Tanking Tim - Raptors at Wolves GDT

[Monster]

Bennett actually looked more than decent in his minutes get him back out there. Oh Nevermind.... Lol

Who is this Chase guy?

[Q12543 [enjin:6621299]]

Here's how bad this game is. My daughter and son-in-law have courtside seats tonight. I just saw then grabbing their coats to leave...and it's not even the end of the 3rd quarter.

Ha, that's funny (and kinda sad too).

[DNatagal]

I want loses at this point.... But the refs have been awful... The phantom charge on LaVine, Wiggins getting hammered on at least one drive with no call, Derozan taking 3 steps will calling a play in front of the ref no less, the phantom kick against LaVine....I mean come on, at least try to be impartial.

[Q12543 [enjin:6621299]]

We soldier on....

- LaVine is a shot maker. Watching Louis Williams tonight reminded me that he's another player that could be a LaVine comp. Louis Williams, Gerald Green, and Jamaal Crawford. Those are the three guys that kind of come to mind when I look at LaVine. These guys all take bone-headed shots and are limited defensively, but they can be a nice sparkplug off the bench because you can just put the ball in their hands and they can get a shot off from almost anywhere.

- Here is the problem though...Shabazz's biggest strength is to use possessions as a scorer, ideally off the bench in short bursts against inferior bench players. A LaVine/Shabazz SG/SF combination off the bench doesn't work in my opinion, especially since neither can play defense and both are natural scorers. Eh, I guess we have worse problems to deal with first.

- Hamilton is a nice player. Skilled. Has a nice touch. Could eventually be a 3-point threat. But he's not a Center. JV just manhandled him in the post and anytime a guard went at Hamilton, he really had no hope of affecting his shot. He's basically similar to Dieng in that he's a 'tweener 4/5 that is easily pushed around and provides minimal resistance at the rim. I could see keeping him around as a cheap 4th or 5th big if we were to trade Dieng or AB.

- Budinger is having a really nice March. At some point, this isn't just a fluke. He might actually be back to the player he was in Houston. He really might be a legit trade chip this offseason, assuming he picks up his option. And if he doesn't pick up his option, well, that's good too.

- I still maintain that Lorenzo Brown is the only Wolf capable of winning a 50/50 ball. May be everyone else is too tired to go get it!? Poor hands? Probably some combination therein.

[Camden [enjin:6601484]]

I thought Bennett played OK. Much better than the train wreck he normally is.

Payne was bad. He started the game well, couple layups and a nice assist to Hamilton, after that he was poor. Also pissed me off that he took a shot at one of TOR's players with 1:30 left to go in the game down by 15. What the hell? Either he's dirty or he's confirming my premise that he's an absolute moron. Got tagged with the flagrant 1 and I hope he gets fined. You just don't do that.

I still believe LaVine's gonna be a star. Wiggins had a well rounded game I thought. Wish he could get his three ball going again.

(Remember when LST and several others argued he was a better shooter than Durant? Wowza. Wigg has gone from a very nice 40% from deep to a very pedestrian number.)

[DNatagal]

Those last 2 possessions to finish the 3rd by LaVine were awesome, a post up and a drive with a great finish.

[longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]]

I thought Bennett played OK. Much better than the train wreck he normally is.

Payne was bad. He started the game well, couple layups and a nice assist to Hamilton, after that he was poor. Also pissed me off that he took a shot at one of TOR's players with 1:30 left to go in the game down by 15. What the hell? Either he's dirty or he's confirming my premise that he's an absolute moron. Got tagged with the flagrant 1 and I hope he gets fined. You just don't do that.

I still believe LaVine's gonna be a star. Wiggins had a well rounded game I thought. Wish he could get his three ball going again.

(Remember when LST and several others argued he was a better shooter than Durant? Wowza. Wigg has gone from a very nice 40% from deep to a very pedestrian number.)

Hmm...claiming Wiggins is a better shooter than Durant doesn't sound like the kind of statement I would throw out. More likely, I said Wiggins is a better 3-point shooter as a 19-year-old rookie than Durant was, and that is an indisputable fact.

http://www.basketball-reference.com/play-index/pcm_finder.cgi?request=1&sum=0&y1=2008&p1=duranke01&y2=2015&p2=wiggian01&p3=&p4=&p5=&p6=

As for Bud, it's a little embarrassing to conclude he's our best healthy player right now, but he is. He's played 10 consecutive good games, and his numbers the past five are superb...17.6 and 5.6 on 54% shooting (50% on threes). His constant motion on offense is fun to watch. Last night I focused on his defense, which I have maligned in the past, and I was impressed there too. If Bud doesn't opt out or get traded, it looks like he can help us next year.

Q, while I don't disagree with your Zach comparisons right now (where you compare him to a trio of boneheaded but talented scorers), I would argue that he is only 20, and an immature 20 at that. Zach needs to work on the area above the neck more than anything else, and there's no reason to doubt he will become a much better player as he gets smarter.

Yeah, Bennett was effective at both ends of the court last night, until he twisted the ankle again. I was watching him on defense when he did it, and you could tell right away. I think Flip is likely to shut him down for the season now...too bad.

[Q12543 [enjin:6621299]]

LST, I would argue that Zach doesn't just lack b-ball IQ, but a general feel for the game. Oh, he certainly has a good feel for getting his shot off and making some difficult buckets, which is why I think he can be a dangerous instant-offense type of player. But his instincts in grasping team-oriented offensive and defensive concepts are horrendous. It's why he has a team-worst net On/Off rating of -10.6. He leads all rookies, by far, in turnovers per 36 minutes at 3.9. And his turnover rate has actually gotten worse playing off the ball with Lorenzo playing PG!

Anywho, I think Zach is someone we need to keep developing and working with - the sheer physical talent is off the charts - but I'm not optimistic he can be molded into "a star" as some of you think. I don't think he has the basketball intelligence to ever get there. But I do think he can become a very dangerous scorer some day.

P.S. If you are looking at an example of someone who had great coaching in a top notch college program and still just doesn't get it, Adreian Payne is a perfect example. Given his age and strong college pedigree, it's hard to believe how absolutely clueless he looks at times. Some guys just can't be coached up. Zach may end up being the same way.

P.S.S. I will end on a positive note. If you are looking for someone at the same age and experience level of Zach but who already exhibits solid instincts and the ability to be coached up, it's Andrew Wiggins. I have no doubt he will be a very good starting wing in the league for a very long time. I'll nit-pick exactly how high his upside is (which I don't think is as off-the-charts high as some of you do), but I have no doubt he will be very good.

[longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]]

Q, I'm not disputing Zach's current lack of feel for the game, and his overall stats this year are atrocious. And there is certainly a risk that he will never "get it". I'm holding on to hope because I have seen a learning curve this year, and I see him playing better ball now than he was in December. He still turns the ball over way too much, does some head-scratching things on defense, and takes questionable shots, but I keep telling myself this is a kid who hardly played college ball. I was against the pick when Flip did it, but I have been pleasantly surprised with Zach in many ways and see him now as a potential star. But I will concede that the range of possible outcomes for Zach is immense.

[AbeVigodaLive]

There's not much more to add about LaVine than what's already stated here. But that hasn't stopped me before, so...

I'm holding out hope that he can be instant offense off the bench. But that's Shabazz Muhammad's role, too, right? Even though LaVine can maybe be more of a combo guy. In any event, there's still very little nuance or subtlety or craftiness to his game. That's the stuff that would put him over the top. And it doesn't come easily... or at all... for some guys.

If it comes at all... we should be seeing glimpses of it next season. There's been growth this season. With a guy like LaVine, the moment that growth plateaus... I think we'll know what kind of player he is for the next decade.