This team was built for Dlo

[TAFKASP]

I don't know about you guys, but I think D-Lo sucks! He shouldn't be a shoot-first or pass-first point guard. He should be benched first, am I right?! The guy barely contributed to last year's playoff team! Get this bum off the roster so we can find a new scapegoat!

Why take the bait?

Was it even bait? It read to me like D-Loser was being serious and somewhat optimistic about DLo's fit. None of it seemed unfair to me.

[Lipoli390]

On a more serious note, D'Angelo Russell is a really good yet imperfect player that fans and media alike spend far too much time discussing and breaking down, especially as it pertains to his weaknesses -- while simultaneously downplaying his strengths. We also don't talk about any one member of this roster as much as we talk about Russell despite this Timberwolves team being the most talented in franchise history. Why is that? What hasn't been said about him to this point?

I think the following is also true. He'll likely be given little credit for Minnesota's successes and the bulk of the blame for any failures. Who will take his place as the scapegoat or fall guy if he's not retained after the trade deadline or end of the season? Karl-Anthony Towns? Jaden McDaniels? Fun times ahead!

Cam - I honestly think you're too sensitive when it comes to DLO. Our darling Edwards has been taking a lot of heat lately, including from both you and me. He deserves the heat given how he's played the last couple games, but he's also barely 21 years old. KAT has been skewered repeatedly by a lot of us for his whining and fouling in spite of his amazingly consistent high-level efficient production and defensive improvement this past season. So lots of Wolves players take a lot of heat from fans who post on this message board.

Does DLO get more criticism than KAT and others on the roster? Yes, I think he does and I'd say there are several legitimate reasons for that. First of all, he's paid $30+ million per year, a max deal at a salary that makes him the second-highest paid player on the roster. Second, the Wolves gave up a lottery pick, a high second-round pick and a player who is now doing really well to get him. The team gave up nothing to get KAT, Edwards, McDaniels, JMac or Naz Reid. Third, DLO can be frustratingly prone to over-dribble, take bad shots and commit careless turnovers - tendencies that stand out more and probably have a greater impact when present in a point guard. Finally and most importantly, he's been really inconsistent game to game in his time here. He can be tremendous as he was in the play-in game against the Clippers last season when he and Ant carried us across the threshold, but he can be extraordinarily bad as he was when Finch didn't play him the entire second half of a playoff off game last season. He's a very polarizing player in large part because his play is often and unpredictably at polar opposites of the spectrum. It's something that would result in criticism of any player, but it's particularly prone to generate criticism of a player in his prime who's making $30 million a year and required significant assets to acquire.

Many of us have posted praise for him when he's been good, and yes we have also criticized him for his terrible games like the ones we saw from him in just about every game in last season's playoffs. Both the praise and criticism have largely been fair given how DLO has played and other factors that have legitimately given rise to high expectations. High expectations bring the spotlight and naturally set a player up for more criticism. I also think it's fair to question DLO's fit on the Wolves. Having said that, I've always acknowledged that I haven't seen a realistic scenario that would result in an improvement over DLO at the PG position for the Wolves. So I still have high hopes for DLO and the Wolves. And many of us will praise him to the extent he performs to expectations and helps this team achieved the elevated goals that came with the Gobert trade. But many of us will criticize him when he performs poorly. If it's a mixed bag as it was last night, many of us will praise him for his efficient scoring and defensive effort, but still criticize him for 6 careless turnovers and a stagnant offense that, as our PG, he was responsible for running.

[Camden [enjin:6601484]]

Lip, your response above is genuinely thoughtful, however, it's also a fine example of what I'm referring to. Those same talking points you made (his salary, the trade to acquire him, him getting benched, etc.) are reiterated time and time again here. We rarely say anything new about D'Angelo Russell, but yet we discuss him ad nauseam. We discuss more negative storylines concerning him than positive -- or his weaknesses instead of his strengths -- by far. It's also not a new dynamic here and perhaps that's just the nature of a sports forum. I just wonder what the fascination is with repeatedly ripping or criticizing a singular player whose presence just helped the franchise win more games than they had for the better part of the millennium. And perhaps I am sensitive to that because I don't think he's been discussed fairly since his acquisition.

In any case, none of my thoughts on it matter. I'm significantly outnumbered here, which also paints me in a worse light, I think. Russell will probably have his best season to date in what should be a very successful year for the Timberwolves. I just don't expect him to be valued appropriately during the highs and lows. I suspect only the lows will be remembered here.

[thedoper]

I think Ive been pretty supportive of Russell. Overall I think at this point it would be hard not to focus on his lows when his last memory on this team is him getting benched in a playoff series where he played like dogshit. He was also masterful in the play in game. If his demeanor wasnt so casual hed probably have a lot more supporters around the league. PG is a natural lead position in basketball, DLo is atypical in personality and style of play. I love watching him cook when hes on and hate it when hes off and seems to put out that he is disinterested in the game. I like the way DLo fits this year, I expect a big season too, though I trust Connelly's assessment of our needs. If he leaves for a PG that plays with more pace Im all for it. I dont know that I would simply change him for a PG that is primarily a distributor though. To me we need someone who can set up an offense quick and hit an open jumper.

[Q-is-here]

Lip, your response above is genuinely thoughtful, however, it's also a fine example of what I'm referring to. Those same talking points you made (his salary, the trade to acquire him, him getting benched, etc.) are reiterated time and time again here. We rarely say anything new about D'Angelo Russell, but yet we discuss him ad nauseam. We discuss more negative storylines concerning him than positive -- or his weaknesses instead of his strengths -- by far. It's also not a new dynamic here and perhaps that's just the nature of a sports forum. I just wonder what the fascination is with repeatedly ripping or criticizing a singular player whose presence just helped the franchise win more games than they had for the better part of the millennium. And perhaps I am sensitive to that because I don't think he's been discussed fairly since his acquisition.

In any case, none of my thoughts on it matter. I'm significantly outnumbered here, which also paints me in a worse light, I think. Russell will probably have his best season to date in what should be a very successful year for the Timberwolves. I just don't expect him to be valued appropriately during the highs and lows. I suspect only the lows will be remembered here.

Cam, he has the ball in his hands a ton as the PG. That by definition means he is going to be a highly talked-about player. Remember all the back and forth on Rubio???

I think you also focus more on the negative comments than the positive ones or more nuanced, balanced takes, then proceed to throw up your hands in a torrent of sarcasm, which only makes you appear even more biased and defensive.

[Camden [enjin:6601484]]

I think you also focus more on the negative comments than the positive ones or more nuanced, balanced takes, then proceed to throw up your hands in a torrent of sarcasm, which only makes you appear even more biased and defensive.

Meh, you are sorely mistaken if you think there's balanced discourse here regarding D'Angelo Russell. That just isn't the case. I think what's most frustrating is that there's very little that will change no matter the quality of play or evidence in his favor. He's this board's current whipping boy, for better or worse. We'll just continue to cycle through the same themes until we're blue in the face or he's moved on to another team.

[Camden [enjin:6601484]]

To me the acquisition of Gobert screams that we're doing everything we can to enhance Dlo's strengths and hide his weaknesses - on both ends of the floor. I think they're potentially great pick and roll partners, but Dlo desperately needs to change his mind set this season... in my opinion Dlo has always been a shoot first PG, but now he needs to become a pass first PG. I'm skeptical that he can do this, but if he can, I think he'll get a contract extension here. We'll see stretches where he becomes a more willing passer, but I think he'll eventually revert back to "old Dlo" for the long term. Not only does he need to become more pass first, but he also needs to stop with all the lazy passes, but that part should go without saying. If and when Connelly, lets Dlo expire (or even trades him at the deadline), I think he'll be able to look himself in the mirror and say that he tried everything to make it work. Just my two cents. Dlo should thrive on this team this year and I hope he does... but if he doesn't I don't think there's any excuses left for him in Minnesota.

One of your better posts, Loser. I think you're right about the pairing of D-Lo and Rudy in the pick-and-roll becoming a great duo, obviously, but I have to wonder how much Chris Finch will even allow them to operate in that action versus the free-flowing offense he's been trying to implement since he got here. It also seems like he wants to try a number of different things involving Rudy offensively versus simply using him how he's probably most-effective. For instance, I think we'll see more Rudy elbow touches and post-ups than any of us want.

Additionally, I don't think D-Lo needs to change his mindset from last year to this year because there's already been a shift in his play style over the last couple of seasons. Both his field goal attempts and usage have decreased in consecutive seasons as he moved into the lead guard role with bigger responsibilities. That tangible change you and others might be looking for has already happened.

Also, among ball-handlers with at least 65 games played and at least 4.0 assists per game last season, D-Lo ranked seventh in assist-to-turnover ratio -- behind obvious names such as Tyus Jones and Chris Paul while ahead of names such as Fred VanVleet and Jrue Holiday. So while D-Lo does commit the occasional turnover via lackadaisical passing or dribbling off his foot, the facts are that he protects the ball at a very high level on high volume. Simply, he gets the job done regardless of the optics.

[Sundog]

I don't take a backseat to anyone on my enthusiasm for Dlo, I think he's a terrific point guard for this team. But I don't feel a need to respond to every post about him, especially the negative ones. It's ok to have diversity of opinions and to let other posters be wrong without telling them they are. ?

[Lipoli390]

I don't take a backseat to anyone on my enthusiasm for Dlo, I think he's a terrific point guard for this team. But I don't feel a need to respond to every post about him, especially the negative ones. It's ok to have diversity of opinions and to let other posters be wrong without telling them they are. ?

Sundog - Your love for DLO knows no bounds. And he loves you for it! :)

[AbeVigodaLive]

Lip, your response above is genuinely thoughtful, however, it's also a fine example of what I'm referring to. Those same talking points you made (his salary, the trade to acquire him, him getting benched, etc.) are reiterated time and time again here. We rarely say anything new about D'Angelo Russell, but yet we discuss him ad nauseam. We discuss more negative storylines concerning him than positive -- or his weaknesses instead of his strengths -- by far. It's also not a new dynamic here and perhaps that's just the nature of a sports forum. I just wonder what the fascination is with repeatedly ripping or criticizing a singular player whose presence just helped the franchise win more games than they had for the better part of the millennium. And perhaps I am sensitive to that because I don't think he's been discussed fairly since his acquisition.

In any case, none of my thoughts on it matter. I'm significantly outnumbered here, which also paints me in a worse light, I think. Russell will probably have his best season to date in what should be a very successful year for the Timberwolves. I just don't expect him to be valued appropriately during the highs and lows. I suspect only the lows will be remembered here.

Cam, he has the ball in his hands a ton as the PG. That by definition means he is going to be a highly talked-about player. Remember all the back and forth on Rubio???

I think you also focus more on the negative comments than the positive ones or more nuanced, balanced takes, then proceed to throw up your hands in a torrent of sarcasm, which only makes you appear even more biased and defensive.

It's looking more and more likely that D. Russell will be here beyond this season.

Will Cam and others on the board be able to handle it?