Zach LaVine

[MikeAz [enjin:6636981]]

Did anyone see this RandBall post on Zach LaVine? It's getting me excited for next season. I love his work ethic and can't help but think he will make another step this coming season.

http://www.startribune.com/zach-lavines-offseason-workout-video-50-cent-in-a-wolves-cap/387324221/

[60WinTim]

The French version of Zach?!? ;-)

[SameOldNudityDrew]

If it helps him play more like LeBron, I'm all for it!

[60WinTim]

A few have speculated if Thibs might bring Zach off the bench. But Thibs has often mentioned three players as the core going forward: KAT, Wiggins and Zach. Unless something upsets that in training camp, it is pretty clear that Zach will be starting. The only real "starter" battle is who starts alongside KAT.

And then there will be the bench battles:

Backup PG: Summer League has made the Tyus vs Dunn battle a bit more interesting than I had first thought!

Backup Wings (2 spots): Dunn is a candidate here, too, along with Bazz and Rush. Someone will be on the outside looking in...

Backup Bigs (2 spots): Well, this is a mess. We don't know who will earn the starting spot and there are the KG/Pek questions. So lets assume KG and Pek are out of the picture. It sure seems Aldrich and Dieng WILL BE part of the rotation. So that leaves Belly, Hill and Payne battling for one spot. We KNOW Payne has no shot. It really just comes down to Belly and Hill battling each other, with the winner joining Aldrich and Dieng in the rotation, one of which will be dubbed the starter alongside KAT. Not such a mess after all, I guess.

[longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]]

I think I was the main proponent of bringing Zach off the bench, but it doesn't mean I'm not excited about him. My concern is still Wig ranking in the bottom 10% of SFs in rebounds, and I was hoping Thibs would find a defensive, rebounding SF to allow Wig to dominate at SG. But when Thibs wasn't wiling to give Deng the deal he wanted, I went back to supporting Wig and Zach as our starting wings. I hope Wig becomes at least an average rebounder.

As for Zach, I'm as excited about him as anyone on the roster. His athleticism and work ethic are off the chart...really fun to watch his workout video that is floating around out there. I look for another big step forward for Zach this season, and expect to see several nights where he, Wig and KAT all exceed or approach 20 points.

[GymRat [enjin:6592663]]

I'm not sure if anyone recalls, but one other great thing about LaVine's offseason is he's on the USA Men's Basketball Select Team. He's going up against the best in the league daily right now, and I think this experience is invaluable. I keep trying to find little snippets of video of him in action against the Olympic squad, but so far nothing of note.

[bleedspeed]

I'm not sure if anyone recalls, but one other great thing about LaVine's offseason is he's on the USA Men's Basketball Select Team. He's going up against the best in the league daily right now, and I think this experience is invaluable. I keep trying to find little snippets of video of him in action against the Olympic squad, but so far nothing of note.

I was thinking the same thing. Isn't Thibs still part of the USA coaching staff to boot?

This is one area that KAT and Wiggins won't get the benefit of. They will be the best players by far on their teams.

[GymRat [enjin:6592663]]

I'm not sure if anyone recalls, but one other great thing about LaVine's offseason is he's on the USA Men's Basketball Select Team. He's going up against the best in the league daily right now, and I think this experience is invaluable. I keep trying to find little snippets of video of him in action against the Olympic squad, but so far nothing of note.

I was thinking the same thing. Isn't Thibs still part of the USA coaching staff to boot?

This is one area that KAT and Wiggins won't get the benefit of. They will be the best players by far on their teams.

The Select team is head-coached by Popovich, so I'm super happy he's getting that kind of tutelage this early in his career. Otherwise yeah, Thibs is an assistant coach for the program overall.

Another interesting connection, Gregg Farnam of our very own Timberwolves is one of the athletic trainers. We're reppin'!

[longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]]

Select team practices are closed to the public (not sure why...seems odd), so I don't expect any video from them.

Dunn was supposed to be on the 25-man roster too, but I have seem the roster described in the last couple days as 24-man, so I wonder if he has been dropped. It's been almost 2 weeks since his concussion...if he's still having symptoms, this is not good news at all.

[AbeVigodaLive]

Select team practices are closed to the public (not sure why...seems odd), so I don't expect any video from them.

Dunn was supposed to be on the 25-man roster too, but I have seem the roster described in the last couple days as 24-man, so I wonder if he has been dropped. It's been almost 2 weeks since his concussion...if he's still having symptoms, this is not good news at all.

Meh. What's the worst that could happen?