Q12543 wrote:Well, well, well, it looks like the Western Conference is truly shaping up to be really good after all. The 8th seed in the playoff race is 5 games over .500 (Pelicans) and only 2.5 games behind us. The Clippers and Utah are in 9th and 10th place respectively with winning records. Utah has won 11 in a row!!!!
I believe our defensive struggles of late is the canary in the coal mine. I truly believe we are at risk of missing the playoffs based on our remaining schedule and how damn well the other teams behind us are playing.
I'd bet you a cold one (or five) that the Wolves don't slip past the sixth seed if we do fall, and that I'd say it's almost a given that we make the playoffs assuming Butler and Towns don't miss the remaining 23 games. That would force Wiggins to carry the load and we know he'd only do that if triggered!
It's been funny how Thibs has supposedly been linked to all these shitty deals and made none of them. Then the national media doesn't comment on their previous reports and laud Thibs for staying patient. Thibs and Layden have done an excellent job. There are some questionable moves for people (Gorgui, Teague, trading lavine instead of Wiggins) but we've improved vastly and mainly because of his guys Jimmy and Taj. Targeting Taj was ripped here by so many people for a lack of fit in today's nba etc, and the guy has been a total stud. It seems like the same thing is happening with Favors in Utah. There's still room in the NBA for grinding 4s that seems obvious, not every big has to play beyond the arc. Thibs May have a throwback system, etc. But we are getting results and are a few bench players away from being a complete team with depth.
It's been funny how Thibs has supposedly been linked to all these shitty deals and made none of them. Then the national media doesn't comment on their previous reports and laud Thibs for staying patient. Thibs and Layden have done an excellent job. There are some questionable moves for people (Gorgui, Teague, trading lavine instead of Wiggins) but we've improved vastly and mainly because of his guys Jimmy and Taj. Targeting Taj was ripped here by so many people for a lack of fit in today's nba etc, and the guy has been a total stud. It seems like the same thing is happening with Favors in Utah. There's still room in the NBA for grinding 4s that seems obvious, not every big has to play beyond the arc. Thibs May have a throwback system, etc. But we are getting results and are a few bench players away from being a complete team with depth.
Marc Stein seems to be pretty unreliable when it comes to what his sources say about Thibs and the Wolves are going to do.
It's interesting what Taylor said about Bazz. Basically he said if he finds a better situation they won't stand in the way of that happening. Of course he has to find a team interested in actually playing him. This is the 2nd time I've heard Glen say nice stuff about Bazz. It seems like they still value Bazz to some extent however small.
It's been funny how Thibs has supposedly been linked to all these shitty deals and made none of them. Then the national media doesn't comment on their previous reports and laud Thibs for staying patient. Thibs and Layden have done an excellent job. There are some questionable moves for people (Gorgui, Teague, trading lavine instead of Wiggins) but we've improved vastly and mainly because of his guys Jimmy and Taj. Targeting Taj was ripped here by so many people for a lack of fit in today's nba etc, and the guy has been a total stud. It seems like the same thing is happening with Favors in Utah. There's still room in the NBA for grinding 4s that seems obvious, not every big has to play beyond the arc. Thibs May have a throwback system, etc. But we are getting results and are a few bench players away from being a complete team with depth.
Marc Stein seems to be pretty unreliable when it comes to what his sources say about Thibs and the Wolves are going to do.
It's interesting what Taylor said about Bazz. Basically he said if he finds a better situation they won't stand in the way of that happening. Of course he has to find a team interested in actually playing him. This is the 2nd time I've heard Glen say nice stuff about Bazz. It seems like they still value Bazz to some extent however small.
Don't get it twisted, my friend. They value him only as a person -- in that they hope for the best for him and probably like his personality and professionalism to a certain degree. They clearly do not value him as a basketball player at this point. They basically told him to go find another team that is going to offer you minutes and we'll gladly let you go because we know what you're capable of and everything you're not.
It's been funny how Thibs has supposedly been linked to all these shitty deals and made none of them. Then the national media doesn't comment on their previous reports and laud Thibs for staying patient. Thibs and Layden have done an excellent job. There are some questionable moves for people (Gorgui, Teague, trading lavine instead of Wiggins) but we've improved vastly and mainly because of his guys Jimmy and Taj. Targeting Taj was ripped here by so many people for a lack of fit in today's nba etc, and the guy has been a total stud. It seems like the same thing is happening with Favors in Utah. There's still room in the NBA for grinding 4s that seems obvious, not every big has to play beyond the arc. Thibs May have a throwback system, etc. But we are getting results and are a few bench players away from being a complete team with depth.
Gibson is practically having a career year, which no one here could have predicted. So yes....he has absolutely been worth it. He's one I was wrong about. He might be the third best player on the team right now.
It's been funny how Thibs has supposedly been linked to all these shitty deals and made none of them. Then the national media doesn't comment on their previous reports and laud Thibs for staying patient. Thibs and Layden have done an excellent job. There are some questionable moves for people (Gorgui, Teague, trading lavine instead of Wiggins) but we've improved vastly and mainly because of his guys Jimmy and Taj. Targeting Taj was ripped here by so many people for a lack of fit in today's nba etc, and the guy has been a total stud. It seems like the same thing is happening with Favors in Utah. There's still room in the NBA for grinding 4s that seems obvious, not every big has to play beyond the arc. Thibs May have a throwback system, etc. But we are getting results and are a few bench players away from being a complete team with depth.
As I mentioned in an earlier post, I had a hard time believing Thibs was interested in signing Rose and that if he signed him it would be a David Kahn type move. Although I've quibbled with moves Thibs has made, I've said and continue to say that he hasn't done anything dumb or ridiculous. I actually liked the acquisition of Taj, but just didn't like what we paid him given our limited remaining cap space at the time. But in hindsight, I was clearly wrong. Taj has been worth every penny. I still don't like the 3-year $19 million per year deal Thibs gave to Teague. I think that's way too much for what he gives us. But Teague's a good player and net positive contributor, so I can't say it was a terrible move. Obviously, getting Butler was great even though I would have preferred to trade Wiggins while keeping LaVine and either Dunn or our pick.
It will be tough to upgrade the team going forward with no cap space and bumping up against the luxury tax threshold. The Gorgui, Teague and Wiggins contracts will probably be a problem because I don't think those contracts (especially Dieng's and Teague's) are movable without taking back a bad return. We'll see.
Q12543 wrote:Well, well, well, it looks like the Western Conference is truly shaping up to be really good after all. The 8th seed in the playoff race is 5 games over .500 (Pelicans) and only 2.5 games behind us. The Clippers and Utah are in 9th and 10th place respectively with winning records. Utah has won 11 in a row!!!!
I believe our defensive struggles of late is the canary in the coal mine. I truly believe we are at risk of missing the playoffs based on our remaining schedule and how damn well the other teams behind us are playing.
I'd bet you a cold one (or five) that the Wolves don't slip past the sixth seed if we do fall, and that I'd say it's almost a given that we make the playoffs assuming Butler and Towns don't miss the remaining 23 games. That would force Wiggins to carry the load and we know he'd only do that if triggered!
That's a dangerous bet, Cam. I can see the Thunder, Blazers and Nuggets passing up the Wolves, leaving the Wolves at #7. No way the Wolves end up out of the playoffs though unless KAT or Butler are out the rest of the way.
