Game Report - Wolves v Pelicans

[Monster]

I'll chime in on Brown although maybe he looked worse in this game I didn't see it. To me he seems like a guy that is gonna be a ken to run your team if he is in there and isn't going to screw up too much. He has size so you can play him at either guard spot although he doesn't seem to handle quick drives too well at either spot. He does have a feel for getting his hands on the ball like q says either on the flor playing passing lanes a bit or just digging the ball and of course rebounding. Is he good enough or whatever to be worth keeping around as a 3rd pg? Idk he is still a young guy and isn't e peri ended so he could settle in and be an improved player over time. I don't really care if he comes back or not but he does have some positive traits I like. He could be a better fit if the Wolves have a vet guard that can shoot (like if they bring back Neal) that's the combo guard off the bench that would work next to Brown if he ever played. I didn't know he was signed for a 2 year non-guarrantteed deal I would assume that makes him a lock for SL and it would be good to see him there.

[Carlos Danger]

I get that. The Wolves stink and a lot of has to do with that they're dealing with attrition at this point. They SHOULD be losing most games. But did you see NY's lineup last night... or the one that's won 3 games in that past week or so? They should be losing most games too... and they've given much less consistent effort... or so it seems.

That team doesn't have a future possible superstar. Or, even a guy with LaVine's ceiling, according to some. Yet, they still win on occasion. I know that's actually good for the Wolves. But is it telling? Or, just a coincidence? Coaching? Or something else entirely?

Jason Smith
Cole Aldrich
Langston Galloway
Tim Hardaway Jr.
Lance Thomas

Quincy Acy
Cleanthony Early
Shane Larkin
Ricky Ledo
Lou Amundson

That is where I assume the results are being somewhat managed by Flip. Being the GM and Coach has it's privileges. He doesn't have to win as coach to keep his job. And as GM, the more losses the better. Win - Win (or lose - lose). As Cool or someone else pointed out, if we were fighting for the last playoff spot , I'd assume some of the injured players would be available to contribute.

[AbeVigodaLive]

I get that. The Wolves stink and a lot of has to do with that they're dealing with attrition at this point. They SHOULD be losing most games. But did you see NY's lineup last night... or the one that's won 3 games in that past week or so? They should be losing most games too... and they've given much less consistent effort... or so it seems.

That team doesn't have a future possible superstar. Or, even a guy with LaVine's ceiling, according to some. Yet, they still win on occasion. I know that's actually good for the Wolves. But is it telling? Or, just a coincidence? Coaching? Or something else entirely?

Jason Smith
Cole Aldrich
Langston Galloway
Tim Hardaway Jr.
Lance Thomas

Quincy Acy
Cleanthony Early
Shane Larkin
Ricky Ledo
Lou Amundson

That is where I assume the results are being somewhat managed by Flip. Being the GM and Coach has it's privileges. He doesn't have to win as coach to keep his job. And as GM, the more losses the better. Win - Win (or lose - lose). As Cool or someone else pointed out, if we were fighting for the last playoff spot , I'd assume some of the injured players would be available to contribute.

So is it NY just being THAT stupid... or Flip being THAT good of a coach? Maybe there's more subtle things at play... substitutions, et al...

Because it's not like Derek Fisher is trying to win to save his job. In fact, behind Flip, he might have the most leeway (with 4 more years for his buddy Phil on a massive contract) of coaches on the piss-poor teams.

[Carlos Danger]

So is it NY just being THAT stupid... or Flip being THAT good of a coach? Maybe there's more subtle things at play... substitutions, et al...

Because it's not like Derek Fisher is trying to win to save his job. In fact, behind Flip, he might have the most leeway (with 4 more years for his buddy Phil on a massive contract) of coaches on the piss-poor teams.

We are just a worse team than NY (wink) and deserve the right to the top overall pick in this year's draft

[Coolbreeze44]

It was impressive to see the Knicks beat a quality team last night, but night in night out we have played tougher competition than what the Knicks see in the East. We're easily better than they are right now, so it's kind of nice that they are still going to finish with a better record.

[Carlos Danger]

Here's a good read on the tanking (they highlight a couple questionable moves by NY):
http://www.sbnation.com/2015/4/14/8410817/knicks-tanking-langston-galloway-cole-aldrich

[AbeVigodaLive]

Here's a good read on the tanking (they highlight a couple questionable moves by NY):
http://www.sbnation.com/2015/4/14/8410817/knicks-tanking-langston-galloway-cole-aldrich

I remember a discussion about the Lakers obviously tanking in the OT win vs. the Wolves about 3 weeks ago, which spurred this late-season swoon for the Wolves.

Jeremy Lin and Ed Davis were the two best players on the court for the Lakers. So what did the Lakers do? They sat Lin and Davis for the final 20 minutes of a close game. They went to Wayne Ellington in iso plays at the end of the game more than once... even though he was 3 - 19 fg in the game. Yet, Ellington played the most minutes in the game for any Lakers player (39 minutes).

Wiggins and LaVine played 49 and 48 minutes respectively. Chase Budinger played 40 minutes in a game where he had 22 points on 60% shooting.

It LOOKED like the Lakers were trying to lose that game and that the Wolves were trying to win it. Yet, the Lakers still won. The Wolves are still finding ways to lose. I hope they can change that around next season...

[longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]]

Here's a good read on the tanking (they highlight a couple questionable moves by NY):
http://www.sbnation.com/2015/4/14/8410817/knicks-tanking-langston-galloway-cole-aldrich

That's a great article, carlos. Thankfully, the days of Madsen-like moves that mock the game seem to be over. GMs and coaches clearly make late-season moves designed to improve their lottery position, but they are more subtle. While I'm fairly sure KG's knee is just fine, nobody really knows for sure, so it's a "safe" way to generate a loss. But the players are always going to be the variable. While GMs and coaches of lottery teams are thinking about lottery chances, the players are thinking about improving their numbers to increase their value. Not to mention athletes invariably just want to win. And occasionally a Cole Aldrich is going to demonstrate his loyalty to his home state of Minnesota by putting up career high numbers in a game his employer really wants to lose. I could just imagine Phil Jackson pulling his hair out every time Aldrich scored. The Wolves have had some promising personal performances too during this long losing streak, but Flip is savvy enough to know an NBA team isn't going to win with just 7 players with an average age of about 23, so he gets the best of both worlds...he gets to watch his future stars put up some impressive numbers while still preserving the most favorable lottery position. Both the players and Flip want to "win"...they just have different definitions right now of what that means. And Flip's definition is winning.

[MikkeMan]

It LOOKED like the Lakers were trying to lose that game and that the Wolves were trying to win it. Yet, the Lakers still won. The Wolves are still finding ways to lose. I hope they can change that around next season...

Abe, it's Flip's offense that features as few treys as possible. He was even saying that he doesn't want Wiggins to take three pointers because it could screw his tanking.:)