I've harped on the Wolves reliance on the mid-range game as much as anybody... but at the same time... I really don't enjoy watching how Houston plays too much.
Hopefully, there's a happy medium. There has to be with KAT, right?
Is it the style that's annoying or the players? I'd argue a significant portion of why Houston is annoying is Harden CP3 and to some extent PJ Tucker. CP3 was plenty annoying as a Clipper. Of course Towns can be annoying too with all his whining and complaining even if some of it is probably justified.
The reality for me is I've heard various Wolves basketball people say they are gonna do more modern things (even going all the way back to David Kahn) and then the change wasn't enough and that's probably being too kind. With Rosas it feels like there is a real possibility that he might actually value the modern game AND know how to implement it because he has been a part of the organization where it started by using their developmental team as a laboratory. It may be worth noting Nick Nurse coached their developmental team for a couple years.
Well, Houston does have the annoying players down...
And personally, I don't find 54% of the shots coming from behind the arc out of isolation plays to be especially appealing... whether that's because of personnel or not... I dunno.
I've ranted previously about how the "stat nerds" have largely destroyed baseball for me. I just saw a stat that there are 49 foul balls vs. only 46 balls in play in the average MLB game this season. I don't want the NBA to follow the rabbit hole toward analytics >> compelling story lines, diversity, characters, chemistry, craziness.
Basketball is a beautiful sport because it can't be tucked away in the corner of your pocket all nice and neat. Or... at least to me. We'll find out if Rosas agrees soon enough. But when I read/hear "it's simple math" and we're talking about a sporting event... I shudder.
I'm a homer and I like the hire. Rosas hasn't said anything bad and in some ways honestly he hasn't said anything particularly mind blowing either. About the only really significant thing in action is his kids coming up during his PC. I'd guess this basketball guy isn't going just be all about basketball.
Back to basketball if we want to take him at his word he SOUNDS more wholistic than just a guy that crunches numbers. He SEEMS human although fairly measured. He has a pretty well rounded amount of experience and seems to have a lot in terms of background when it comes to scouting and the development of young players. Again what makes me believe this isn't some whatever guy sounding good is the reports of him being a guy that's smart collaborative and well rounded are out there. He isn't a guy trying to turn over a new leaf. The question is whether he is the guy that can get the job in the top seat. That's something you can say about every top basket all executive this franchise and quite frankly most franchises bring in.
Meanwhile you are worried about numbers ruining the game and think about how many times you have posted about the absurdity of Towns touches and shots often compared to Andrew Wiggins. Math right? No it's not just math it's also sort of obvious. You hope for a combination. Nobody wants to just throw out considering numbers and go solely by some eye test. I like what Rosas is saying about his plan but we want to see something on the court that shows we are doing something different. I believe we are going to see some progress even next year but it will take time to get wherever we can go. It's obviously not a given though.
Great post, Monster! You pretty much summed up my thoughts.
I am so skeptical at this point. I felt like I didn't hear anything. I understand why. Time will tell. If he wins the lottery for us this year that would be a nice start.
bleedspeed177 wrote:I am so skeptical at this point. I felt like I didn't hear anything. I understand why. Time will tell. If he wins the lottery for us this year that would be a nice start.
Talk is cheap. We've heard it all, 100 different ways. We'll find out eventually if it was a good hire. It might be... hopefully, it is.
One thing that's for certain... the Wolves are going all-in on the optics of the new regime. Whether it's distancing themselves from the hard-nosed, unpopular Thibodeau, or pushing for diversity, or getting input from seemingly everybody, or trotting out a fanbase favorite son.
What it looks like is a pretty big part of recent developments.
bleedspeed177 wrote:I am so skeptical at this point. I felt like I didn't hear anything. I understand why. Time will tell. If he wins the lottery for us this year that would be a nice start.
Talk is cheap. We've heard it all, 100 different ways. We'll find out eventually if it was a good hire. It might be... hopefully, it is.
One thing that's for certain... the Wolves are going all-in on the optics of the new regime. Whether it's distancing themselves from the hard-nosed, unpopular Thibodeau, or pushing for diversity, or getting input from seemingly everybody, or trotting out a fanbase favorite son.
What it looks like is a pretty big part of recent developments.
I agree, Abe. I like the all-in optics of a new regime. But like you, I agree that talk (or optics) is cheap. The proof will be in the substance - i.e., actions. I recall David Kahn saying all the right things. His public comments after he was hired were articulate and upbeat, making him seem smart and solid. Then came his decision-making - Rambis, Flynn, Darko, etc.
bleedspeed177 wrote:I am so skeptical at this point. I felt like I didn't hear anything. I understand why. Time will tell. If he wins the lottery for us this year that would be a nice start.
Talk is cheap. We've heard it all, 100 different ways. We'll find out eventually if it was a good hire. It might be... hopefully, it is.
One thing that's for certain... the Wolves are going all-in on the optics of the new regime. Whether it's distancing themselves from the hard-nosed, unpopular Thibodeau, or pushing for diversity, or getting input from seemingly everybody, or trotting out a fanbase favorite son.
What it looks like is a pretty big part of recent developments.
I agree, Abe. I like the all-in optics of a new regime. But like you, I agree that talk (or optics) is cheap. The proof will be in the substance - i.e., actions. I recall David Kahn saying all the right things. His public comments after he was hired were articulate and upbeat, making him seem smart and solid. Then came his decision-making - Rambis, Flynn, Darko, etc.
Personally, I disliked Kahn's "I'm the smartest man in the room because I use weird, random words with confidence" schtick from the very beginning... but that's an entirely different story.
What a fucking disaster that era was. At least it set the bar so low that no future regime will ever match it. There's literally no way Rosas will be as bad as David Kahn.
There. I said it. I took a very clear, direct stance. Put it in print, people. I'm sticking my neck out on this one.
bleedspeed177 wrote:I am so skeptical at this point. I felt like I didn't hear anything. I understand why. Time will tell. If he wins the lottery for us this year that would be a nice start.
Talk is cheap. We've heard it all, 100 different ways. We'll find out eventually if it was a good hire. It might be... hopefully, it is.
One thing that's for certain... the Wolves are going all-in on the optics of the new regime. Whether it's distancing themselves from the hard-nosed, unpopular Thibodeau, or pushing for diversity, or getting input from seemingly everybody, or trotting out a fanbase favorite son.
What it looks like is a pretty big part of recent developments.
I agree, Abe. I like the all-in optics of a new regime. But like you, I agree that talk (or optics) is cheap. The proof will be in the substance - i.e., actions. I recall David Kahn saying all the right things. His public comments after he was hired were articulate and upbeat, making him seem smart and solid. Then came his decision-making - Rambis, Flynn, Darko, etc.
Personally, I disliked Kahn's "I'm the smartest man in the room because I use weird, random words with confidence" schtick from the very beginning... but that's an entirely different story.
What a fucking disaster that era was. At least it set the bar so low that no future regime will ever match it. There's literally no way Rosas will be as bad as David Kahn.
There. I said it. I took a very clear, direct stance. Put it in print, people. I'm sticking my neck out on this one.
You think too small Abe, this is the Timberwolves. Of course there's a chance that Rosas can be the worst thing that happened to the franchise. How many times have Minnesota fans said "it can't get any worse" and then it does?
bleedspeed177 wrote:I am so skeptical at this point. I felt like I didn't hear anything. I understand why. Time will tell. If he wins the lottery for us this year that would be a nice start.
Talk is cheap. We've heard it all, 100 different ways. We'll find out eventually if it was a good hire. It might be... hopefully, it is.
One thing that's for certain... the Wolves are going all-in on the optics of the new regime. Whether it's distancing themselves from the hard-nosed, unpopular Thibodeau, or pushing for diversity, or getting input from seemingly everybody, or trotting out a fanbase favorite son.
What it looks like is a pretty big part of recent developments.
I agree, Abe. I like the all-in optics of a new regime. But like you, I agree that talk (or optics) is cheap. The proof will be in the substance - i.e., actions. I recall David Kahn saying all the right things. His public comments after he was hired were articulate and upbeat, making him seem smart and solid. Then came his decision-making - Rambis, Flynn, Darko, etc.
Personally, I disliked Kahn's "I'm the smartest man in the room because I use weird, random words with confidence" schtick from the very beginning... but that's an entirely different story.
What a fucking disaster that era was. At least it set the bar so low that no future regime will ever match it. There's literally no way Rosas will be as bad as David Kahn.
There. I said it. I took a very clear, direct stance. Put it in print, people. I'm sticking my neck out on this one.
You think too small Abe, this is the Timberwolves. Of course there's a chance that Rosas can be the worst thing that happened to the franchise. How many times have Minnesota fans said "it can't get any worse" and then it does?
Good point. Rosas could bludgeon Marney Gellnar with a hammer during a halftime interview, which would put him on the same level as Kahn. Or, he could even kill everybody in the arena, which would put him as slightly worse than Kahn.
bleedspeed177 wrote:I am so skeptical at this point. I felt like I didn't hear anything. I understand why. Time will tell. If he wins the lottery for us this year that would be a nice start.
Talk is cheap. We've heard it all, 100 different ways. We'll find out eventually if it was a good hire. It might be... hopefully, it is.
One thing that's for certain... the Wolves are going all-in on the optics of the new regime. Whether it's distancing themselves from the hard-nosed, unpopular Thibodeau, or pushing for diversity, or getting input from seemingly everybody, or trotting out a fanbase favorite son.
What it looks like is a pretty big part of recent developments.
I agree, Abe. I like the all-in optics of a new regime. But like you, I agree that talk (or optics) is cheap. The proof will be in the substance - i.e., actions. I recall David Kahn saying all the right things. His public comments after he was hired were articulate and upbeat, making him seem smart and solid. Then came his decision-making - Rambis, Flynn, Darko, etc.
Personally, I disliked Kahn's "I'm the smartest man in the room because I use weird, random words with confidence" schtick from the very beginning... but that's an entirely different story.
What a fucking disaster that era was. At least it set the bar so low that no future regime will ever match it. There's literally no way Rosas will be as bad as David Kahn.
There. I said it. I took a very clear, direct stance. Put it in print, people. I'm sticking my neck out on this one.
This is a damn jaded forum (me included) and for good reason. The reality is though that all the stuff we have seen so far from this hire and the team message from it makes perfect sense. I haven't seen or heard anything ridiculous or stupid or wildly (or maybe even mildly) concerning. That still matters. Rosas didn't come in here and end up with a hilarious viral video where his wild eyes seem to be following a floating taco like Adam Gase was introduced as the jets coach. Rosas didn't spend part of a press conference literally quoting and entire children's book like Rob Pelinka did a few months ago. Sure some of these optics the team is putting forth are because of past stuff but it doesn't mean it doesn't make sense to do what they are doing. It's possibly some of the failures of the past could be actual learning experiences to get us to a better point. Obviously that wasn't the grand plan but if it happens I'll take it.
As for Abe's bold prediction...that's why I keep coming back to this forum for his wildly outlandish takes. :)
Good point. Rosas could bludgeon Marney Gellnar with a hammer during a halftime interview, which would put him on the same level as Kahn. Or, he could even kill everybody in the arena, which would put him as slightly worse than Kahn.
