Minnesota Sports Forum

bleedspeed177 wrote:Positives
Long, athletic forward
Explosive leaper
Quick for a big man
Good defender/rebounder
Surprisingly good shooter w/ 3-point range

Negatives
Needs to add strength
Very inconsistent as a freshman and sophomore

I will add one more negative he is already 23 (this dosen't bother me). I think I like the trade, it is lottery protected so it won't kill the wolves and the young player can continue to grow together

kekgeek1 wrote:

It is lottery protected, from 2017-2020, and Barriero says they want a lengthy defensive PF. We will see.

I would think he would be lottery protected until 20's at least since he was the 15th pick and has not played. Izzo must have some good things to say about him. He seems to be a high character guy and certainly fits a need.

I liked Payne in the draft. Just thought we were a little high to get him. He's lanky, can stretch the floor and can probably play both PF and C moving forward. On paper he is an ideal fit next to Pek. We'll see how it works out. I do like that it is a nice insurance plan if Thad leaves and we strike out on a big in the draft. He also gives AB some competition this summer to get his act together or forever be a bench player. Ideally we'll be hitting our prime during the protected years so we won't be turning over a good pick. Age usually doesn't scare me away from bigs either because they seem to naturally take longer to develop as they grow into their bodies growing up. If he can be a rotation guy in a year or 2 it is a good trade in my opinion.

What does this say about his ceiling that the Hawks were willing to move him for a pick they might not see for another 3-4 years?

kekgeek1 wrote:

bleedspeed177 wrote:Positives
Long, athletic forward
Explosive leaper
Quick for a big man
Good defender/rebounder
Surprisingly good shooter w/ 3-point range

Negatives
Needs to add strength
Very inconsistent as a freshman and sophomore

I will add one more negative he is already 23 (this dosen't bother me). I think I like the trade, it is lottery protected so it won't kill the wolves and the young player can continue to grow together

he turns 24 next week

At a time where GM's are smarter than ever in terms of keeping their 1st's and acquiring others, you hate to see Flip give up another first round pick for a guy, but let's just be honest: if we aren't a playoff contender by 2021 (7 seasons from now), we probably won't have Wiggins, Rubio will be past his prime, and another "r-word" will be happening. Impossible to not be excited about getting an uber athletic stretch 4 for this team.

Also, as a realist who knows we will never win the lottery no matter what our record is, this puts me full on the "Lack Hustle For Russell" campaign. Rubio/Russell/Wiggins/Payne/Pek with Shabazz/Dieng/Lavine/etc.

Maybe this encourages Izzo to look at the coaching opportunity again.

CoolBreeze44 wrote:Maybe this encourages Izzo to look at the coaching opportunity again.

Flip is trying out Cleaves too.

Seems to be a log jam with Payne, AB, and Thad now. Is thad next?

CoolBreeze44 wrote:Seems to be a log jam with Payne, AB, and Thad now. Is thad next?

That's what I'm wondering.

Or is this just signaling that Flip has given up on AB?

Very odd, interesting, weird ass move that I can't decide whether I like or not.

I have already forgotten about Gary Neal