OK, next year is our LAST chance to build around Love

[BloopOracle]

So what are we going to do about it?

A couple of in house changes that should help next season are

-shipping out JJ Barera
-Shabazz getting legitimate minutes and proving even though he's unorthodox he can flat out score
-Gorgi developing into at least a serviceable backup C (even though Turiaf has shocked me with his play)
-a late lottery pick, but we usually don't do shit with those so ehhhh

anyways just these in house changes would dramatically improve out anemic bench

But what about a scorer that can break people down off the dribble?

I have no idea what to do here to be honest, all I know is that Corey Brewer can NO be starting with Rubio in the lineup, in my opinion you absolutely have to have the other 4 starters be elite at scoring in some particular way (3 ball, post up, etc) Corey doesn't fit that mold. Even a 3 and D guy would help in end of game situations.

What are your thoughts?

[bleedspeed]

I think you are right. I feel Flip used most of his bullets last offseason and we don't have many avenues to improve the team. A good combo guard would be huge for us. I would figure out if we can get Waiters from the Cav. I would give up anyone other then Love/Rubio/Pek for him.

[TeamRicky [enjin:6648771]]

Our best hope is to somehow get a top 3 pick in the lottery and nail the pick for a change. The Wolves are desperate for a franchise wing player. I'd rather see the Wolves have a chance for lottery success than sneak in the playoffs and be one and done. If we fail at the lottery, then we have to strongly consider going into rebuild mode and moving Love and/or Pek for high draft picks in a loaded draft may be our best option for the future.

[thedoper]

I hope you are right. But I think our last chance to build around Love already passed. I don't think this organization ever really accurately assessed our roster. It is my belief that Love, Rubio, and Pekovic are not a contending top 3 players on a Roster. I wish they were but unfortunately, as long as we build around these 3 players I don't believe we will ever contend. I think we need more of a shakeup than trading Barea and landing the 12th or 13th pick in the draft to keep Love around. Although I love Pek and Rubio, I think one of them has to be leveraged into a real asset to make this team contend.

[longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]]

Our best hope is to somehow get a top 3 pick in the lottery and nail the pick for a change. The Wolves are desperate for a franchise wing player. I'd rather see the Wolves have a chance for lottery success than sneak in the playoffs and be one and done. If we fail at the lottery, then we have to strongly consider going into rebuild mode and moving Love and/or Pek for high draft picks in a loaded draft may be our best option for the future.

Unfortunately, we have to be realistic about the Wolves' mathematical chances of getting a top 3 pick (no, I've never been an NBA lottery conspiracy guy). If the Wolves end up in the 12th slot, they will have only a 2 1/2% chance of getting a top 3 pick. Even if they completely collapse and end up in the 10th slot, their chances only go up to 4%. So, the best we can do is quote "Dumb and Dumber" and say there's a chance.

[BizarroJerry [enjin:6592520]]

I think we've done all the building we can do, aside from a small trade this off-season. Picking 12th means the bottom dwellers will get studs next year and be tougher out next season (well besides Cleveland and Milwaukee). We need to find a coach who can make this team into a contender and I believe it's possible.

[horatio81 [enjin:7751176]]

If you're going to build around Love, in earnest, you have to be honest about his weaknesses. He doesn't protect the rim, and he can't create his own shot off the bounce. These are hallmarks of contending teams; if these traits aren't somewhere in your starting five, you won't compete for a championship.

You can really only obtain rim protection at the four or five spot. Of Love is your four, all that shot blocking needs to come from the five. Effective as Pek is on offense, he doesn't give you what you need on defense from the center position - not when Love is on the floor. Pek has to go. He needs to be paired with someone like Anthony Davis, an athletic defensive four with a serviceable jumper.

Next up: Rubio. The moment you put a non-scorer at the five, a point guard who can't score becomes an insurmountable liability. You can't have two guys sagging into the lane on every play, especially when Love tries to do work inside. You'd need a ridiculously potent sg/sf combo to make the spacing work, and we obviously don't have that.

Long story, short: Rubio and pek are good NBA players. Love is a great NBA player. All three of them, however, have significant holes I'm their games. The surrounding roster needs to compensate for the holes, and this can be done. I just don't think it can be done for all three guys on the same team.

[thedoper]

If you're going to build around Love, in earnest, you have to be honest about his weaknesses. He doesn't protect the rim, and he can't create his own shot off the bounce. These are hallmarks of contending teams; if these traits aren't somewhere in your starting five, you won't compete for a championship.

You can really only obtain rim protection at the four or five spot. Of Love is your four, all that shot blocking needs to come from the five. Effective as Pek is on offense, he doesn't give you what you need on defense from the center position - not when Love is on the floor. Pek has to go. He needs to be paired with someone like Anthony Davis, an athletic defensive four with a serviceable jumper.

Next up: Rubio. The moment you put a non-scorer at the five, a point guard who can't score becomes an insurmountable liability. You can't have two guys sagging into the lane on every play, especially when Love tries to do work inside. You'd need a ridiculously potent sg/sf combo to make the spacing work, and we obviously don't have that.

Long story, short: Rubio and pek are good NBA players. Love is a great NBA player. All three of them, however, have significant holes I'm their games. The surrounding roster needs to compensate for the holes, and this can be done. I just don't think it can be done for all three guys on the same team.

Exactly, if Pek Love and Rubio are your core than your other two need to be great defenders and potential all stars if we really want to contend. I don't think that is economically possible in todays NBA. One of Pek or Rubio has to go or Rubio has to sign here for way under market value (which I don't see happening).