Josh Okogie thread

[Monster]

This review was very good and echoed what's i saw in watching highlights and the one full game I have seen of him against the Hurricanes.

https://www.canishoopus.com/2018/6/26/17499322/film-study-josh-okogie-nba-draft-minnesota-timberwolves

[Q12543 [enjin:6621299]]

I have no expectations for Okogie in the short term.

That said, the ultimate goal for Okogie is to play well enough to replace Wiggins.

Wouldn't it be to replace Jimmy who is significantly older than Wiggins and Towns?

I think Wildwolf's hope would be that Butler signs a long term deal here and Okogie eventually outplays Wiggins.

[Lipoli390]

This review was very good and echoed what's i saw in watching highlOkogie's most impressive asset was denying penetration to guards. The Wolves give up a ridiculous amount of penetration to opponent guards which is one of the many reasons for their abomination of a defensive rating.ights and the one full game I have seen of him against the Hurricanes.

https://www.canishoopus.com/2018/6/26/17499322/film-study-josh-okogie-nba-draft-minnesota-timberwolves

Monster -- Thanks for posting this article. Apparently, the Georgia Tech offense was unimaginative with poor floor spacing and ball movement. I now understand why Thibodeau was so high on Okogie. :)

My favorite quote from the article was the following: "Okogie's most impressive asset was denying penetration to guards. The Wolves give up a ridiculous amount of penetration to opponent guards which is one of the many reasons for their abomination of a defensive rating." The constant criticism of KAT's defense fails to reflect the undeniable fact expressed in this quote. And it's not just the opinion of the article's author. Jim Peterson repeatedly make the same comment when KAT seemingly looked bad defensively. Jim Peterson knows a thing or two about basketball and he watched every Wolves game live last season. Is KAT a good defender? Of course not. But neither is James Harden, Steph Curry or even LeBron James. KAT needs to improve defensively and, as he turns 23 entering his 4th NBA season, I would expect that he will improve given his intensity and passion for the game. He doesn't have to be even a really good defender to be the main guy on a contender. He carries most of our offense and gets the Wolves all sorts of extra possessions with his elite rebounding. If used better, he can carry even more of the offensive load. We just can't get by with only one perimeter player on the roster, Butler, who can stop guards and wings from penetrating full steam into the paint. Okogie's defensive potential will be a welcome and much-needed addition to the Wolves roster.

[WildWolf2813]

I have no expectations for Okogie in the short term.

That said, the ultimate goal for Okogie is to play well enough to replace Wiggins.

Wouldn't it be to replace Jimmy who is significantly older than Wiggins and Towns?

No. I meant to replace Wiggins who I've given up on completely.

[60WinTim]

Wolfson had an interview with Josh in his Scoop podcast tonight. He is a very impressive and well-spoken guy, someone you can root for!

[longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]]

Michael Rand makes the case for Okogie starting and Wig moving to the 6th man role.


http://www.startribune.com/what-if-the-timberwolves-brought-andrew-wiggins-off-the-bench/487222371/
While it is odd to max a player and then move him to the bench, I think this move makes a lot of sense. Okogie projects to be a better defender and could fit well with the starters. Wig's scoring is more needed with the second unit than with a group that already includes Butler and Towns. Further, he could thrive in a more open offense with Jones and Rose instead of the pedestrian offense Butler/KAT/Gibson/Teague produces.

Okogie needs to be at least adequate defensively for this to work, but I think it has some promise.

[Camden [enjin:6601484]]

1. Andrew Wiggins' weaknesses would be even more glaring as the sixth man. His shot selection is still horrendous and his lack of a consistent handle will cause him to be an even bigger liability with a second unit looking to him for scoring.

2. As soon as we move Wiggins to the bench, you can kiss whatever trade value we had with him goodbye. That "All-Star potential" that the handful of Wiggins supporters cling to will be no more, and teams around the league will offer peanuts for him should we decide to finally deal him. We'd be handcuffed to Wiggins at that point.

3. The very fact that this is even a discussion is pretty damning against Wiggins. How does a player as talented and naturally gifted as Wiggins find his way into a "should he come off the bench" conversation heading into his fifth year? Well, stagnant growth in his game and even regression will do that to a player's reputation.

4. I wouldn't be surprised -- though, I'm certainly not expecting it -- if Josh Okogie did outplay Wiggins and was worthy of displacing him from the starting lineup at some point this season. In that case, however, I feel like the Wolves would continue to let Okogie be a force off the bench until the following off-season where either Wiggins is dealt for whatever we could get or Jimmy Butler walked in free agency -- worst case scenario -- and then we'd be forced to run Okogie/Wiggins on a nightly basis moving forward.

[Q12543 [enjin:6621299]]

Yeah, Wiggins makes no sense off the bench for all the reasons Cam mentions. Until Wiggins improves his shot selection and overall accuracy, he is nothing more than an inefficient gunner that takes more shots than he should. At least with the first unit, we limit the number of shots he bricks because KAT and Butler are the priorities. May be some day he will realize that hard basket cuts, sprinting versus loping on fast breaks, and catch and shoot 3's are his real ticket to being a plus wing in this league.

The guy that I think should be coming off the bench as our 6th man is Jeff Teague. Swap him and Tyus and our bench is a lot better and our starting unit doesn't miss a beat.

[60WinTim]

The guy that I think should be coming off the bench as our 6th man is Jeff Teague. Swap him and Tyus and our bench is a lot better and our starting unit doesn't miss a beat.

Wasn't Terrell Brandon roasted for this kind of thinking?!? ;-) (and, yes, I am just kidding)

[longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]]

Cam and Q make some good points about why Wig doesn't make sense off the bench, but one way or another, I prefer him teamed up with Tyus than Teague. As Q suggests, Wig's shot selection is an issue, but one shot we would all like to see Wig take is a fast break slam...and I would argue more of those will happen with him paired with Tyus than Teague. Q's suggestion to move Tyus into the starting lineup would help here, but I don't see this happening with Thibs...he went out and got Teague, so he's likely to continue to turn to him. But he also might be more invested in Okogie than Wig since he drafted Okogie and inherited Wig, so moving Wig to a 6th man role seems much more likely to me than doing the same with Teague.