Game Report - Wolves v Grizzlies

[Lipoli390]

The game started with a lot of empty seats, a largely quiet arena and very little intensity on the floor. By the start of the second half most of the empty seats had been filled by late-arriving fans and the rest of the game became an intense, entertaining game with a fairly loud, raucous crowd.

Unfortunately the game ended up a huge disappointment. With Pek out we knew this game would be a challenge for the Wolves. But after a very slow start, our team, led by Kevin Love, roared back to take the lead at the start of the 4th. I believe we were tied or slightly ahead late in the 4th when the Grizzlies' starting PG went down with an injury. At that point the game should have been ours. At that point, playing at home with a lively crowd, in a crucial game, the score close or tied, and the opposing team's PG out, the Wolves had to win this game if they are to be fairly considered a playoff team. Instead they lost and confirmed in my mind that this is not a playoff team.

Love was tremendous tonight with 28 efficient points and 16 rebounds. Love also played tough, effective defense beyond his stellar defensive rebounding. Ricky's stats were good, yet those stats don't fully reflect his tremendous floor game tonight on both ends. Dante came through again tonight with 12 points on 6-9 shooting. Those three guys were the three reasons we got back in this game.

So what were the reasons we lost? Topping the list is Chase Budinger. He's supposedly our main shooter off the bench. He went 1 for 5 from the field -- all 4 misses on very wide open looks from behind the arc. That's not acceptable. Budinger can't go 1 for 5 on wide open looks if this team expects to beat good teams, period exclamation point.! Next on the list is Kevin Martin. Flip signed him to a generous 4-year contract to be a big time three point shooter and go-to scorer in our starting lineup. Tonight he took only 2 three-point shots and missed both of them. Overall, he scored only 14 points on 7-17 shooting in 38 minutes - 41% shooting and only 2 more points than the 12 points each scored by JJ and Dante. That's not acceptable from your go-to scorer and three point specialist in a big home game like this one -- especially when that player brings nothing else to the table - not a good defender, not a playmaker, not a rebounder , etc. The final entry on my list is Rick Adelman. Absolutely no excuse for playing JJ instead of Ricky down the stretch in the 4th. Ricky was making everyone better throughout the 3rd quarter and was really disrupting the Memphis defense with his controlled dribble penetration.

I would have put Corey on the list, but he is what he is -- a poor shooter, poor ball-handler and overrated defender with bad hands. He plays with heart and energy. He can disrupt an opposing team's offense with his ball-hawking and get some easy buckets running the floor. He's simply being asked to do too much. That's not his fault. The blame goes on Flip and Adelman. And I can't blame JJ. Again, he is who he is. He's simply being asked to do too much. Although, to be fair to JJ, he did score 12 points -- only 2 fewer than Kevin Martin.

This much is clear. The Wolves will not be a playoff team this season. The question is this -- what changes will it take to make the Wolves a playoff team and maybe a title contender in the years ahead? In a season ticket holder dinner before tonight's game Flip was asked what it will take to make the Wolves a playoff team. Flip gave a typically glib answer, saying "win more games." He got the laugh he wanted. The ticket holder pressed him for a serious answer and he said, "get more 2-way players." He added, "we have too many one-way players who are either good defensively or good offensively but not both." What seemed to be lost on Flip was the fact that he was the guy who signed Brewer and Martin and who traded for Luc. When asked about our weak bench, Flip answered by saying, "players are only as good as the head coach thinks they are." He added, "Shabazz and Dieng might be rookies of the year if they played, but we don't know because they don't play." Wow! I'm one who wants Shabazz to get more playing time, but come on Flip! My friend who came with me to the dinner and game turned to me at the end of Flip's Q&A and said, "Flip's not very bright is he."

In the meantime, I'll say that it's a pleasure and a privilege watching Kevin Love play in a Timberwolves uniform. I'd still like to believe we can build a contender around him. Unfortunately, it's hard to have confidence that Flip has what it takes to make that happen.

[Eitan]

Great report Lip, Thank you for the very interesting insight from the season ticket holder dinner.

It seems that we missed 12 pts at the center position tonight (Pek's = 19/20 pts; Turiaf & Dieng = only 7pts) to win the game.

Too bad we don`t win games at home against our playoff's spot rivals.

[thedoper]

Why would anyone want to stay on this team. Total dysfunction. Stop the bleeding Lip. Take Adelman's job, he clearly doesn't care anymore. I read they upped the season ticket price tonight too. Crazy.

[m4gor [enjin:6667447]]

Flip is not very bright indeed. And yes it is scary proposition because another rebuild is coming and i am not sure if it is good idea to have Flip in charge while trying to get some assets for Love/PEK/Ricky.

btw. we dont have enough two way players so we trade for MBAM? Logic?

[Loose Goose [enjin:8265301]]

If those Flip quotes are true he sounds like a total dumb ass!

[60WinTim]

Thanks Lip.

This was a very disheartening loss for me. And more so because of the way we lost than the actual loss. Maybe the game has passed Adelman by...

Barea is like Vegas: if you don't quit while you're ahead, you'll lose your shorts. I thought Adelman learned this with all these January losses. I guess you can't teach old farts new tricks after all.

[Papalrep]

Thanks Lip. I have watched the Sidcast, Zgoda's report, read the game report. Then I come here and learn so much more from your report that any of theirs. You should go after Zgoda's job, and save the season ticket price. Agree with everyone on Adelman. He wanted one more season for the bank account. Flip is in over his head

[longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]]

Your best game report yet, Lip...I guess despair brings out the writer in us :( . The quote from Flip about our rookies is astonishing...more on that later (deserves its own post).

I didn't think my appreciation for Kevin Love could go any higher, but it did last night. With a minute left in the first half, his stats were 4 and 2, but I still thought he played one hell of a half. Because, as so many of the wise fans on this forum noted in the GDT, he played extraordinary interior defense. Z-Bo and Gasol are as tough as any pair of bigs in the league, and Love was their equal last night. His physical play whenever the ball came inside was inspirational, and demonstrated once again what a warrior Kevin is. And then, he topped it off with his most exceptional quarter of the year, and finished with his typical 28 and 16.

As Lip points out, Dante and Ricky played very well too. But Martin was a big disappointment. As I wrote pre-game, Courtney Lee is one of the easiest defenders in the league to get a shot off against...it's one of the reasons he has never been an NBA starter (until Allen's injury)...and Martin demonstrated this by getting off 17 shots. Unfortunately, he missed 10 of them, and only scored 14 points on those 17 shots. Love, on the other hand, scored 28 on 20 shots. Martin had zero free throws, and Adelman appeared to blame the refs. I thought the refereeing was consistent...they were letting both teams play, which favors the more physical Memphis, but still was fair. I also thought that although he came out very aggressive, in the second half Martin didn't appear like he wanted the ball.

But where I may disagree with you, Lip, is that even though you correctly hold Adelman accountable for JJ, because JJ is what he is, you don't seem to hold him accountable for Bud. Yes, Bud was terrible again last night. As you pointed out, his 1 for 5 on wide open shots was a big factor in our loss, and his last two shots were ridiculously off. But I think we have to hold Adelman accountable for Bud too. Bud is performing exactly as many of us on this board expected an average NBA reserve coming off two knee surgeries should be performing. If we can see it so clearly, why the Sandra Fluke can't Adelman????? Even Bud's one made three last night didn't look anything like a healthy Bud. Rather than his typical beautiful jump shot form with great elevation, it was more of a Ricky Rubio set shot. That's not Bud. 3 of his misses were typical of a guy not ready to be playing post-injury...off the front rim. And then, to his credit, he tried to overcorrect on his final shot, and put up a shot remindful of a fan at halftime competing in a contest for $100...2 feet long and wide left. Bud himself said in the paper last week he wasn't ready to be playing, and said he was really in his pre-season. He's right. Adelman is killing us by continuing to believe that Bud is the old Bud, and giving him 20 minutes ahead of healthy alternatives.

Okay, I've vented. It really was a fun game to watch...I'm just frustrated by Adelman and the difference in heart between the two Kevins.

I'll address Flip in the next post.

[longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]]

As I mentioned in the previous post, I am astonished at Flip's pre-game quote about our rookies (thanks again, Lip, for giving us an inside look that Zgoda seldom gives us). But unlike others in this thread, I don't see it as an example of Flip being dumb, because I don't think he is. Instead, I see him clearly calling out Adelman for not giving his rookies a chance. This is the first evidence that I have seen that all is not good between Flip and Adelman, otherwise Flip wouldn't be making a comment like this. I actually don't think his comment about not knowing if Shabazz could be ROY because Rick won't play him is absurd at all...after all, the bar for ROY isn't very high. The current favorite in Philly is shooting 40% (under 30% on threes) and turning the ball over 3.3 times a game, almost exactly the stats VO is putting up in Orlando. Adelman would never give a black player shooting under 40% the opportunity to put up so many shots (he reserves that entitlement for JJ, Bud, Shved, Hummel and unfortunately, Ricky), but I think if Shabazz were playing for Philly or Orlando, he would be scoring 18 (perhaps inefficient) points a game and be in the mix for ROY. I really believe that, but as Flip said, we will never know because Adelman continues to go with the guys who have shown us nothing except that they are not good enough to get us to the playoffs.

So, for the first time that I can remember, Flip has let us know that he and Rick aren't in agreement about the rookies...and I found that very interesting. I agree with Flip on this one, and think Adelman's choice of whom to play is a more important factor in our mediocrity than the roster he has to work with.

One more interesting tidbit from yesterday. I'm surprised it hasn't appeared on this board yet, but Zgoda tweeted yesterday that he was convinced that Flip would be the coach if Rick were not. Granted this is Zgoda, but he couldn't have stated his opinion more clearly. I am not down on Flip as GM as many are on this board, but I do not want him as our next coach. I watch the amazing Phoenix Suns this year, and give almost all the credit to Jeff Hornacek. The Wolves need new blood on the bench, not a recycled Flip. I hope Zgoda's "insight" is typical of most of his.

[khans2k5 [enjin:6608728]]

Come on longstrangetrip. Bringing race into the argument of why Adelman would or wouldn't play Bazz is just ignorant. You can see just with Dieng on the floor why he doesn't play our rookies that much. He looks clueless most of the time on both ends of the floor. Our rookies don't have the basketball IQ to be confident with this system on both ends as most rookies are the same way. Adelman goes with the vets because at the very least, they don't look clueless on the floor, they understand where they need to be for spacing purposes and they know the offense and defense much better. Why do you think rookies hit walls and lack consistency. Most of them have the talent, but they don't have the legs and IQ yet to pull off a full year of strong, consistent play. Adelman is playing the guys with higher IQ's because we don't have the ability to throw away wins by playing guys who don't understand how to play the game yet. It's always easier to say the unknown would do better because you have no idea how well they would do when given a chance, but there just aren't that many rookies in the history of basketball that make big impacts off the bench. The backup QB is the most popular guy on the team until he plays and people actually see why he is a backup.