Minnesota Sports Forum

As for our identity, while some of us may not like our identity, it is pretty clear to me. Identity generally comes from a consistent coach, and like him or not, Thibs is nothing if not consistent...and our identity logically follows. We are a team that prefers an isolation guard-dribbling-dominated offense rather than a quick passing offense that looks for open threes. We are a team that generally plays its starters more minutes than any other team in the league. And we are a team that generally stays with consistent lineups and rotations regardless of matchups or game situation (Thibs' defensive substitutions in the OkC game were a welcome change, but are rare enough that they don't constitute a change in identity). Perhaps because of the cautious iso type of offense Thibs favors, we are very good at protecting the ball and generally rank very high in assist:TO ratio.

These seem to be very clear "identities" for us. What am I missing?

ItsJustSoSab wrote:

Camden wrote:I'd stay away from John Wall, myself. That salary (with the trade kicker) is a cap killer and he's just not much of a needle mover despite his talent level. I would rather throw a legitimate trade offer at the Hornets for Kemba Walker and roll the dice with him on an expiring.

This is all speculation on my part, but I think Walker's got a loyal personality. I could see a strong run at the playoffs-- and with the max contract -- being enticing enough for him to stick around and play/build with Towns. Would be somewhat similar to the Paul George in OKC situation.

Agreed. Kemba over Wall. A legit shot creator who can make things happen off the dribble at a superior level would be great. What to give up for him though? I assume KAT, Wiggins (I'd be for this just doubt Thibs would), Saric and Roco are off the table. Doesn't leave much to offer.

Wig for Kemba is the offer.

How about we let this season play out farther? It's boring to say but that's how I see it.

AbeVigodaLive wrote:Isn't John Wall's trade kicker another 15%...? That basically makes him next-to-impossible to move. I can see the Wizards being one of the teams possibly accepting Wiggins as part of a return package though.

Wall is a near-elite talent. But as noted, chemistry issues have been there. And he's not known for his work on his game or body. He relies on athleticism. Do you want to risk that for several more years at $40M per year?

Unfortunately, free agency is largely out with the way the new NBA works. Third-tier guys will be available... but at an overpay? Will that sort of move really move the needle? The draft is obviously where the Wolves need to strike gold. But, that's a very boring and unpredictable and longer way to go.

They need A RUN of quality draft picks. And not just late in the round where they can land a Gobert or Siakum every once in awhile, but even in the 2nd round where they can get a Monte Morris type.



[Note: As for the Canuck's last post about "identity"... I've always been a big identity guy. And he's right... this team STILL has neither. You have the gruff Thibs in charge, but it's not like his team plays anything like what he's allegedly best at teaching. The Wolves aren't a high-flying bunch. They don't run. They don't play slow and focus on defense. They aren't original in any sort of meaningful way. If anything, they're sorta known for being predictable in a way, right? Meh.]

Yes, the draft is the key for the Wolves. I remain convinced that Okogie will be good with the potential to be great. The Wolves might end up picking as high as 10 next June and no lower than 20. The Wolves have Miami's second round pick as well, which will likely be in the mid to late 40s. I'd like to see the Wolves deal Tolliver at the deadline. The Sixers desperately need depth. I'd offer Tolliver to the Sixers for the Bulls 2nd round pick. That will be a nice pick in the low 30s. Wouldn't it be nice to see the Wolves land a Kuzma or Josh Hart if not a Gobert or Siakum?

What's the matter with keeping Rose? He's playing like an all star this season. He gives us a chance to win a playoff series. Let's see what this team becomes in another 30 games.

CoolBreeze44 wrote:What's the matter with keeping Rose? He's playing like an all star this season. He gives us a chance to win a playoff series. Let's see what this team becomes in another 30 games.

Agreed

longstrangetrip wrote:As for our identity, while some of us may not like our identity, it is pretty clear to me. Identity generally comes from a consistent coach, and like him or not, Thibs is nothing if not consistent...and our identity logically follows. We are a team that prefers an isolation guard-dribbling-dominated offense rather than a quick passing offense that looks for open threes. We are a team that generally plays its starters more minutes than any other team in the league. And we are a team that generally stays with consistent lineups and rotations regardless of matchups or game situation (Thibs' defensive substitutions in the OkC game were a welcome change, but are rare enough that they don't constitute a change in identity). Perhaps because of the cautious iso type of offense Thibs favors, we are very good at protecting the ball and generally rank very high in assist:TO ratio.

These seem to be very clear "identities" for us. What am I missing?

I think this team having an identity is a pretty common theme for this franchise going back a number of years. Part of that is the coaching front office and roster turnover as well as some incompetence. I think you make a good point this team may have more identity that it may at first seem. Some of people struggling with what this team's current identity is because its not the identity they want. Some of it is not realizing that Rose is actually good enough right now that he should actually be part of the identity of the team. It is a difficult thing to really wrap your mind around especially when there is a real possibility that injury could take him out of the equation for some length of time and there is real uncertainty about if he will be here beyond this season. Meanwhile lets look at some numbers that may give us a clue to this team's identity.

#17 in defensive efficiency
#11th in Pace
#15 in offensive efficiency
#7th in 3 point percentage
#20th in 3pts made
#5 in FT made
4th fewest turnovers (while playing at a quicker pace)
#3 in steals
#10 in blocks (24th last season)
#26 in defensive rebound percentage (moved up from dead last earlier in the season)
#12 in offensive rebound percentage.
#2 in post ups

I'll stop there (there are plenty of other interesting ones if oyu go deeper) but I think if someone told most of us at the beginning of the season that the Wolves would be #17th in defensive efficiency and also #11 in pace at this point of the season would take it. I think the identity of this team all around has a chance to evolve as the season goes on. Taking the next step for this roster still needs an assessment portion for another chunk of games. It hasn't been all that long that we have had this current group together.

Interestingly... the Wolves ranked high in free throws made and fewest TOs during the Adelman era, too.

And those teams also hit a pretty low ceiling.

I'm not saying we shouldn't re-sign Rose. If he keeps up near this level of production, we should definitely try to. I'm not saying we shouldn't wait and see how we develop. But, moving forward with this core, SOMETHING needs to happen to make us more than a first round out for the only time besides 2004. Maybe we can strike gold in the draft. I hope so. But, when was the last "good" pick we made? KAT doesn't count. Kevin Love?

jake_elwood wrote:I'm not saying we shouldn't re-sign Rose. If he keeps up near this level of production, we should definitely try to. I'm not saying we shouldn't wait and see how we develop. But, moving forward with this core, SOMETHING needs to happen to make us more than a first round out for the only time besides 2004. Maybe we can strike gold in the draft. I hope so. But, when was the last "good" pick we made? KAT doesn't count. Kevin Love?

That something needs to come from our two max players. It's really that simple. You can't make the big bucks and then need all these other pieces to take a step to the next level. We've paid our two guys. We've put quality role players around them. It's on them to step their games up to the next level to get our team to that next level. Adding another max piece to our two existing max pieces is gonna really thin out our roster and require that step anyway so why not spend responsibly around them on quality depth since they need to step it up either way?