Ant and Rudy Out vs Bucks GDT

[mjs34]

DVR Review:

- If it wasn't obvious enough already... the Wolves knew Anthony Edwards was not playing this game during the Spurs game. He's not even on the bench. With a game not until Friday... is he on vacation or just doing business out in LA or something? I'm guessing Rudy pulled the "Hey! If he doesn't have to go, I'm not going either." Not thrilled with the look of not being there, but these guys are professionals and if their teammates are cool with it, so be it.

- Hot shooting early. It helps that the ball is popping and the Bucks are very slow to react. A lot of wide open shots.

- Beringer looks unconventional or even awkward out there. But it's effective. He's gotten his hands just enough on several balls to keep possessions alive. He's looking like he'll be fun.

- Great extra pass from Randle for the WIDE open three. He's showing good leadership in this one. Playing well.

- The Bucks look awful. The Wolves just pulled off the side out-of-bounds alley oop... to Donte Divencenzo?

- And they're getting worse! With 2:30 left in the 1st half, Conley and Reid ran a simple pick-and-roll. And it ended in a wide open dunk for Reid. Only, it wasn't an alley oop or even a pocket pass. It was a lazy lob pass that Reid caught at the free throw line only to see all of the Bucks players run away for some reason.

- ProTip for Doc Rivers and the Bucks... don't have AJ Green try to guard Julius Randle. Yikes.

- The disparity between Bones Hyland and Dillingham is expanding. It was interesting to hear Jim Pete talk about finch talking Bones up before the game. Something got him going. Nice game.

- We can probably start the countdown to Dillingham leaving the Twin Cities at any point. He really wanted to make an impact in this one... but he just does NOT have the chops. At this point it's clear to everyone. And sadly... maybe even to Dillingham. The only question is what could they possibly get for him at this point.

- The Wolves are clicking right now. Good vibes. They'll probably have another Brooklyn/Atlanta meltdown, but at least we know they can shake it off and be ready when it's needed at the end of the season and into the playoffs.

Can suspended players be on the bench?

I would have left Ant home as well. The less he is on the foot, the better. And we all know he would have been jumping off the bench cheering the team on. Let him heal and get ready for the run to the All star break.

I don't think they are even allowed in the building.

[Wolvesfan21]

He played solid, I still think his biggest weakness is rebounding. With his size and athleticism he should get a lot better though.

He averaged 11 rebs per 36 in the G-League, so at least he held his own down there.

But how many were offensive rebounds? He has that part of the game figured out because it's all about size, athleticism and hustle. It's the boxing out that needs work.

Three days off now before going to Houston. And they have to play OkC the night before!

Agreed, he just looks out of position or not boxing out. He clearly hasn't learned this skill yet. He has the hustle to offensively board, but some skill is certainly required to be a good boarder overall. It's a glaring weakness to me right now. No worries though because he's so young and not played much. I've been more 50/50 on whether he should be playing earlier or not, mainly because you just have to rebound as a center in the NBA, especially if you don't shoot the 3.

I can see, OK you're like Naz who can light it up on offense. We can kind of excuse some bad defense and rebounding. But Joan will need to develop his boarding skill to be a positive player.

[60WinTim]

It seems odd that I have to come in and be the voice of reason...

- Doc said his team had tired legs coming off a tough road trip for just one home game before departing for another super tough game. He was inferring it was a "scheduled loss".
- Miles Turner did not play, which means other than Giannis, they had no rim protection.
- How often have we seen a team come in missing a star or two and give us all we can handle? Well, tonight the shoe was on the other foot.
- I am super high on Joan's future. But last night may be a Herschel Walker moment. The circumstances were perfect for his debut game. He may not have that productive a game the rest of this season...
- Bones, my guy, can be hot and cold. He was hot tonight, but that will not be the case every night (BTW, while I was high on Bones being brought back, it was not necessarily for being part of the rotation -- I just thought he provided some solid depth on the roster. Dilly's failure and TJ's injury are the main reasons Bones has his opportunity).

Anyway, we seem to be flying super high right now, to the point where I perceive a feeling of "who needs ANT?" and "who needs Rudy?". The Wolves need both ANT and Rudy!

[AbeVigodaLive]

DVR Review:

- If it wasn't obvious enough already... the Wolves knew Anthony Edwards was not playing this game during the Spurs game. He's not even on the bench. With a game not until Friday... is he on vacation or just doing business out in LA or something? I'm guessing Rudy pulled the "Hey! If he doesn't have to go, I'm not going either." Not thrilled with the look of not being there, but these guys are professionals and if their teammates are cool with it, so be it.

- Hot shooting early. It helps that the ball is popping and the Bucks are very slow to react. A lot of wide open shots.

- Beringer looks unconventional or even awkward out there. But it's effective. He's gotten his hands just enough on several balls to keep possessions alive. He's looking like he'll be fun.

- Great extra pass from Randle for the WIDE open three. He's showing good leadership in this one. Playing well.

- The Bucks look awful. The Wolves just pulled off the side out-of-bounds alley oop... to Donte Divencenzo?

- And they're getting worse! With 2:30 left in the 1st half, Conley and Reid ran a simple pick-and-roll. And it ended in a wide open dunk for Reid. Only, it wasn't an alley oop or even a pocket pass. It was a lazy lob pass that Reid caught at the free throw line only to see all of the Bucks players run away for some reason.

- ProTip for Doc Rivers and the Bucks... don't have AJ Green try to guard Julius Randle. Yikes.

- The disparity between Bones Hyland and Dillingham is expanding. It was interesting to hear Jim Pete talk about finch talking Bones up before the game. Something got him going. Nice game.

- We can probably start the countdown to Dillingham leaving the Twin Cities at any point. He really wanted to make an impact in this one... but he just does NOT have the chops. At this point it's clear to everyone. And sadly... maybe even to Dillingham. The only question is what could they possibly get for him at this point.

- The Wolves are clicking right now. Good vibes. They'll probably have another Brooklyn/Atlanta meltdown, but at least we know they can shake it off and be ready when it's needed at the end of the season and into the playoffs.

I always start reading your posts, not realizing it’s you, but then catch myself and move on to someone who has a clue

LOL.



[Note: And you just gave me an idea for my next installment. So thanks!]

[Wolvesfan21]

It seems odd that I have to come in and be the voice of reason...

- Doc said his team had tired legs coming off a tough road trip for just one home game before departing for another super tough game. He was inferring it was a "scheduled loss".
- Miles Turner did not play, which means other than Giannis, they had no rim protection.
- How often have we seen a team come in missing a star or two and give us all we can handle? Well, tonight the shoe was on the other foot.
- I am super high on Joan's future. But last night may be a Herschel Walker moment. The circumstances were perfect for his debut game. He may not have that productive a game the rest of this season...
- Bones, my guy, can be hot and cold. He was hot tonight, but that will not be the case every night (BTW, while I was high on Bones being brought back, it was not necessarily for being part of the rotation -- I just thought he provided some solid depth on the roster. Dilly's failure and TJ's injury are the main reasons Bones has his opportunity).

Anyway, we seem to be flying super high right now, to the point where I perceive a feeling of "who needs ANT?" and "who needs Rudy?". The Wolves need both ANT and Rudy!

I wouldn't even say Joan was great. He certainly had the advantage essentially playing against a bunch of PF's, even Giannis looked like he played half ass. I think Joan was simply solid (not quite a Herchel Walker debut). I think we all know he simply needs time and might hurt more then he helps us in most games.

I guess my argument earlier in the season was, should we take some lumps early on and play him, hoping that will accelerate his learning curve with more real NBA action. So by the end of year / playoffs, he can be a player we could hopefully count on.

Sure practice and scrimmages matter. But doing mistakes in real time and learning I think are almost inevitable for a guy like Joan whos played very little basketball relatively, more reps the better.

Considering the Wests toughness though, I can see why Finch and staff didn't throw him in earlier. Say he plays but due to his play we are 9th or 10th in the West now? Might be hard to rally back.

[AbeVigodaLive]

DVR Review:

- If it wasn't obvious enough already... the Wolves knew Anthony Edwards was not playing this game during the Spurs game. He's not even on the bench. With a game not until Friday... is he on vacation or just doing business out in LA or something? I'm guessing Rudy pulled the "Hey! If he doesn't have to go, I'm not going either." Not thrilled with the look of not being there, but these guys are professionals and if their teammates are cool with it, so be it.

- Hot shooting early. It helps that the ball is popping and the Bucks are very slow to react. A lot of wide open shots.

- Beringer looks unconventional or even awkward out there. But it's effective. He's gotten his hands just enough on several balls to keep possessions alive. He's looking like he'll be fun.

- Great extra pass from Randle for the WIDE open three. He's showing good leadership in this one. Playing well.

- The Bucks look awful. The Wolves just pulled off the side out-of-bounds alley oop... to Donte Divencenzo?

- And they're getting worse! With 2:30 left in the 1st half, Conley and Reid ran a simple pick-and-roll. And it ended in a wide open dunk for Reid. Only, it wasn't an alley oop or even a pocket pass. It was a lazy lob pass that Reid caught at the free throw line only to see all of the Bucks players run away for some reason.

- ProTip for Doc Rivers and the Bucks... don't have AJ Green try to guard Julius Randle. Yikes.

- The disparity between Bones Hyland and Dillingham is expanding. It was interesting to hear Jim Pete talk about finch talking Bones up before the game. Something got him going. Nice game.

- We can probably start the countdown to Dillingham leaving the Twin Cities at any point. He really wanted to make an impact in this one... but he just does NOT have the chops. At this point it's clear to everyone. And sadly... maybe even to Dillingham. The only question is what could they possibly get for him at this point.

- The Wolves are clicking right now. Good vibes. They'll probably have another Brooklyn/Atlanta meltdown, but at least we know they can shake it off and be ready when it's needed at the end of the season and into the playoffs.

Can suspended players be on the bench?

I would have left Ant home as well. The less he is on the foot, the better. And we all know he would have been jumping off the bench cheering the team on. Let him heal and get ready for the run to the All star break.

I mean the foot requiring "maintenance" allowed Edwards to play 73 minutes over back-to-back days. I'm not sure it's at the stage where he shouldn't be standing and celebrating.

Not a big deal either way. As we've discussed previously, the Wolves stars miss a lot FEWER games for rest or maintenance than other teams. I'm sure his absence was cool with everyone (and planned). And, the Wolves won anyway with guys stepping up.

Good vibes all around. Let's hope it continues for an extended spell.

[Coolbreeze44]

I wish we could get Ant incorporated into the way we played last night. Not only was it aesthetically pleasing but obviously effective as well. Of course Rudy slows things down too, so it wasn't just the absence of Ant. I just wonder how good we could be if Edwards committed to pace and ball movement the way the group did last night. Great game to watch.



[I had to chuckle at Dloser's comment. Abe, you suck]

[rapsuperstar31]

I wish we could get Ant incorporated into the way we played last night. Not only was it aesthetically pleasing but obviously effective as well. Of course Rudy slows things down too, so it wasn't just the absence of Ant. I just wonder how good we could be if Edwards committed to pace and ball movement the way the group did last night. Great game to watch.



[I had to chuckle at Dloser's comment. Abe, you suck]

The game really opened up once Joan came into the game. We were up 3 when Joan first came in, and up 22 when he first subbed out. I'll be interested to see if we see more Joan minutes when Rudy is out of the game, because that is usually when we struggle when Jaden, Donte, and Rudy are all on the bench.

[D-Loser25]

I wish we could get Ant incorporated into the way we played last night. Not only was it aesthetically pleasing but obviously effective as well. Of course Rudy slows things down too, so it wasn't just the absence of Ant. I just wonder how good we could be if Edwards committed to pace and ball movement the way the group did last night. Great game to watch.



[I had to chuckle at Dloser's comment. Abe, you suck]

Abe’s ok. Not my favorite poster, but ok. I just don’t see how you call Joan awkward. Joan looks anything but awkward to me - if anything he is a smooth operator out there. I had to stop reading your post at that point… but I’ll give you another chance, once the paint on my wall has dried

[KiwiMatt]

The most impressive thing last night was that after the brilliant 1st half we also outscored them in the 2nd half (by 2 points). We didn't take the foot off the throat and get complacent. That's what championship caliber teams do.