Dunks after Dark

[60WinTim]

I'm sure many of you have seen this, but the Wolves are going to hold a Dunks after Dark event at midnight on the evening of September 29th, which is media day. I had thoughts of heading down for it, but I now see that the event will be streamed at timberwolves.com AND broadcast on NBATV! So I'll be checking it out from the comfort of my own home.

Flip joined the Mike & Bob show yesterday. It starts at about the 19:50 mark.

http://www.stationcaster.com/player_skinned.php?s=3271&c=14061&f=3352323

[longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]]

Thanks for posting, Tim. That interview really has me fired up for the season. At first I thought the Dunks after Dark idea was kind of silly, but now I understand it. Flip knows that last year was not fun for the players, and he really wants to be the anti-Adelman. Just about everything he said in that interview was the opposite of what Rick would have said. It's interesting...Flip and Rick are close in age, but Flip seems 20 years younger...he even talks about getting out on the court with the players! This season is going to be all about fun and high energy.

Good to hear him say that Anthony Bennett has the potential to be an elite player. If Bennett and Wiggins can both live up to the ceilings everyone thought they had when they were drafted, and Young can just be the guy he has been at Philly, this will turn out to be the greatest trade in the history of the NBA...grand theft larceny!

[60WinTim]

Yeah, I should have hyped up the interview more than I did -- it's more than 10 minutes and hardly touches on the Dunks after Dark...

And I agree 100% that Flip seems anti-Adelman. Almost everything is different, with his hands on approach, his belief in the young guys, his focus on defense and his warning to players be ready for a much tougher training camp than the last few years.

[Mstermisty [enjin:6864008]]

Good interview. Getting excited for the season. Hope springs eternal yet again...

[Monster]

I don't think Flip is trying to be anti-Adelman. Flip is being Flip. Thought he answered those questions that could have made Adelman sound bad quite well. Every coach has his strengths and weaknesses and I liked his comment about coaching egos. Flip seems like the right guy for this job though. He sounds really energized, clearly has a plan and is doing his homework too. I think a guy with experience and some youthful energy and hands on approach is good for this team especially with its mix of youth and some legit vets. I think Flip's familiarity with Minnesota has been and will continue be an asset. He can integrate and build a culture of the franchise in a way nobody else can. Will it work? Idk let's hope so but I'll go in the positive direction right now and say YES!!!!! Lol

[60WinTim]

You are right, monster, "anti-Adelman" was the wrong term because Flip never says anything disparaging against Adelman. Yet looking at the substance of what Flip is saying, much of it is almost opposite from how Adelman operated...

And YES, I am excited about the current group of guys, with Flip leading the way!

[longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]]

Yes, to be clear, by "anti-Adelman" I meant coaching in a way completely different from Rick, not saying anything bad about Rick. I suspect that Flip sincerely likes and respects Adelman, but that he also recognizes mistakes that Rick made coaching last year. Flip naturally has a different style than Rick, but he also seems to be making an effort to do almost everything differently than Rick did. There are so many examples of differences, but a few that I have already noticed are:

1) a willingness to consider playing rookies more
2) more emphasis on having fun (can you imagine Rick sponsoring a Dunks after Dark?)
3) unwillingness to create an entitled "star" mentality, like Rick did with Love
4) more emphasis on the defensive side of the ball
5) more freedom for Ricky (although this may just be wishful thinking)
6) less tolerance for JJ
7) just more enthusiasm for the job in general.

These are bid differences from Rick's style, and all good I think.