If Ricky is out for a month or more...

[SameOldNudityDrew]

I'm asking this seriously, not to be a jerk. What is the best evidence that Zach can be a PG in the NBA? Didn't he play SG at UCLA? Was he a PG in high school? In summer league, I know he handled the point, right? But his overall stats 94 points, 26 rebounds, and 17 assists definitely suggest look like SG stats, not PG stats. He's got good handles for an SG, and he can make some nice passes, but watching him, he's clearly got the mentality of a scorer and that's when he seems to be his best. I think he could be a Monta Ellis type of player, and thankfully he doesn't look as selfish as in Monta's early years. A player like that would be great. But do we want that as a 19 year old running the team as our PG?

For what it's worth, his DX weaknesses include creating, inefficiency in the pick and roll, and decision making.

http://www.draftexpress.com/profile/Zach-LaVine-7153/


You can check out his summer league highlights here.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pC2PrajnLLI


Either way, Zach's going to get plenty of minutes as the PG for a few weeks. Ricky's ankle sprain looked really bad. Ugh. But until I see him play the point more and show he can consistently distribute and get the offense flowing, I'm not expecting too much from him.

It's weird. I think both LaVine and Wiggins should ultimately play the 2. I think LaVine should get minutes there now (though our roster won't let that happen until we lose some of these vets) and I think Wiggins should improve his handle so he can play the 2 and doesn't have to guard guys like Joe Johnson and Tobias Harris, but it's not there yet.

[khans2k5 [enjin:6608728]]

I think the biggest thing for him to be somewhat successful at the point while Ricky is out is attack the basket on the pick and roll. He should have a significant size and athleticism advantage at the point so he should use that to his advantage to get to the hoop. That is why Ricky is able to create so much offense for others. Even if he knows he can't get a shot up he still attacks the rim and either passes or dribbles out of it if the shot isn't there at the rim. Watching Lavine in the preseason, he didn't attack the rim much off the PnR and that will lead to some ugliness if he elects to play passive and look for jumpers like Mo. He needs to attack the hedger and not get stopped by the hard hedge like so many do. Put some pressure on the defense and the playmaking windows open up when the guys around him make the right cuts and rotate to the right spots on the floor.

[alexftbl8181 [enjin:6648741]]

I'm asking this seriously, not to be a jerk. What is the best evidence that Zach can be a PG in the NBA? Didn't he play SG at UCLA? Was he a PG in high school? In summer league, I know he handled the point, right? But his overall stats 94 points, 26 rebounds, and 17 assists definitely suggest look like SG stats, not PG stats. He's got good handles for an SG, and he can make some nice passes, but watching him, he's clearly got the mentality of a scorer and that's when he seems to be his best. I think he could be a Monta Ellis type of player, and thankfully he doesn't look as selfish as in Monta's early years. A player like that would be great. But do we want that as a 19 year old running the team as our PG?

For what it's worth, his DX weaknesses include creating, inefficiency in the pick and roll, and decision making.

http://www.draftexpress.com/profile/Zach-LaVine-7153/


You can check out his summer league highlights here.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pC2PrajnLLI


Either way, Zach's going to get plenty of minutes as the PG for a few weeks. Ricky's ankle sprain looked really bad. Ugh. But until I see him play the point more and show he can consistently distribute and get the offense flowing, I'm not expecting too much from him.

It's weird. I think both LaVine and Wiggins should ultimately play the 2. I think LaVine should get minutes there now (though our roster won't let that happen until we lose some of these vets) and I think Wiggins should improve his handle so he can play the 2 and doesn't have to guard guys like Joe Johnson and Tobias Harris, but it's not there yet.

Guys 19. Also there are a lot more Westbrook type PG's in the NBA then there are Rubio style. He'll be fine

[Coolbreeze44]

Relatively good news on Rubios injury. Zgoda reports that there is no fracture and it is not a high ankle sprain. But it is a significant sprain. I would expect him back in 4-5 weeks.

[Hicks123 [enjin:6700838]]

Man, I think there are some fairly high expectations for Lavine. I watched enough last year to understand that he clearly wasn't ready for seriously competitive college play, and now folks want him to start on an NBA team? The kid is the definition of an athlete playing basketball. The only skill he shows that makes him more "basketball player" than many other guys that get drafted due solely to athleticism is his ability to shoot the ball at times. That being said, he is no where near ready to even contribute as a scoring guard, which is his current "strength", let alone as a PG. This guy is not Westbrook, despite what people want to believe. Westbrook was able to handle NBA contact from day 1 due to his frame....which is massively valuable in transitioning from college to the NBA. I actually have hope that Lavine turns into a decent player, but 2014 is not the year to expect this to happen. And I get the "baptism by fire", but with his current skillset, this will probably do more harm than good.

[alexftbl8181 [enjin:6648741]]

Man, I think there are some fairly high expectations for Lavine. I watched enough last year to understand that he clearly wasn't ready for seriously competitive college play, and now folks want him to start on an NBA team? The kid is the definition of an athlete playing basketball. The only skill he shows that makes him more "basketball player" than many other guys that get drafted due solely to athleticism is his ability to shoot the ball at times. That being said, he is no where near ready to even contribute as a scoring guard, which is his current "strength", let alone as a PG. This guy is not Westbrook, despite what people want to believe. Westbrook was able to handle NBA contact from day 1 due to his frame....which is massively valuable in transitioning from college to the NBA. I actually have hope that Lavine turns into a decent player, but 2014 is not the year to expect this to happen. And I get the "baptism by fire", but with his current skillset, this will probably do more harm than good.

Most of the time when you play your 3rd string PG, that guy probably isn't very good. What else do you want them to do though? Play Martin at PG?

[Hicks123 [enjin:6700838]]

alex,

While I agree this forces the teams hand to get him more minutes, he should not be in the discussion for starting PG. And depending on the news regarding Rubio, if he misses 4-6 weeks, I would anticipate the team signing a vet PG on 10 day contracts.

[Phenom]

I personally see LaVine as more of a combo guard or 2 guard with a very good handle before point guard. That type of player is great to have next to Ricky or off the bench. I thought the talk about him replacing Ricky as our pg was crazy and fortunately I think Flip does as well. Either way there is little choice now. He will be backing Mo up most likely. What I like about the little we have seen from Zach so far is that he hasn't been forcing things and is looking to get his teammates involved which tells me he is patient and is coachable. I think these traits will help him perform better than one might expect in this type of situation.

[alexftbl8181 [enjin:6648741]]

alex,

While I agree this forces the teams hand to get him more minutes, he should not be in the discussion for starting PG. And depending on the news regarding Rubio, if he misses 4-6 weeks, I would anticipate the team signing a vet PG on 10 day contracts.

The Wolves went to all that trouble to keep GR3 just to release him for a scrap heap PG? Flip should be roasted if he did that

[BizarroJerry [enjin:6592520]]

After wiggy had that great game against Brooklyn, I knew the high wouldn't last too long.

Who does God hate more? Us or Cleveland?