Why does everyone think we are going to be terrible this year?

[Mstermisty [enjin:6864008]]

Tough to say what we will have this year, but I could easily see us winning only about 25 games. But however many games we win, I'd be happy if Ricky improved his shot, Wiggins was in the running for or won rookie of the year, and Lavine earned regular minutes. If those 3 things happened the year would be a success regardless of win total.

[60WinTim]

Me and the '04-05 Bulls disagree with all of you!

http://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/CHI/2005.html

I said in another post that I see the number of wins next season falling within a very large range. It's entirely possible we struggle to get 30 wins as our rookies struggle and vets get injured. But we have a number of talented young players that could explode simply because they will get opportunities. It's an interesting mix, plus the Flip-effect might make a positive impact as well.

[Camden [enjin:6601484]]

I don't see a bad team there, and I've said that multiple times now so there's no going back. I think we've upgraded defensively and with our depth. On offense, we took a huge hit. That's just what losing Love does for your basketball team, but I don't think we'll necessarily be a poor offensive team at all. We've seen Rubio play and win games with much worse offensive options than the guys we have now.

I'm not sure how a bench of: Williams-Brewer-Budinger-Dieng-Turiaf is the worst bench in the NBA. I put Dieng at PF due to the uncertainty of our backup as of right now. We were running Barea-Shved-Hummel-Cunningham-Turiaf at one point last year...

huge hit is selling it short cam. 4th leading scorer, without Love on the floor, the Wolves were a worse offense then the 76ers. Not to mention he pretty much made Brewers offensive game with his outlets. There's nobody throwing those anymore.

Whats the Wolves crunch time lineup? Rubio/Martin/Wiggins/Young(Bennett)/Pek? The Wolves have no chance late in games with that bunch. We haven't been able to mention the passing and rebounding that will be lost as well.

Rookies just don't win games in the NBA. They'll be better in a few years, but it's crazy to think they won't have a ton of growing pains next year. Both players are hardly finished products and thought to be pretty raw coming in.

Wolves will be a bottom team offensivally, I would guess the D will be around mid pack. 27-55

I said losing Love was a huge hit. I'm not sure what adjective I should have used instead to make it seem like I wasn't selling it short. Love's a top-five player, in my opinion, and I realize he's an absolute game-changer. Without Love on the floor, yes we were a poor offense. I'll add, though, that we're not going to be the same team as last year. It's not going to be last year's roster minus Love. We'll have other players that can contribute that weren't on the team last year or weren't given rightful opportunities (Young, Wiggins, Williams, Dieng, Muhammad). There's also the wildcard that is Budinger.

Rookies won't win games, but they can make positive impacts. This happens every year. We just got one of the best prospects in a decade. If all he did was play great defense and score 15 PPG on open shots, transition buckets next year, then that's a positive impact. Also would be an upgrade over Brewer in the starting lineup.

I'll say middle of the road on both offense and defense. 40 wins is reachable. I'll say we definitely win more than 30 games.

[Coolbreeze44]

If that happens, and it's clear by then that Rubio is hopeless as a shooter and Wiggins, LaVine, and maybe Bennett are all busts, I will agree with you...I would probably give up on the team. But I think that by January we will see the huge potential this young team has, even if the record doesn't show it.

Doesn't mean they'll be busts. They both are still pretty raw. It's just how it works for rookies

I expect there to be rough patches this year with all three, but if we get to that 8-game losing streak in January, and all three are looking like they will eventually be players in this league, I will still be fired up about this team. Even if we end up dealing Bennett for Young, if Wiggins and LaVine look in January like they have superstar potential, I'll be able to get through any losing streak.

LST, we are singing from the same hymn book.

[Q12543 [enjin:6621299]]

Me and the '04-05 Bulls disagree with all of you!

http://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/CHI/2005.html

I said in another post that I see the number of wins next season falling within a very large range. It's entirely possible we struggle to get 30 wins as our rookies struggle and vets get injured. But we have a number of talented young players that could explode simply because they will get opportunities. It's an interesting mix, plus the Flip-effect might make a positive impact as well.

Great example. But why did they make such a huge leap? Defense. They went from 16th to 2nd in the entire NBA over the course of one season. Their offense hardly budged.

I did a post late this past season about the need for bringing in a defensive-minded coach (which was inspired by you by the way!) and how that move alone can have a huge impact on a team's fortunes: http://minnesotasports.enjin.com/forum/m/15059925/viewthread/11523693-case-for-defensive-minded-coach

I used Scott Skiles stint with the Bucks as one of my examples, but prior to that, he did it with the 04-05 Bulls.

Can Flip have a similar impact on the T-Wolves? To me, that's the only way this team sniffs 35+ wins, because we simply don't have the shooters and scorers to do it with offense.

[Porckchop]

The Wolves have been bad for a decade and lost its best player for two players with potential. How can u not see this team being bad in a stacked conference next year. I fully expect a lottery pick next year , and Im more than fine with that. Three years from now potential is realized and teams like the Mavs and Spurs are going thru their own youth movement which hopefully opens the door for the Wolves.

[Porckchop]

The Wolves have been bad for a decade and lost its best player for two players with potential. How can u not see this team being bad in a stacked conference next year. I fully expect a lottery pick next year , and Im more than fine with that. Three years from now potential is realized and teams like the Mavs and Spurs are going thru their own youth movement which hopefully opens the door for the Wolves.

[Camden [enjin:6601484]]

https://sports.vice.com/article/ricky-rubio-and-the-timberwolves-get-a-do-over

[60WinTim]

Nice find, Cam!

I remember early last season Rubio commenting on how he needed to have more fun playing the game. Maybe Adelman checking out and Love's fuse burning were all part of it. I like the "re-do" angle of the article, and the position Rubio now finds himself in.

[Coolbreeze44]

I don't like the article. The author makes it sound like Rubio has been very disappointing. I don't look at Ricky that way. I can't wait to see him run an offense that plays more to his abilities. I think he's been very good, and I expect him to become even better.