Around the NBA (non-Wolves talk)

[Camden [enjin:6601484]]

All in on an MLE offer to Hezonja this summer.

I'm intrigued, but not enough to offer him a contract that's within the ballpark of what he'll try to command.

[Monster]

Wolves have no interest in signing Derrick Rose.

https://www.nba.com/article/2018/02/16/timberwolves-owner-glen-taylor-shabazz-muhammad-buyout-derrick-rose-future

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.

I'm not sure based on my post what there is to get twisted. I basically agree with what you just said about Bazz and the Wolves.

[BizarroJerry [enjin:6592520]]

I guess I'm not too worried about a potential Denver matchup, not with Murray and his paltry 3 assists per game.

[Monster]

All in on an MLE offer to Hezonja this summer.

That's gross and interesting all at the same time. I don't know how to feel about that suggestion.

I think I'm with Cam on this one. If he keeps playing well though it could be an interesting gamble. I think it needs to be a team that can play him a lot. That isn't the case here. The full mid level is gonna be what pretty good players get. I bet a number of teams won't even use the full mid-level on just one guy. This offseason guys are gonna get contracts like it's the 2012 cap or something. Lou Williams signed a deal that was pretty close to what his last one was and he is a much better player now.

[AbeVigodaLive]

I guess I'm not too worried about a potential Denver matchup, not with Murray and his paltry 3 assists per game.

I guess I'm not too worried about a potential Denver matchup, not with Murray and his paltry 3 assists per game.

The Nuggets are "slightly" more than Jamal Murray's passing.

I mean their center is coming off a 17 assist game for chrissakes. They've won 9 of 12 with a unique style... and have a versatile former All Star set to return in about a week to fill out that lineup.

[Lipoli390]

I guess I'm not too worried about a potential Denver matchup, not with Murray and his paltry 3 assists per game.

I guess I'm not too worried about a potential Denver matchup, not with Murray and his paltry 3 assists per game.

The Nuggets are "slightly" more than Jamal Murray's passing.

I mean their center is coming off a 17 assist game for chrissakes. They've won 9 of 12 with a unique style... and have a versatile former All Star set to return in about a week to fill out that lineup.

And Denver was already hot before what will soon be Millsap's return. The Wolves are tied for 3rd and could definitely finish at #3. But based on the way the Wolves have been playing lately, I think the Wolves will have a hard time staying in front of the Thunder, Blazers and Nuggets. I actually think the Blazers and Nuggets were playing better than the Wolves in the week leading up to the allstar break. Maybe the allstar break will rejuvenate the Wolves starters who have logged a lot of minutes. I hope so because I think a 7th place or even a 6th place finish at this point would be a big disappointment.

[Camden [enjin:6601484]]

I have to chuckle at the pessimism here. The overreaction is just too much, friends. We're comparing the Wolves after their worst stretch of basketball to the Thunder, Blazers, and Nuggets who just played arguably their best basketball of the year. The law of averages will come into play. Minnesota is not nearly as "meh" of a team as they've been the past 10 or so games. And I can assure you the other three Western Conference teams aren't as good as they're being made out to be here. Everybody take a deep breath. Our guys are getting a much needed break.

And by the way, Minnesota is 3-1 against Oklahoma City, 2-1 against Portland, and 2-0 against Denver. We're collectively 7-2 against these teams and will more than likely own the tiebreakers against all three. I'm not focused on the rear view in the standings. We should be excited about the possibility of surpassing San Antonio in the coming weeks. Sheesh.

[kekgeek]

I have to chuckle at the pessimism here. The overreaction is just too much, friends. We're comparing the Wolves after their worst stretch of basketball to the Thunder, Blazers, and Nuggets who just played arguably their best basketball of the year. The law of averages will come into play. Minnesota is not nearly as "meh" of a team as they've been the past 10 or so games. And I can assure you the other three Western Conference teams aren't as good as they're being made out to be here. Everybody take a deep breath. Our guys are getting a much needed break.

And by the way, Minnesota is 3-1 against Oklahoma City, 2-1 against Portland, and 2-0 against Denver. We're collectively 7-2 against these teams and will more than likely own the tiebreakers against all three. I'm not focused on the rear view in the standings. We should be excited about the possibility of surpassing San Antonio in the coming weeks. Sheesh.

Yep, I agree 100% cam. We hold every tie breaker. We have the easiest schedule remaining of those 4 teams. They all play each other and are going to beat up on each other. We are 1 of 2 teams in the NBA that haven't lost 3 or more games in a row this season.

Now could we fall, possibly. But we have had so many things go wrong in the past that it is out brains that worst case scenario. But for now we are the 3 seed and we control our destiny to remain the 3 seed.

We also act like we are the only team with any problems. Well we are not. There is a reason we are ahead of those teams

[Lipoli390]

I have to chuckle at the pessimism here. The overreaction is just too much, friends. We're comparing the Wolves after their worst stretch of basketball to the Thunder, Blazers, and Nuggets who just played arguably their best basketball of the year. The law of averages will come into play. Minnesota is not nearly as "meh" of a team as they've been the past 10 or so games. And I can assure you the other three Western Conference teams aren't as good as they're being made out to be here. Everybody take a deep breath. Our guys are getting a much needed break.

And by the way, Minnesota is 3-1 against Oklahoma City, 2-1 against Portland, and 2-0 against Denver. We're collectively 7-2 against these teams and will more than likely own the tiebreakers against all three. I'm not focused on the rear view in the standings. We should be excited about the possibility of surpassing San Antonio in the coming weeks. Sheesh.

Yep, I agree 100% cam. We hold every tie breaker. We have the easiest schedule remaining of those 4 teams. They all play each other and are going to beat up on each other. We are 1 of 2 teams in the NBA that haven't lost 3 or more games in a row this season.

Now could we fall, possibly. But we have had so many things go wrong in the past that it is out brains that worst case scenario. But for now we are the 3 seed and we control our destiny to remain the 3 seed.

We also act like we are the only team with any problems. Well we are not. There is a reason we are ahead of those teams

Cam and Geek -- You guys just don't understand. As long-time Timberwolves fans, many of us have to take great care managing our expectations to avoid more emotional devastation. :) By convincing my self that a 7th place finish is on the horizon, I probably won't suffer an emotional breakdown in the event of a 5th or 6th place finish. Q went even further, projecting that the Wolves might not even make the playoffs. So Q's psyche is even better protected than mine. :)

Seriously, I just don't like they way we've been playing lately. We're 4-6 over the last 10 games with road losses to Orlando and Atlanta while struggling more than we should have at home against the Kings and Lakers. In contrast, the Nuggets are 7-3 and the Blazers 6-4 over their last 10 games. I was impressed by the way these two teams are playing in the couple games I watched, including the Blazers' win over Golden State. They seem to be firing on all cylinders with great offensive execution and a real team identity. The Nuggets will get even stronger with Millsap's return.

The Wolves have 21 games left. 11 of those games are on the road and the Wolves have struggled away from Target Center. Three of our 10 home games are against Houston, Golden State and Boston. Although Boston seems to be struggling lately they'll be a tough one for us while Houston and Golden State will be favored against us. If we continue to play the way we have the past 10 games, I think we'll struggle to win 10 of our remaining games. That would probably drop us down to the 5-7 range. Having said that, the Wolves have the talent and are in a position to finish at #3. I could certainly see us winning as many as 13 or 14 of our remaining games.

We've definitely played well against our main West rivals and we have established a nice home court advantage. All the more reason I want to see this team at least hold on at #4. As a 3rd or 4th seed, we'd have a great shot at winning our first round playoff series.

[AbeVigodaLive]

For what it's worth... 538 has has penciled in as the #3 seed at the moment (48 wins)... with the Spurs and Thunder (47) and Jazz (46) right there... and Denver and Portland within shouting distance (45).

Personally, I think anywhere between #3 - #7 is in play.