the presence of Corey Brewer, who only really succeeds when the team is confident, and last night he did not). But I felt like if Al and Craig got enough touches we would win, as we had the right personnel behind them (Gomes and Miller). I didn't like the play of Foye much (can't really put my finger on it, but a Rashad-like 3-point attempt comes to mind), but that can be overlooked considering he only took one shot in the fourth.
Settling For Jumpers--
It sincerely makes me feel good that Bassy has someone like you to protect his back--I'd guess 80-90% of your comments are in praise and/or defense of the man. And Bassy has been a very pleasant surprise overall since his arrival, for which he has been rewarded with a contract.
My take on last night's game is that this team continues to have a real problem at point guard. You were correct to dwell as much on Foye's foibles as Bassy's strengths. Both of them are proving to be woefully incomplete for the multifaceted demands of the position. Let me just point out that by most any objective measurement--assist-to-turnover ratio, plus/minus, field goals, rebounds, steals--that neither Telfair nor Foye was appreciably better than the other. The only reason I didn't call out Foye as well as Bassy is because the 8 dimes in 14:14 would cause mere box score watchers to think that Bassy deserved much more playing time. I disagree. That doesn't make me a Foye-lover or a Bassy-hater. Just, in my opinion, a realist.
Is it wrong that, deep down, I was hoping for another loss expecting that it might be the straw that broke the camel's back leading to a coaching change? With the win, I expect Wittman will have another 2-3 week reprieve as the schedule is so difficult, I am sure no one has much expectation for victory.
Jefferson's performance last night was excellent, but as I watched I started to wonder if you really could build a team around him. I watched him make some very difficult shots in traffic that demonstrate his strength. But at the same time, did you notice how wide open teammates were - at places on the floor where the shots were not nearly as difficult? Jefferson, save for the final pass to Miller for the game winning 3, never looked to any teammate. He reminded me of his mentor - one Kevin McHale - who was considered one of the biggest black holes in the NBA in the 1980's. Which is OK, as long as you have Larry Bird on your team making everyone else a better player. But we have no Bird on our roster. A big thing to watch as the season unfolds is can Jefferson can make his teammates better?
Great run by the Rhino last night taking advantage of a favorable match up. I thought Foye played very well too - though it looked to me that he is trying maybe a little too hard to change his game into being a classic point.
Part of me thinks that Shaddy's injury was a blessing in disguise. McCants easily could've jacked up a few quick misses that are as good as turnovers which could've led to Philly transition baskets and turned the game the other way. That happened a lot during the first nine games of the season. To his credit, Shaddy did look pretty good in his 6 minutes last night, but the team looks steadier and more in harmony without him out there doing his one man dance.
I agree with the above poster that Bassy looked relatively solid during his time on the court. I'll always advocate that we need a point guard on the floor, and Bassy is eons ahead of Foye in that regard. The offense runs more smoothly when he is playing and he creates openings that lead to buckets, whereas Foye plods up, flips it to the wing, and runs away from the ball, basically relieving himself of further point guard duties on each possession (leaving us without a pg except for the first 7 seconds of the shot clock when Foye is dribbling up the court). In contrast, Bassy works the ball in and out and finds good passing angles and lanes, something Foye hasn't learned to do, which is why so many of his passes end up hitting his teammates' knees or getting deflected.
I hope Foye keeps improving, but my favorite lineup is includes a Bassy-Foye backcourt. I wouldn't mind starting those two and sliding Miller to SF. Miller isn't quick enough to defend SGs, but he is big enough to guard SFs. And I don't see the point of starting Gomes at the SF, though I know a lot of people here really like him, so I'd like to get their input on why he would be a superior starter at the three rather than an ultimate role player/glue guy off the bench. Starting Bassy/Foye/Miller and bringing Gomes off the bench would squeeze Brewer for minutes, but that's happening anyway because Smith is getting so many minutes. I doubt Wittman is done experimenting with lineups, but I'm wondering what others think our best one is (or will be).
Britt, I think you've identified the problem with "Big Ball" - Jason Collins is not a very good basketball player. One of the reasons why I wasn't very excited about the Mayo trade was that I had never really seen much to be enthusiastic about from Collins. I accept the argument that it's nice to have a big body in there, but when that body doesn't provide much beyond a few fouls, I wonder whether it's worth more than the value that could be derived from a smaller, scrappier lineup (maybe one including Love). I know that people here have advocated long and fervently for an end to small ball, but doesn't that require a competent center?
I think it's easier to find an all-around good player than a guy who can do one thing really well, and jefferson is the closest thing to an unstoppable player on offense that the Wolves have ever had. His game has holes, but he consistently creates short shots for himself. That's why I'd rather have him than David West or LaMarcus Aldridge. A 2-4 footer is a higher-percentage shot than a 12-18 footer, and when it comes down to it, really good teams have to have a guy like that.
On another note, does anyone know what the team's plans are for this 20th anniversary thing happening before Friday's game?
I actually agree that Bassy played basically the right amount of minutes. Maybe I would have given him five more minutes. But right now, if the strategy is to go through Jefferson in crunchtime, which makes the most sense, Foye is the better option because he IS a better scorer.
It's true I am a huge Bassy fan and have been since I covered him in high school.
My other thoughts:
Jefferson's midrange has added a whole new dimension to the offense.
Love is a great rebounder, but is contributing little else right now. He does a poor job getting his feet in position to score.
I don't see what Brewer is bringing to the table. His minutes should be reduced.
Gomes is Gomes
I like what Miller has brought, especially on the boards and his passing. He is a poor man's Paul Pierce.
Glad to see Witt re-insert Foye into the starting lineup. Although Foye doesn't look the part, he is our best option at PG. He's a better rebounder, shooter, and defender than Telfair. And I'm seeing improvement in his passing. All you have to do is look at the +/- figures from last season and this season to figure out that he is the better of two mediocre options at PG. For although Telfair looks the part, his stature and inability to shoot overwhelm whatever goodness comes out of his pure PG abilities. The numbers prove this out.
We still need a singular backcourt talent, but I'm perfectly comfortable with letting Foye continue to learn and grow as our PG this season. At minimum, it will improve his value as a 6th man combo guard of the future.
I heard for the 20th anniversary we're going to be starting Oliver Miller at C and subbing him out with Stojko Vrankovic so that both can get the final standing ovations they deserve.
Just kidding. I'll be drinking 40s with JR Rider at the bus stop.
Actually, current team chaplain of the Atlanta Hawks, Andrew Lang, will bless the Wolves franchise, ensuring a #1 overall pick, and perhaps euthanize Calvin Booth!
Spud Webb and William Avery will also be on hand to teach height!
Wittman gets the axe and is replaced by the great Jimmy Rodgers!
Felipe Lopez will teach our young rookies how to reach their potential!
We'll learn lessons about overstaying one's welcome with guest speaker Anthony Peeler!
James Hollywood Robinson will teach Mike Miller how to meet a shot he likes!
Special guest Flip Saunders will be on hand - his topic, "Babies and bathwater - proper disposal techniques!"
The night concludes with the First Annual Ultimate Tweener competition, featuring Craig Smith, Reggie Slater, and Gary Trent!
Okay, I'll stop. Go Wolves!
Also, Tod Murphy will be on hand to mow Randy Breuer's neck.
A few things:
This game was both the blueprint and the anti-blueprint to success. On one hand, the Wolves finally settled into something of a gameplan: 3 quarters of up-tempo ball that allowed the Wolves role players to get involved and be effective followed by 1 quarter (actually 8 minutes) of Jefferson, Miller, and Foye. On the other hand, they almost lost because they couldn't rebound with Smith out there and they handed away another 1st quarter by starting Collins over Love. Rotations are still an issue with this team...even when they get the general idea correct.
Why is it that rookies get yanked around on the Wolves? Watching Portland and Chicago last night they had Rose, Oden, and Batum in the starting lineups. They looked confident and they didn't get jerked around if they sneezed or looked in the wrong direction. Love should be starting and finishing. The end. Brewer should be getting defensive minutes down the stretch. The end. Both of these guys need at least 25 regular minutes in regular rotations so their confidence isn't jerked around. I get that Witt is coaching for his job but fans are watching for the future and it's getting tiring watching the young players get screwed with.
Tall ball doesn't work with this squad because they are basketball piranhas. Guys like Miller, Gomes, Brewer, McCants, Telfair, and Love perform better in an up tempo environment and Foye can't run a 1/2 court offense. Since they don't have Golden State type gazelles to fill in the blanks, there's really no middle ground between tall and small ball with this personnel.
In the 'credit where credit is due' department, Foye played his best point of the year last night and Witt, for the most part, kept out of the team's way. If Foye can simply get the damn ball to Big Al in the 4th and then run to the other side of the court, he'll be fine. I'm as big of a Bassy fan as anyone but if Foye can simply limit his runs to the rim (mostly self-policed by an almost comical inability to go left) and instead focus on keeping the tempo brisk and being #3 on the pecking order, Bassy should only be used as a backup to increase the pace should it slow too much during the 1st 3 quarters.
As for the Rhino, as Britt mentioned he had zero rebounds and the only reason why Philly was close was because of their rebounding advantage, especially in the early 1st and late 4th. Getting back to the blueprint/anti-blueprint thing, the Wolves aren't going to bridge this gap with 51% shooting and +7 at the line every night. Against the Sacramentos and Golden States of the world they are going to lose if they continue to pretend that Collins is a real starting center and Smith is a real finishing power forward.
Like the poster above, I just see a different team when Bassy is in there. The ball movement is more fluid and the Wolves get higher quality shots on almost every possession. The team simply plays better.
The two two stretches where the Wolves were outplayed last night happened when Bassy was on the bench--in the first quarter and the fourth. He was sent to the bench after two consecutive buckets he set up for Rhino and the Sixers made their comeback after that.
The way I look at it is Bassy, because of his speed and ability to create for others, has a higher ceiling at the position and will reach it if he can improve his jumper. But that won't happen in a Wolves uniform as long as he's only allowed to take three shots a game.
One thing that Craig did well last night, besides scoring, is play some pretty good defense against Elton Brand. I know, Brand still scored 19, but how much of that was in the first quarter, when Al was his main defender? (8 points is the answer.) I thought that both Craig Smith and Kevin Love did a good job of playing Brand straight up, putting a body in front of him, particualarly in transition. That said, we would have been in some trouble if Philly could have hit some free throws. In the end we missed just as many (8), but we took 7 more than they did. I just feel they could have run away with the momentum had they hit more first half free throws. Thanks for taking my input! -O
Re "Just A Fan"'s comments regarding Al Jefferson's game resembling Kevin McHale's game -- but also that McHale had Larry Bird (and a lot of other very good players, not the least of whom was Robert Parish) -- a big RIGHT ON.
A couple of blogs ago, I was roundly shouted down for dissing McHale's All Star career. I don't really care to argue it much, since to actually prove my points would require a huge amount of stat crunching through play-by-plays that are not readily available on the net. But personally, I recall many instances of McHale out on the floor without Bird, and sometimes without Parish, and watching the Celtics melt.
For sake of discussion, let us agree that McHale was surrounded by perennial All-Stars and Hall Of Famers and so his shortcomings were never completely exposed. This is obviously NOT the case for Al Jefferson -- and probably never will be, especially with the Timberwolves.
SnP, I think we're watching completely different games here. Love starting and finishing games? I think he's in a much more ideal situation now coming in after the game has established a tempo. Last night he played decent during his first stint off the bench, and then made rookie mistakes and got yanked in the fourth quarter. If Witt hadn't pulled him and we had lost, I think we'd all be yapping about what a terrible coach Wittman is. Instead, he pulled the fan favorite (he still has that new car smell) and rode the hot hand, which is what many Wolves fans have been begging for.
Brewer, on the other hand, looks to me completely undeserving of minutes. Like Craig Smith, I think Brewer is best utilized in bursts, but for key moments down the stretch, I will gladly give up the flailing limbs of Brewer for the steadiness of Ryan Gomes. Not only that, but Brewer's inability to shoot makes him highly turnover prone during our favorite fourth-quarter activity - making an entry pass to Al Jefferson.
Not to completely pick on you, but Foye has clearly worked on his left hand during the offseason. He didn't go to it last night, but it's not the liability it once was. I can remember one game (maybe against Dallas?) when he went to it once, and my buddy and I looked at each other in disbelief. A few minutes later, it happened again, and I think those might have been Randy Foye's only points of the game. Not that he can really take a guy off the dribble, but it's at least an option if a defender is slow on a rotation.
Love's gotta play 35-40 minutes per night. I don't know whether he's good, average or something worse than that, but we need to figure it out and the only way to do that is by playing him a starter's load of minutes. SnP is right that he should get the same treatment that D-Rose, Mayo, etc are getting. He was a really high pick and he plays for a bad team. Plus, there's evidence that we're a better team with Love on the floor. There's no good reason to sit him--especially for Craig Smith or whatever other non-Jefferson posts that we currently have. The "ride the hot hand" theory is a head-game that works far-less often than it messes with players' minds.
The Wolves win was in spite of Wittman (and helped by McCants absence.) I agree with Stop N Pop that the Wolves need to make their commitment to the youth and ride it out with Love and Brewer on the court for 25+ minutes a night, and in crunch time. A line-up of Jefferson, Love, Miller, Foye and Brewer at the end of the game will make clear that they are the future (as bleak as that future might be.)
P.S. Anton's visualization of the 20th Anniversary bash was great, though I'd like to see Scott Roth and Rick Mahorn in the game.
No need to apologize or explain that you disagree. It's cool.
I think Andre Miller was literally laughing at Foye's inability to go left during last night's game. He was hugging his right arm at almost a 45 degree angle, begging Foye to go left. If an NBA point guard doesn't go left during an entire game while his defender is opening up the entire left 1/2 of the court, then yes...it is a liability. Coincidently, Al's favorite side of the court is the left one. He may have worked on it, but it's still not nearly up to snuff.
As for Love, the Wolves didn't drop a #3 pick and trade what many fans believe to be a star for a guy who is going to back up Craig Smith. Love is now on Randy Wittman's official Corey Brewer rookie minute program. No consistency, no definite roles, no room for small errors, no trust, and let's not forget: no headbands.
Brewer is the only guy on this team with a passing interest in man defense. He can rebound his position better than Gomes. If this team is going to amount for anything in 2 years, this is where you get the kinks out. This is where you find out whether or not he's worth 25 minutes a game. There should be literally zero pressure on guys like Love and Brewer right now. Yet, with the bug-eyed Witt at the end of the bench you can tell that their confidence, security, ability to prepare for certain roles/responsibilities, etc has been Bobby Knighted all the way out of them.
This team is 2-8. They were never going to break .500 this year and everyone on this board knows it. This year was all about developing young players, finding out if the coach could coach, and getting as many draft picks as possible while clearing cap space. In other words, this team is still built to fail and the only way it continues to go in the right direction is if it plays and develops its young talent. No matter what the record or result, Love and Brewer should be starting and finishing. Witt can go coach for his job somewhere else if he is going to sacrifice long term development for 4th quarter benchings because Corey Brewer didn't rotate as quickly as he would have liked on a single play in the 3rd. It's garbage. My goodness, not even dogs go through this kind of obedience training. Someone needs to get Witt a copy of Cesar's Way. At least the Dog Whisperer puts exercise before discipline.
I agree with the sentiments on Brewer and Love getting more minutes, especially Love.
We were told the Love Jefferson Tandem in the Frontcourt was going to work, by the front office. It has to be given a legitimate chance. Brewer has to at least be splitting the minutes at the shooting guard with Gomes. There are times when Gomes is the better player, but the second Portland game was an obvious opportunity lost for the Wolves and Wittman by not having Brewer out there on Roy inthe 4rth to try and slow him down.
Same thing happened at the Target Center his rookie year when Manu went off on the Wolves and eventually won the game for SA late in the game while Brewer was planted firmly on the bench.
Jefferson, Love, Brewer and Foye have to learn to play together as a unit. This year should be dedicated to it. Miller also getws major minutes and that doesn't leave many left if Gomes is splitting time with Brewer. McCants has to have some set minutes each night to either show he can provide a spark off the bench or demonstrate he has little to contribute.
For Smith, Collins and even Telfair, minutes should be hard to come by. Not because they are bad players but because we have to see whether Foye/Love/Brewer/Jefferson are the future. Collins and Telfair get time to see how things look with a big guys out there for extended periods against certain lineups and Telfair to see how things look with a real PG. But neither Collins and Telfair are the answer and neither is Smith, in my opinion.
The rest of the minutes need to be hard to come by for the remainder of the roster. Gomes
I looked at the box scores at ESPN on the key, competitive games last night. Detroit/Cleveland, Toronto/Miami, etc. Would anyone find it surprising that the 5 starters averaged 33 min and 6th and 7th players averaged 25. Most played an 8th and 9th guy, but for barely 10 minutes each. This is how the strong teams rotate their players.
Wittman needs to do the same with Al, Love, Brewer, and Foye in the 30 minute role. That still leaves some serious minutes for Gomes/Miller/Smith based on match ups. It also leaves Telfair and McCants in very limited supporting roles.
It's not that tough! Ger er done!
I'll sorta respectfully disagree on the notion of playing Kevin Love for 30mins each night.
- Love is a rookie, and needs time to adjust to the NBA's schedule including travel and the much higher number of games.
- Love is a bit overweight, making him play starter's minutes is going to put more wear on his body than necessary and heighten the potential for serious injury.
- Extended minutes with Love and Jefferson together is basically saying that Jefferson is *the* center for the Wolves -- which means that virtually every night the Wolves will be outmanned at both the 5 and 4 spots.
- That there will no significant interior defense -- which means that the Wolves would be relying on the likes of Foye, McCants, Telfair, and Miller to prevent penetration from the perimeter.
- That the Wolves front office (and by extension, their coach) want to lose.
That's how I see it.
SnP - I definitely agree that Brewer needs consistent minutes, especially late in games when the Wolves have the lead and need a defensive presence. There's just no excuse for not using your best defender in those situations.
As for Craig Smith, as I wrote on the TWolvesBlog, I think that he is valuable to this team right now primarily because he understands his own strengths and limitations and is confident enough to play to his strengths night in and night out. I agree that he shouldn't be playing down the stretch when the Wolves need rebounding and defense, but between the late 1st quarter and the middle of the 4th, I think he can actually be a huge asset. He didn't get any rebounds last night (I'm still not sure how that happened), but he did actually keep a few balls alive that turned into Wolves possessions, and don't overlook the value of his ability to get to the FT line. Right now, the Rhino is second in FTA's only to Big Al, despite playing half as many minutes per game. He also has more than double the number of FTA's than Mike Miller, in half the minutes played. I agree that he shouldn't be out there too much, but he does bring some good things to the table here...
Kinda surprised at the lack of discussion on this game after the flood of posters after every loss. I'm not a bubble-headed optimist by any means, but it's surprising that so many are quick to indict after a loss yet won't engage in discussion after a win (albeit an ugly one) against a team that will win more games than the Wolves this season and probably be in the playoffs.
I'd like to see them come up with a better late-game set that forces the opposing guard to cover Foye instead of sitting in Jefferson's lap. Maybe the best thing they could do is not start the possession with Jefferson getting the ball right away. One way or another, the guy trying to pass to Jefferson in the post has to be a threat.
Levi, if Love can't handle the number of minutes, the team can still improve the quality of his 20-25. Beginning, middle, and end. That's where he should be at the very minimum.
Wtd3, I think Smith is a very nice player and he could be a very nice backup on a team that needed some energy off the bench with an undersized scoring 4. With Jefferson and Love, it just seems like this team needs an athletic guy who can play both the 4/5 in a pinch off the bench and who is more focused on defense and rebounding...a Jason Thompson, Joakim Noah, Sean Williams type of guy.
PSR: they did come up with a few well-placed sets down the stretch where Foye would dump the ball to Jefferson and run through to the opposite side of the court bringing his defender with him. If his guy doubled, the ball could get kicked out and around. On Miller's 2 big shots, he was doubled by Iggy or Young, both of whom were on him at the time. I think in late-game situations we'll see this a lot: Foye simply bringing the ball up and dumping it low before cutting through the lane with his man towards the other side of the court and Gomes or Brewer...whomever is in at the time. Ideally, they sit Love on the high post opposite Jefferson and force the double to come from either him or Miller, leaving open two easy passing lanes to guys who can make those shots.
That was a game that I kind of expected the Wolves to win, because it was a classic case of "we're not as bad as people think" and "they're not as good as people think". It sounds like Kool Aid drinking to say the Wolves really could have another few wins without much change, so I won't say that...I'll just say that I don't expect them to continue to lose those kinds of games at such a high pace for the rest of the season, and that I dalso don't expect them to lose 8 of every 10 games for the whole season.
That said, tonight is another game that could be a sneaky win for the Wolves. When you consider the "trap game" element of the Celts just coming off a big win over main rival Detroit, that the Wolves are coming off a confidence-building win, the playing-the-ex-team motivations, the young Wolves are at home where a stretch of good play could build confidence quickly, and that both games last season were super-tight...wouldn't be shocked with pretty much any result tonight, including a Wolves win.
A Wolves win wouldn't surprise me, but neither would a Celtics blowout win. Boston is going to shoot a lot of jumpshots, like last year's matchups, and if Pierce & Allen are as cold as those two games, we'll be right in it. If Pierce plays like he did in the playoffs, we probably won't be in it.
Speaking of Pierce, I watched him a little bit last night and it got me thinking about Kevin Love. During last year's playoffs, I couldn't believe how much damage The Truth was doing with such (relatively) slow feet. He's not quick, and doesn't jump all that high, but his "small-area quickness" or whatever the hell McHale calls it, is good and he knows how to use his body when he gets just a 1/2 step on his man. There aren't many examples of unathletic superstars, but I guess PP is one I'd point to in the discussions regarding Kevin Love's potential and whether he can become a star without graceful moves or big bursts of speed. It gives a little hope. And don't mistake what I'm saying for Kevin Love being as athletic as Paul Pierce, but for his position I think the two are comparably (un)athletic.
Re: Pierce. I understand the point that you were making, but there are a couple of holes in the comparison that makes it difficult for me to relate the two situations.
1) Pierce's size with respect to wings is much better than Love's with respect to big men. Pierce is taller and/or physically stronger than the vast majority of wings, whereas there are very few big men that Love will have that advantage over. So even if you completely leave athleticism aside, Pierce still has many advantages that Love will never have.
2) Pierce's actual athleticism is underrated. While he isn't textbook uber-athlete, we're still talking about a guy that battled Vince Carter in the slam dunk contest when they were entering college. And Pierce has a few highlight reel dunks every year just to seemingly remind people he could do it more often if he wanted to. Pierce's game relies more on technique and angles because that's what works best for him, but there is athleticism in reserve (even with respect to other wings) that he calls on sometimes that I don't think Love shares (with respect to other bigs).
Bottom line: if we ranked size + athleticism for all wings in the NBA, I think Pierce would be in the upper quartile despite his old-man's game. On the other hand, it looks like Love would be in the lower quartile in that combination among big men. I can see the comparison with the thought that Love will also need to rely more on technique and angles, but I think it breaks down a bit when you consider that Pierce really has some physical advantages over many of his opponents that Love just doesn't.
It's an easy comparison to break down and criticize, which is why I tried to qualify it and limit it to just an example of a great player that lacks speed or quickness. Pierce jumps ok, and has the occasional nice dunk. The big dunks I've seen from PP, though, are made flashier by hanging and climbing on the rim/slapping the backboard/screaming, etc, and definitely not big elevation on his way to the hoop. Plus, we were all told that K-Love has 35" hops. I'm still waiting to see those:)
Small. Area. Quickness. :)
Re Andy G: my point wasn't to be critical of you, it was just to point out that the comparison doesn't necessarily fit IMO. Even if you don't feel that Pierce is athletic, the key difference is that he is bigger and/or stronger than just about anyone that he faces. It'd be the equivalent of if Love were a 7-footer, as then his athletic shortcomings wouldn't be nearly as impactful. Unless he hits a growth spurt (cross fingers, he's still young) I really don't see the Pierce comp as being one that really fits.
FYI for everyone: over at Hoopus we're going to be keeping track of the team's stats at 10 game intervals. You can catch the 1st breakdown here:
http://www.canishoopus.com/2008/11/21/667090/after-10
If you guys think we need to add anything, let us know so we can add it right away and keep track over the year. We're also comparing a few stats to how the team performed last year.
Tonight, I expect the possible extremes from KG: Either 25-15 with 3-4 blocks or 11 points on 3-12 shooting. He'll be playoff-level hyped up. It'd be a great game to watch live; I just refuse to help Papa Glen profit from the biggest front-office bungling of a superstar's career in the last 20 years.
I understand the comparison between Love and Pierce, but I don't agree with it. The difference is what others have pointed out - Pierce is much bigger than other wings and is good at creating "shot space" where his shot just can't be bothered. I've watched plenty of hoops in my day, and he's one of those players that I cannot figure out - every time he scores 25 I think, "That must be a career high for him, he's never been that hot before," and then he does it the next night.
So is it just me, or is there much less hype surrounding this game than there was last year for Garnett's sweater-wearing appearance? He's actually playing this time!
I'm really excited for this one, though I'm not sure how we're going to handle KG. I like the Gomes-Pierce matchup for us, as Gomes is one of the few players that Pierce won't be able to outmuscle. And don't even think about Brewer on him, though Brewer could be effective on Ray Allen for a short while if he gets hot.
Tonight should be a big night for Al - I'd imagine Perkins will guard him to allow KG to be the help defender. Because of this, I might be willing to overlook my disdain for smallball tonight. Kevin Love or Craig Smith will probably be somewhat effective on the offensive glass (depending on who KG matches up with positionally), and on the other end, Leon Powe is much too quick for Collins to contend with.
Small area quickness? What's that? I think it's funny too, I just don't know what it is. Ahh, McHale. :)
Pierce isn't especially tall for a small forward. 6'7" is about average. Rashard Lewis, Andrea Bargnani, Corey Brewer, Travis Outlaw, Vlad Radmonovich and probably others are taller than Pierce. Pierce is fatter than most NBA small forwards, but that's just another thing he shares in common with Love. Anyway, I hope Love can learn to score and make plays the way that Paul has.
http://www.minnpost.com/steveaschburner/2008/11/21/4782/garnett_gone_fro...
Nice piece by Aschy from Minn Post
Shogun:
We found out that "small area quickness" is actually a term used a lot in lacrosse:
http://www.canishoopus.com/2008/7/22/571970/small-area-quickness
Maybe McHale picked it up at a Swarm game. :)
I just hope it's not the basketball equivalent of "she has a nice personality".
"Yes, 'small area quickness' is a term used in Lacrosse, but definetly not just lacrosse. good for picking up 'loose balls'"
Ha! It's good to know that one of Love's greatest strengths is not JUST useful in lacrosse. Hopefully he uses it to pick up some loose balls tonight!
Thanks for the clarification. :)
The Knicks trade Zach Randolph to the Clippers for Cat Mobley and Tim Thomas. Aside from the implications for these teams, it seems that LAC will want to move either Kaman or Camby to make room for Randolph. Do we make a move for Kaman? What would it take to get him? Would making a move for him be akin to admitting that Love will not have a starting role on this team?
To S&P: College players usually aren't conditioned for the rigors of life in the NBA, especially big men. Sure, there's more than a few examples of guys that came in, played big minutes, maybe even started from Day One. I'll hazard a guess that there are about 5 first round draft choices that are sitting on the end of benches around the league for every one of the big names you think of.
I do agree wholeheartedly that Love's time should be made "quality time". I'd be thinking give him *all* of Jefferson's off-court time (12 minutes). For the rest, put him on the court with Al before Al's regularly scheduled pine time. And then, if there's something that clicked on a given night, 4th quarter "game winning" time.
Shogun - Zach Randolph has just about the same dimensions as Al Jefferson, but I don't think anyone thinks of him as a center. No, I think the Clippers got a bit of an upgrade at PF, while the Knicks got some expiring contracts they need desperately.
Kaman is not "in play" because of this trade. And probably won't be -- he's got a "trade kicker".
If any big man is available from the Clippers this year, Marcus Camby's age and large expiring contract make him the likely choice. RealGM.com tells us that the Wolves could trade Brian Cardinal, Rashad McCants, and Calvin Booth for Camby and meet the Collective Bargaining Agreement rules, but I don't see anything in that deal for the Clippers.
Levi:
I'm watching Golden State and the Bulls right now. Derrick Rose and Anthony Randolph are both in there and getting burn. Love is a de facto #3 pick. He's a Rose, Mayo, Beasley type of guy. He needs to be in there and playing. He's a fantastic player.
Whoa...stop-n-pop...please...stop bogarting the Kool-Aid.
Look, I like Kevin Love quite a bit. And he really looks like he is one of the Wolves' better play makers (which actually just shows us how bad supposed stars Jefferson, Foye, and McCants really are).
But I'm never going to be able to call him a fantastic player as a PF in the NBA. His brains, work ethic, and feel for the game simply cannot overcome the 3-6 inches he lacks in the scrum underneath the basket. Not to mention his apparent lack of jumping ability. And speed? Forget it.
Love's rookie year life in the NBA? I think Ruesse's column following last night's Boston game sums it up:
- http://www.startribune.com/sports/wolves/34915499.html
- Rookie Kevin Love entered with 6 1/2 minutes remaining in the third quarter. Celtics coach Doc Rivers showed a bit of a sadistic streak and had Garnett spend some of that time guarding Love.
The poor kid was giving away 5 inches, plus jumping ability, plus quickness. This left him a foot low and two steps slow on both halves of the court.
What Reusse left out was that in that 6:37 minute stint, the Wolves were -18, Kevin Love missed the only shot he took, got two personal fouls. Wait! He did get a rebound. Whew.
I agree with Levi. Although it's too early to tell what Love will bring to the team in the long-term, it's clear that in the first 11 games he has looked disappointing far more than he has looked like a competent NBA player. Part of the problem is that he's always floating on the perimeter. I watched the Celtics game on League Pass last night and as a result, my only choice was to tune into the Boston telecast. Their announcers spent a good deal of the time Love was in the game talking about how uncomfortable he looked on the perimeter and how physically overmatched he looked on the interior. It was obvious they hadn't seen him play before and didn't know much about him, but I think that hearing some basketball commentators' reactions, free from any pre-conceived ideas about Love, was useful for gauging what reasonably intelligent but uniformed basketball people would think when seeing Love. And I think they identified the basic problems. This isn't to say that he couldn't be a fine NBA player, but at this point it doesn't look good.
Another comment that stuck with me from the Boston telecast was the announcers' consensus on Foye, whom they were familiar with from his Villanova days: "I'm sure Randy Foye is a fine player, I've just never seen him play well."
A major problem so far is that we've gotten extremely little production from Foye, McCants, and Love so far this year. Those are guys we're depending on to score buckets for us, and none looks capable of doing so consistently. Shaddy can score some when he's shooting at high volumes, but that isn't much more efficient than when Foye jacks a lot of shots.
I will say that Love looks much more comfortable in the post than he does on the perimeter, but he rarely gets to play there unless Jefferson isn't in the game, which means we're at a disadvantage already anyway. I disagree with people who say this isn't a problem because we have a better +/- when they're both on the court. The problem is that in misusing Love, i.e., having him run around the perimeter setting screens that usually dont' get used, we're getting far less than full production from him. A goal should be to put each player in a position to contribute to his full potential in a way that helps the team. I'm not sure how we're going to do that with Al and Kevin on the floor at the same time. Call me a gloomy Gus, but I'm not sure what strategy Wittman could turn to in order to help Love get over his yips.
A smart poster over on Zgoda's blog, "Bryan," posted the following comment on Love. I find that I agree with much of what he's saying. It gets at what I wrote in the last paragraph of my previous post. His comment below:
"Also I want to comment on Kevin Love:
One of the things that’s been bothering me isn’t that Mayo has been doing better (because he’s not a better player, he’s just in a better system), but rather that Love’s biggest strength coming into the draft was that he was NBA ready and would contribute a lot immediately. Which he hasn’t done much of so far.
But here’s the thing…I realized tonight, watching him be the go to guy in garbage time, that it’s not him.
This is the first time in his career at any level where he has not been THE MAN on the team. This is obviously Al Jefferson’s team, and will pretty much always be until Al is gone. And I don’t think Love knows how to adjust his game to that.
It’s kind of like Melo and Iverson….two extremely talented players, but both used to being the go to guy on the team. They were operating in the same airspace on the floor and trying to do the same things for the team and as good as they both were, they couldn’t make it work. And I think that’s the problem Love and Al have right now, which is just another indication that McHale isn’t a good judge of talent and doesn’t know how to blend it together (I mean, in hindsight, would any of us really say that KG and Wally were a dynamic duo?)
I really believe that, had Love remained with the Grizzlies, he’d be a 15-8 player right now. He is NBA ready, he’s just out of position and being misused. And as long as Al is here (and there’s no way I’d pick Love over Al), that’s not going to change."
I think this is a case of misunderestimation....or something like that. I said Love was a top 5 pick a'la Rose, Beasley, and Mayo.
I don't get how that's drinking kool aid, but the 20 year old is 11 games into his rookie season and he just went up against a future hall of famer that we're all very well acquainted with and got torched.
He's running in a system that doesn't seem to be geared towards its personnel and the guy at the end of the bench has a sub .333 career winning percentage. Despite all of this, he's playing a style he did not play in college and he has an average PER, above average rebound and assist rates for his position, he has shown the ability to make some moves off the dribble, and he gets to the line as well as or better than anyone on the team.
This is the 1st pick they've made in quite a while where the guy actually looks like he knows what to do this early in his career.
Reussseeeeee also could have written that KG probably grew tired of holding Big Al to a -15 at the beginning of the 3rd before he switched over to Love and made him go -18. Big Al went 1-3 with zero rebounds during that stretch. Come on now. That "poor kid" fared about as well as the Wolves' star player. Reusseeeee wrote Love off before he played a regular season game. He once called women's basketball "synchronized tip-toeing". At this point in his career he's simply looking for Katherine Kersten style bombast.
Reusssseeeee's take on Love should be put out to pasture along with the guy who wrote it.
Well, I guess we found out what Big Al's future trade value is....Tim Thomas and Cutino Mobley.
Can we please cut our losses on this guy before the rest of the league figures out how overrated he is? There is probably still time to get some useful assets, but it won't be long.
While were at it...what purpose does Mike Miller serve? Can someone remind me why we are taking minutes from our young guys to give to this no defense playing, spot up shooting, veteran stiff. Veteran leadership, no. Winning more games, clearly not.
Blech.
Al has a lot less baggage than Randolph. He's also younger and still improving, zach randolph's production is likely only to decline.
Also, Mike Miller is more than a one dimensional player like you describe. His perimter defense isn't the best, but he plays defense with effort. He also grabs a good number of rebounds. And, on offense, he's a relatively skilled passer.
Who would we play instead of him anyway?
Foye is already getting minutes.
McCants is injured, plays defense about as well or worse than miller, and ends up becoming a one dimensional shooter much of the time anyway.
Brewer plays better defense and is even a better rebounder, but he turns the ball over a lot and his shooting woes let the defense collapse on our post scoring.
I would like to see brewer play 40 minutes a game though. He's got a very coachable attitude, amazing energy, and a need for a lot of experience. Perhaps he could develop into a bruce bowen type player except without the dirty play.
I think though, it can be counter-productive to avoid playing veterans because playing with basketball savvy veterans is a great way for younger players to learn to play at a pro level. Playing with other younger and less savvy players might even teach an inexperienced player bad habits.
Awww, stop-n-pop, I was just reacting to your position that Kevin Love is a "fantastic player". I simply have to reserve that designation for guys like Magic, Bird, Jordan, Garnett, Duncan, Tony Parker. I suppose I might even include Kobe Bryant if he ever learns team basketball. Realistically, I don't see Love ever making it into that category. A fine player, yes, hopefully one that can make an impact on the league and that we'll enjoy watching.
And I'm no Reusse fan at all, but in this case, he hit the nail on the head.
Agreed, we all can see that the Wittman "system" if there actually is such a concept, does not utilize Love's potential.
I'll disagree strongly that time should be apportioned by what other high draft picks in other situations, at other positions, are getting.
Dear yuck -- that was funny. Sad, but funny. It should be noted that SG Mardy Collins was part of the deal (cancelling Mobley) so perhaps you might theorize that Jefferson's trade value is dangerously close to Tim Thomas's expiring contract.
Ouch.
Now, on to Mike Miller, I think you're all wet on that one. My take (and I concentrate my viewing off the ball) is that he is a solid team player. What makes him look relatively bad is that this is not a solid team. Mike plays the "D", he spaces well, he drifts into open spaces, he passes for effect, he eschews bad shots, he hustles and dives for loose balls. But he is simply not a great 1-on-1 defender, nor a 1-on-1 offensive shot creator.
He's the player that Flip Saunders (forget Kevin McHale) wishes that Wally Szczerbiak had been. Sure, Mike often needs screens set for him and open shots, but he (IMHO) plays defense and is not a liability handling the ball. Miller is definitely *not* the weak link that Phil Jackson attacked in the playoffs.
He's not Dwayne Wade? Whaddya want for the money Glen Taylor is willing to play?
Levi:
I hear what you're saying and with the history of the Wolves' picks I can sympathize with not wanting playing time to be doled out simply on the basis of whether or not someone got picked in the first round or not, but the Wolves hopefully won't have too many more 3rd picks and with the way they have developed their previous picks, I guess I'd just like to see a bit more trust given to the guy. They're a 2-9 team on the rebound and they should have very little to lose.
If it's just a semantic thing with Love, perhaps we can agree that he is a solid rookie with lots of potential.
As for Miller, I think there is definitely something to be said about him being effective in relation to the effectiveness of the team. In the 4th quarter against Portland and down the stretch against Philly, he's the only thing on this squad keeping a triple team off of Jefferson. He is providing some value; I guess it's just frustrating that he doesn't force things a bit more...especially when some of their other perimeter players force the ball when they don't have his ability to score.
I'm going to make an early season prediction that the snake bit Wolves will finally land the 1st pick in the draft and they will end up with Blake Griffin. Rubio will be unavailable to them either by his agent's pressure or by his pro squad's contract buyout. The team will then have taken 2 undersized 4s (albeit good ones) in the last 2 drafts...nicely bookending the KG trade with their 2 undersized combo guards taken in the prior 2 years. Also, they will find a way to draft Tyler Hansborough.
This is the starting line up I'm projecting for next year because what the wolves need are basketball players not players who can play a position.
point guard-kevin love
shot guard-craig smith
"small" forward-Blake Griffin
"Power" forward-Tyler Hansborough/ryan gomes
"Center"-Al Jefferson
The wolves offense will consist of Kevin Love throwing an outlet pass to Al Jefferson, who will be sitting in the offensive post for the entire game. Al Jefferson will then use his post moves to score or if there aren't enough men guarding him to make a really impressive shot over he will pass it to craig smith. Craig Smith will then dribble around with the ball until the other team draws a charge while kevin love tries to set picks for him. The other three players will simultaneously be trying to position themselves in the post.
On Defense, Al Jefferson will still be standing in the offensive post. Blake Griffin will sit in the paint drawing lane infractions while tyler hansborough and kevin love commit personal fouls in an attempt to make up for their lack of lateral quickness and height with hand checking and reaching. As the other four players are doing these things, Craig Smith will work on positioning himself for letting the other team grab offensive rebounds.
Now I see Kevin McHale's ultimate plan, to build a squad to replace the washington generals. Patrick Reusse will follow the team around and make sarcastic and whiney articles complaining about how the team never seems to beat the Globetrotters. He will pride himself on not being a homer and wallow in his lack of hope for the team's prospects. When Jefferson scores 140 points to beat the trotters, Reusse will mock him for only getting twenty offensive rebounds and never passing out of double teams and point out that the globtrotters are a bunch of rejects.
:)
Very well done.
Yeah, Collin, I have to give that props too. It's all so clear now what "The Blueprint" really is. :)
Levi,
Regarding my "all wet" analysis of Miller's value. I probably discredited myself a bit by calling him a stiff. That was the anger talking.
I realize he could be a valuable cog on the right team. We agree on that point.
However, this isn't "the right team". He is not a leader, and he hasn't even been a consistent starter on the bad teams that he has played for throughout his career. Why do we expect him to suddenly turn into a veteran leader and starting 2 guard here?
If we were a team with legitimate playoff designs, then yes, Miller could be a nice guy to bring off the bench for 20 min of shooting every night.
We clearly aren't there, and won't be there for at least another year or two (minimum). The team would be better served by giving these minutes to Foye, McCants, Brewer, and hell, even Carney.
Sadly, we are already at the point in the season where we should be "losing with youth". Let's see what these young guys can do with consistent, big minutes. We are going to lose a lot of games regardless, we may as well try to develop our young assets.
While I wait for Britt's new thread to show up with a summary of the weekend events, I just have to say I almost was ready to completely write this team off after Friday. KG was everything he was as a Timberwolf and everything he has been since as a Celtic and his presence at the Target Center was a horrific reminder of what a terrible and catastrophic sequence of events that led to his trade for a list of mediocre talent.
Then, last night, we finally get to see what the new Wolves, without KG, can be when they are firing on all cylinders. Randy Foye making shots and passing to players who are also making shots. Randy Foye may not be a point guard, but he can be a decent player. He might not ever be as good as Brandon Foye, but he can start in the NBA. He is not as good a shooter as he was last night and neither are his teammates, but he can have nights like that 4 or 5 times a season and less nights like he had against Boston along with his teammates.
Last night was fun to watch. Its fun to see the ball go in the hoop.
And, Yuck, Let me also say that Miller was very effective last night with the young players. He made all the good shots he was looking for and also grabbed all kinds of rebounds while moving the ball and getting assists. In addition, he took the ball upcourt and functioned as the Point guard next to Foye on several possessions. I'd say, if we forget about the previous games at least, Mike Miller was exactly the veteran leader we needed last night.
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