Camden wrote:It should have been mentioned on the broadcast that Minnesota was 2-2 against Memphis this season. They were two meltdowns -- or two fourth quarter comebacks -- away from being 4-0 against the Grizzlies.
This is all to say that Minnesota's played Memphis very well this year and shouldn't be an easy first-round opponent despite it being a No. 2 vs. No. 7 matchup. If the Wolves can just slow down Tyus Jo-- err, Ja Morant, and not get absolutely hammered on the glass, then I think they have a solid chance of getting the series upset.
To go along with that wolves have defended Ja really well this season. KOC said today that the Wolves run a blitz style of defense against PnRs and Ja has been the 2nd least effective against this defense out of 18 players who have had 250 opportunities
Right, this is the matchup where not playing drop coverage and having the big "at the level" has paid off the most.
I have this series as pretty even. One thing that's interesting about this series is neither team has an experience advantage. Each team has a valued vet with plenty of playoff experience and that's mostly it. Both teams are high scoring, high pace squads that do play defense. Both teams have coaches that have really done well. It should be a fun series to watch regardless if you are a fan of either franchise.
I keep seeing/hearing this and I disagree.
Memphis won two games in the play-in tournament last season, including an OT win on the road in a do-or-die game vs. Golden State when Morant scored 35 points.
And then Memphis played 5 games vs. Utah. Morant averaged 30/8.
[Note: The Timberwolves are a year behind in their development. Many of us have been hoping just for the chance to get SOME/ANY playoff experience this season. Memphis did all that last year and is ready for the next step. It's a significant difference.]
Camden wrote:It should have been mentioned on the broadcast that Minnesota was 2-2 against Memphis this season. They were two meltdowns -- or two fourth quarter comebacks -- away from being 4-0 against the Grizzlies.
This is all to say that Minnesota's played Memphis very well this year and shouldn't be an easy first-round opponent despite it being a No. 2 vs. No. 7 matchup. If the Wolves can just slow down Tyus Jo-- err, Ja Morant, and not get absolutely hammered on the glass, then I think they have a solid chance of getting the series upset.
To go along with that wolves have defended Ja really well this season. KOC said today that the Wolves run a blitz style of defense against PnRs and Ja has been the 2nd least effective against this defense out of 18 players who have had 250 opportunities
Right, this is the matchup where not playing drop coverage and having the big "at the level" has paid off the most.
I have this series as pretty even. One thing that's interesting about this series is neither team has an experience advantage. Each team has a valued vet with plenty of playoff experience and that's mostly it. Both teams are high scoring, high pace squads that do play defense. Both teams have coaches that have really done well. It should be a fun series to watch regardless if you are a fan of either franchise.
I keep seeing/hearing this and I disagree.
Memphis won two games in the play-in tournament last season, including an OT win on the road in a do-or-die game vs. Golden State when Morant scored 35 points.
And then Memphis played 5 games vs. Utah. Morant averaged 30/8.
[Note: The Timberwolves are a year behind in their development. Many of us have been hoping just for the chance to get SOME/ANY playoff experience this season. Memphis did all that last year and is ready for the next step. It's a significant difference.]
You make a good point that Memphis does have an advantage but one playoff series isn't a huge difference. Both teams are still relatively inexperienced.
Camden wrote:It should have been mentioned on the broadcast that Minnesota was 2-2 against Memphis this season. They were two meltdowns -- or two fourth quarter comebacks -- away from being 4-0 against the Grizzlies.
This is all to say that Minnesota's played Memphis very well this year and shouldn't be an easy first-round opponent despite it being a No. 2 vs. No. 7 matchup. If the Wolves can just slow down Tyus Jo-- err, Ja Morant, and not get absolutely hammered on the glass, then I think they have a solid chance of getting the series upset.
To go along with that wolves have defended Ja really well this season. KOC said today that the Wolves run a blitz style of defense against PnRs and Ja has been the 2nd least effective against this defense out of 18 players who have had 250 opportunities
Right, this is the matchup where not playing drop coverage and having the big "at the level" has paid off the most.
I have this series as pretty even. One thing that's interesting about this series is neither team has an experience advantage. Each team has a valued vet with plenty of playoff experience and that's mostly it. Both teams are high scoring, high pace squads that do play defense. Both teams have coaches that have really done well. It should be a fun series to watch regardless if you are a fan of either franchise.
I keep seeing/hearing this and I disagree.
Memphis won two games in the play-in tournament last season, including an OT win on the road in a do-or-die game vs. Golden State when Morant scored 35 points.
And then Memphis played 5 games vs. Utah. Morant averaged 30/8.
[Note: The Timberwolves are a year behind in their development. Many of us have been hoping just for the chance to get SOME/ANY playoff experience this season. Memphis did all that last year and is ready for the next step. It's a significant difference.]
You make a good point that Memphis does have an advantage but one playoff series isn't a huge difference. Both teams are still relatively inexperienced.
I think there's more than a marginal difference between the two...
Camden wrote:It should have been mentioned on the broadcast that Minnesota was 2-2 against Memphis this season. They were two meltdowns -- or two fourth quarter comebacks -- away from being 4-0 against the Grizzlies.
This is all to say that Minnesota's played Memphis very well this year and shouldn't be an easy first-round opponent despite it being a No. 2 vs. No. 7 matchup. If the Wolves can just slow down Tyus Jo-- err, Ja Morant, and not get absolutely hammered on the glass, then I think they have a solid chance of getting the series upset.
To go along with that wolves have defended Ja really well this season. KOC said today that the Wolves run a blitz style of defense against PnRs and Ja has been the 2nd least effective against this defense out of 18 players who have had 250 opportunities
Right, this is the matchup where not playing drop coverage and having the big "at the level" has paid off the most.
I have this series as pretty even. One thing that's interesting about this series is neither team has an experience advantage. Each team has a valued vet with plenty of playoff experience and that's mostly it. Both teams are high scoring, high pace squads that do play defense. Both teams have coaches that have really done well. It should be a fun series to watch regardless if you are a fan of either franchise.
I keep seeing/hearing this and I disagree.
Memphis won two games in the play-in tournament last season, including an OT win on the road in a do-or-die game vs. Golden State when Morant scored 35 points.
And then Memphis played 5 games vs. Utah. Morant averaged 30/8.
[Note: The Timberwolves are a year behind in their development. Many of us have been hoping just for the chance to get SOME/ANY playoff experience this season. Memphis did all that last year and is ready for the next step. It's a significant difference.]
You make a good point that Memphis does have an advantage but one playoff series isn't a huge difference. Both teams are still relatively inexperienced.
I think there's more than a marginal difference between the two...
So what about Towns and Russell playing in a playoff series already in their careers (both struggled)? I really don't see a big difference. Some sure but nothing that makes me think the Grizzlies have some sort of significant advantage. It's not like we are playing a team that's been to the playoffs multiple years in a row and has a coach that's been there some that etc. I stand by that these are two young exciting inexperienced teams (playoffs or otherwise) facing up against each other. We can also agree to disagree that's cool with me.
I think what we can agree on is that Memphis is the better team, regardless of playoff experience. You simply don't become a 2-seed in the West without being really, really, really, really good. So even if you call it even in terms of playoff experience, Memphis is the flat-out better team.
Q-was-here wrote:I think what we can agree on is that Memphis is the better team, regardless of playoff experience. You simply don't become a 2-seed in the West without being really, really, really, really good. So even if you call it even in terms of playoff experience, Memphis is the flat-out better team.
Absolutely right, Q. Memphis is the better team. The Grizzlies won 10 more games than the Wolves. They also finished strong, winning 7 of their last 10. And yes, they are more experienced having just recently (last season) played 5 games in a playoff series against the Jazz. To be fair, Towns, DLO and Beverley all have playoff experience. But KAT and DLO have limited playoff experience and KAT's experience doesn't appear to have had an impact on him.
The Wolves should be competitive in this series. I see them winning a couple games and pushing the series to 6 games. And the Wolves could even win the series. But the Wolves will be underdogs and rightly so.
Agree Lip. I know in the heat of a game thread, we'll exhibit a ton of frustration on the games we lose to Memphis (and ultimately the series). Hopefully we can make it competitive.
But if we take a step back and look at the bigger picture, we truly are playing with house money at this point. 46 wins. One and done play-in win. Legit playoff series coming up. We have met or mostly exceeded all expectations for this season. What a massive year of growth for this franchise!
