It's Not the Small Forward Position

[60WinTim]

Is the sky falling? I don't think so.

Has Shved been disappointing? Yup. But there are plenty more disappointments to go around, and to guys that play more minutes.

What about Pek and his 12 mil of production? It sucks! I want my money back! And with Turiaf out and Deing needing time to get up to speed, the center spot has been far more troubling than the meager minutes Shved gets.

Anyway, it was one game at the end of a back-to-back on the road, and just the 4th game of the season. A letdown after the huge win at MSG is nothing to be alarmed about.

Now the upcoming game against Golden State? That will be a real indicator of where we stand this early in the season!

[AbeVigodaLive]

Cleveland is giving Anthony Bennett double figure minutes every game, and he is 0-15 from the floor and looks much worse than Shabazz and Hummel did in their brief cameo appearance. Williams, Cunningham, and Shved aren't good or consistent enough to deserve playing time every night, and should be given occasional nights off to give our rookies a shot. Muhammad played a wing position in the Pac 12 and set an all-time freshman league scoring record. He didn't distribute well, but he has shown a desire to learn and, unlike Williams, has a non-stop motor. I don't think he is anywhere near NBA-ready, but he's more ready then Bennett, and deserves a chance at the 2 and 3 (note that the only time he has hit the floor in an NBA game, he was playing SG with Hummel at SF).
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Anthony Bennett was chosen #1 in the draft. Surprisingly. There would be a revolt if the team didn't give him minutes. As it is, he's been so bad, Mike Brown has had to find ways to hide him out on the court.

That's been a trainwreck. But not nearly as big if he wasn't playing at all and Cleveland fans saw a bunch of guys chosen after him playing. His playing has as much to do with PR as anything else.

[longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]]

Cleveland is giving Anthony Bennett double figure minutes every game, and he is 0-15 from the floor and looks much worse than Shabazz and Hummel did in their brief cameo appearance. Williams, Cunningham, and Shved aren't good or consistent enough to deserve playing time every night, and should be given occasional nights off to give our rookies a shot. Muhammad played a wing position in the Pac 12 and set an all-time freshman league scoring record. He didn't distribute well, but he has shown a desire to learn and, unlike Williams, has a non-stop motor. I don't think he is anywhere near NBA-ready, but he's more ready then Bennett, and deserves a chance at the 2 and 3 (note that the only time he has hit the floor in an NBA game, he was playing SG with Hummel at SF).
.

Anthony Bennett was chosen #1 in the draft. Surprisingly. There would be a revolt if the team didn't give him minutes. As it is, he's been so bad, Mike Brown has had to find ways to hide him out on the court.

That's been a trainwreck. But not nearly as big if he wasn't playing at all and Cleveland fans saw a bunch of guys chosen after him playing. His playing has as much to do with PR as anything else.

Good point, Abe. I get down sometimes on Rick for not playing rookies, but it's much the norm in the NBA. Several on this board were interested in Sergei Karasov, but he apparently has looked terrible, and Brown isn't playing him at all. Guys like Oladipo are more an exception than the rule.

I really got fooled by Bennett. I only saw him play twice at UNLV, but I thought he was the real deal. In all fairness though, he doesn't have the same body he had in college...looks fat and slow. I think Anthony needs to quit super-sizing.

[ace [enjin:6598567]]

What about Pek and his 12 mil of production? It sucks! I want my money back! And with Turiaf out and Deing needing time to get up to speed, the center spot has been far more troubling than the meager minutes Shved gets.

Double-doubles with decent defense is worth 12 million from a center.

[longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]]

What about Pek and his 12 mil of production? It sucks! I want my money back! And with Turiaf out and Deing needing time to get up to speed, the center spot has been far more troubling than the meager minutes Shved gets.

Double-doubles with decent defense is worth 12 million from a center.

Although Tim's comment may be partially tongue-in-cheek, I think there is some truth in both statements about Pek. On the positive side, he is averaging a double double and has won all of his personal battles except against budding star Vukevic. But on the negative, he is missing more bunnies than ever, resulting in a .395 shooting percentage and a PER under 10...unacceptable.

What I like, though, is that the effort is there. I was concerned in pre-season that Pek might be content with his big money, but he has turned it on once the season started. I predict the bunnies will start falling again, the shooting percentage will get closer to 50%, and Pek will be a 16 and 10 guy...which would justify his contract.

[Lipoli390]

Call it a SF. Or SG. Or PG.

But, the team still only has one guy who can break people down consistently off the dribble. That's why he got the ball at the end of the game yesterday.

Unfortunately, he's about the same height as my mom.

You nailed it, Abe. We need someone who can consistently break down defenders off the dribble and score driving the lane in the half court, regardless of what position he plays. It is SGs who typically have the ball handling and quickness (more than SFs) to break defenders down consistently off the dribble and score driving the lane. But if we had that sort of player at the SF position (e.g., Paul George) I'd be happy. It would be huge if Shved could become that player for the Wolves, but that doesn't look likely. I just don't see any viable options for us outside the organization.

[Camden [enjin:6601484]]

We lose a back to back game that was on the road, as was the previous game, and some on this board want to change things already. Give me a break.

By the way, I think Adelman left Barea, D-Will and those guys in because they were the unit that got the team back in the game and he rewarded them. Speaking of which, had Barea not lost his handle on the last drive, we'd be looking at a 4-0 Minnesota squad. He had the left side of the rim open as well as a rolling D-Will since Varejao committed so hard on Barea. Easy drop bass or left handed layup for JJ. Not worried about the Cavs game at all.

Warriors on Wednesday. Big game. We should fight hard for it.

[Lipoli390]

Come on Cam, no one is talking about changing things because of one game. The Cleveland game just highlighted one specific roster weakness most of us have been aware of for a long time - well before that game. Every team, even the best ones, have weaknesses and the best organizations are constantly exploring ways to fix them. Of course those same weaknesses are fair game for fan comment.

Yes, we are 3-1. But so are the Sixers and Suns. Yes, we beat the Knicks at the Garden. But so did Charlotte. I generally like the team we have and I'm happy with our record so far. But even Flip has referred to this team as a work in progress and has said he continues to look for ways to improve it. And this message board would be a boring, empty and intellectually dishonest forum if those who posted ignored all flaws and engaged in perpetual happy talk.

[bleedspeed]

I have not watched enough of Evan Turner. I know he played PG in college. Can he break his guy down?

[60WinTim]

So, once Bud returns, does that knock Shved out of the rotation?

Shved out means the backup SG minutes would go to a combination of Barea, Bud and Brewer (depending on matchups). Maybe even Price enters the equation.

Tonight's game ought to tell us a lot about where we stand. Hopefully Deing has more success than he had against Bynum!