Cutting GR3 is Another Bonehead Move by Flip Saunders

[BizarroJerry [enjin:6592520]]

Every GM says "we were always trying to get that guy" or "we always wanted that guy" to save face. It's just lip service. This was a dumb move by Flipper.

[longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]]

Every GM says "we were always trying to get that guy" or "we always wanted that guy" to save face. It's just lip service. This was a dumb move by Flipper.

Lloyd, I tend to believe Flip when he says he has been targeting this guy for awhile. Yes, he said that about KG also, but I believe that one too. The Wolves have acquired a lot of other guys this season (AP, Neal, Adrien, Daniels, Raduljica), and I don't recall his saying he had any of those guys on his radar screen, so I think he has credibility when he says he offered Miami something for Hamilton. What he offered is conjecture, but I think Robinson is as good a guess as anything.

At the end of the day, this is a rather insignificant swap of two 2nd-round picks that helps the Wolves balance their roster and protect Pek's feet. Neither of these guys is essential to the Wolves, or any other team, long-term. It seems to me that we are exaggerating the importance of the deal by labeling it either dumb or smart.

[longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]]

https://twitter.com/GRIII

I always thought that this was a great example of a great and balanced college team, but with little chance of any of the parts being successful at the next level. Weren't all of them except GR3 first rounders?

I still think McGary will have the best NBA career in this bunch.

Edit: I'm referencing Glenn's retweet of the picture of the 5 Michigan guys in their Michigan and pro uniforms.

[BizarroJerry [enjin:6592520]]

Every GM says "we were always trying to get that guy" or "we always wanted that guy" to save face. It's just lip service. This was a dumb move by Flipper.

Lloyd, I tend to believe Flip when he says he has been targeting this guy for awhile. Yes, he said that about KG also, but I believe that one too. The Wolves have acquired a lot of other guys this season (AP, Neal, Adrien, Daniels, Raduljica), and I don't recall his saying he had any of those guys on his radar screen, so I think he has credibility when he says he offered Miami something for Hamilton. What he offered is conjecture, but I think Robinson is as good a guess as anything.

At the end of the day, this is a rather insignificant swap of two 2nd-round picks that helps the Wolves balance their roster and protect Pek's feet. Neither of these guys is essential to the Wolves, or any other team, long-term. It seems to me that we are exaggerating the importance of the deal by labeling it either dumb or smart.

LST, how is this a balanced roster? We have 6 guys at the 4/5 with another one probably coming in the draft and all 1st round pics/vets that should be getting playing time.

[longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]]

Every GM says "we were always trying to get that guy" or "we always wanted that guy" to save face. It's just lip service. This was a dumb move by Flipper.

Lloyd, I tend to believe Flip when he says he has been targeting this guy for awhile. Yes, he said that about KG also, but I believe that one too. The Wolves have acquired a lot of other guys this season (AP, Neal, Adrien, Daniels, Raduljica), and I don't recall his saying he had any of those guys on his radar screen, so I think he has credibility when he says he offered Miami something for Hamilton. What he offered is conjecture, but I think Robinson is as good a guess as anything.

At the end of the day, this is a rather insignificant swap of two 2nd-round picks that helps the Wolves balance their roster and protect Pek's feet. Neither of these guys is essential to the Wolves, or any other team, long-term. It seems to me that we are exaggerating the importance of the deal by labeling it either dumb or smart.

LST, how is this a balanced roster? We have 6 guys at the 4/5 with another one probably coming in the draft and all 1st round pics/vets that should be getting playing time.

Lloyd, we may have different thoughts about how to build a roster, but I generally think 7 of your 15 slots should be allocated to guys who can legitimately play center or PF. Simple math would dictate that you would have 3 players at each position, but since recent history has shown that big men tend to get hurt more easily (and especially when you have Pek on your team), I allocate one extra big man. If we retain all the bigs on our roster and add one more in the draft, I think we will be right where we need to be. Here's how I think a 15-man roster should ideally be structured.

C's and PF's-7
Wings- 6 (of which one SG s/b be a combo guard capable of moving over to PG)
PG's -2

The Wolves have been short at the 4 and 5 most of the year, forcing Flip to play guys like AB, AP, Robbie, Bud and even GR3 out of position at times, and the results have not been pretty. They now have a chance to be more balanced going into next year.

[BizarroJerry [enjin:6592520]]

Every GM says "we were always trying to get that guy" or "we always wanted that guy" to save face. It's just lip service. This was a dumb move by Flipper.

Lloyd, I tend to believe Flip when he says he has been targeting this guy for awhile. Yes, he said that about KG also, but I believe that one too. The Wolves have acquired a lot of other guys this season (AP, Neal, Adrien, Daniels, Raduljica), and I don't recall his saying he had any of those guys on his radar screen, so I think he has credibility when he says he offered Miami something for Hamilton. What he offered is conjecture, but I think Robinson is as good a guess as anything.

At the end of the day, this is a rather insignificant swap of two 2nd-round picks that helps the Wolves balance their roster and protect Pek's feet. Neither of these guys is essential to the Wolves, or any other team, long-term. It seems to me that we are exaggerating the importance of the deal by labeling it either dumb or smart.

LST, how is this a balanced roster? We have 6 guys at the 4/5 with another one probably coming in the draft and all 1st round pics/vets that should be getting playing time.

Lloyd, we may have different thoughts about how to build a roster, but I generally think 7 of your 15 slots should be allocated to guys who can legitimately play center or PF. Simple math would dictate that you would have 3 players at each position, but since recent history has shown that big men tend to get hurt more easily (and especially when you have Pek on your team), I allocate one extra big man. If we retain all the bigs on our roster and add one more in the draft, I think we will be right where we need to be. Here's how I think a 15-man roster should ideally be structured.

C's and PF's-7
Wings- 6 (of which one SG s/b be a combo guard capable of moving over to PG)
PG's -2

The Wolves have been short at the 4 and 5 most of the year, forcing Flip to play guys like AB, AP, Robbie, Bud and even GR3 out of position at times, and the results have not been pretty. They now have a chance to be more balanced going into next year.

Yes, I understand the math here, but what i dont understand is the strategy Flip has with out bigs. He can't seem to decide who he wants to play, and he's got a cripple and a 38 year old part time player in that mix, plus 3 (possibly 4) 1st round picks.

[khans2k5 [enjin:6608728]]

Every GM says "we were always trying to get that guy" or "we always wanted that guy" to save face. It's just lip service. This was a dumb move by Flipper.

Lloyd, I tend to believe Flip when he says he has been targeting this guy for awhile. Yes, he said that about KG also, but I believe that one too. The Wolves have acquired a lot of other guys this season (AP, Neal, Adrien, Daniels, Raduljica), and I don't recall his saying he had any of those guys on his radar screen, so I think he has credibility when he says he offered Miami something for Hamilton. What he offered is conjecture, but I think Robinson is as good a guess as anything.

At the end of the day, this is a rather insignificant swap of two 2nd-round picks that helps the Wolves balance their roster and protect Pek's feet. Neither of these guys is essential to the Wolves, or any other team, long-term. It seems to me that we are exaggerating the importance of the deal by labeling it either dumb or smart.

LST, how is this a balanced roster? We have 6 guys at the 4/5 with another one probably coming in the draft and all 1st round pics/vets that should be getting playing time.

Lloyd, we may have different thoughts about how to build a roster, but I generally think 7 of your 15 slots should be allocated to guys who can legitimately play center or PF. Simple math would dictate that you would have 3 players at each position, but since recent history has shown that big men tend to get hurt more easily (and especially when you have Pek on your team), I allocate one extra big man. If we retain all the bigs on our roster and add one more in the draft, I think we will be right where we need to be. Here's how I think a 15-man roster should ideally be structured.

C's and PF's-7
Wings- 6 (of which one SG s/b be a combo guard capable of moving over to PG)
PG's -2

The Wolves have been short at the 4 and 5 most of the year, forcing Flip to play guys like AB, AP, Robbie, Bud and even GR3 out of position at times, and the results have not been pretty. They now have a chance to be more balanced going into next year.

Yes, I understand the math here, but what i dont understand is the strategy Flip has with out bigs. He can't seem to decide who he wants to play, and he's got a cripple and a 38 year old part time player in that mix, plus 3 (possibly 4) 1st round picks.

The strategy is the first round picks become superstars right when the 38 year old retires and the cripple is traded as an expiring contract. It's highly unlikely that the chips fall that way, but that is the strategy.

[longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]]

Every GM says "we were always trying to get that guy" or "we always wanted that guy" to save face. It's just lip service. This was a dumb move by Flipper.

Lloyd, I tend to believe Flip when he says he has been targeting this guy for awhile. Yes, he said that about KG also, but I believe that one too. The Wolves have acquired a lot of other guys this season (AP, Neal, Adrien, Daniels, Raduljica), and I don't recall his saying he had any of those guys on his radar screen, so I think he has credibility when he says he offered Miami something for Hamilton. What he offered is conjecture, but I think Robinson is as good a guess as anything.

At the end of the day, this is a rather insignificant swap of two 2nd-round picks that helps the Wolves balance their roster and protect Pek's feet. Neither of these guys is essential to the Wolves, or any other team, long-term. It seems to me that we are exaggerating the importance of the deal by labeling it either dumb or smart.

LST, how is this a balanced roster? We have 6 guys at the 4/5 with another one probably coming in the draft and all 1st round pics/vets that should be getting playing time.

Lloyd, we may have different thoughts about how to build a roster, but I generally think 7 of your 15 slots should be allocated to guys who can legitimately play center or PF. Simple math would dictate that you would have 3 players at each position, but since recent history has shown that big men tend to get hurt more easily (and especially when you have Pek on your team), I allocate one extra big man. If we retain all the bigs on our roster and add one more in the draft, I think we will be right where we need to be. Here's how I think a 15-man roster should ideally be structured.

C's and PF's-7
Wings- 6 (of which one SG s/b be a combo guard capable of moving over to PG)
PG's -2

The Wolves have been short at the 4 and 5 most of the year, forcing Flip to play guys like AB, AP, Robbie, Bud and even GR3 out of position at times, and the results have not been pretty. They now have a chance to be more balanced going into next year.

Yes, I understand the math here, but what i dont understand is the strategy Flip has with out bigs. He can't seem to decide who he wants to play, and he's got a cripple and a 38 year old part time player in that mix, plus 3 (possibly 4) 1st round picks.

The strategy is the first round picks become superstars right when the 38 year old retires and the cripple is traded as an expiring contract. It's highly unlikely that the chips fall that way, but that is the strategy.

I think that's it, khans. But Lloyd is also right that it's an unusual strategy. I would categorize it as high-risk, high-reward, with a very wide range of potential outcomes.

Best Case:
1) Wolves' trainers figure out how to keep Pek on the court
2) Dieng plays more like the Dieng we watched late last season, with normal improvement.
3) We draft either Okafor or Towns
4) KG signs for a reasonable amount and not only plays like he is this year, but helps with the development of our young guys.
5) Bennett and Payne become the guys most experts expected them to be when they were drafted.

If 3-4 of these things happen, we will be in very good shape at C and PF, and even have some tradable assets. But I could just as easily construct an argument where none of these things happen, and we remain a lottery team. I'm a Wolves fan and an optimist, so I'm going to continue to hope for the five factors above to come to fruition.

[SameOldNudityDrew]

Jesus, you know things are bad when we're fighting over cutting a 2nd round pick who barely earned 100 minutes of playing time on a terrible team ravaged by injuries to make room for a guy who--let's all be honest--we didn't even know existed until today.

Trying to conclude anything from today is making something out of nothing. We cut a wing from the practice squad who was never going to see significant playing time to make room for a guy who is essentially a spare tire. This means nothing.

[Camden [enjin:6601484]]

Jesus, you know things are bad when we're fighting over cutting a 2nd round pick who barely earned 100 minutes of playing time on a terrible team ravaged by injuries to make room for a guy who--let's all be honest--we didn't even know existed until today.

Trying to conclude anything from today is making something out of nothing. We cut a wing from the practice squad who was never going to see significant playing time to make room for a guy who is essentially a spare tire. This means nothing.

I'm not all that upset that GRIII was cut, though I would have liked to see him make it the whole year. I'm more upset that Flip doesn't have a plan in place that he intends to stick with. He started the year talking about being competitive, then kicked that plan by booting Brewer and Williams outta town, then talked about a youth movement and looking for the future, then trades for Payne for right now, and follows that up by getting rid of a 21 year old pick of his for a guy that will only be used for practice purposes.

It's sloppy management and I'm sick of it for this franchise. That's where my frustration comes from.