Minnesota Sports Forum

Q12543 wrote:

Camden wrote:Lol Zgoda said "breathing techniques." I'm pretty sure I saw a KAT quote that said something similar to, "I just remembered KG telling me to breathe."

Cam, I'm confident it was hours of demonstration by KG, with KAT intently listening and learning, then practicing on his own; then going back to KG for observation and more advanced breathing techniques - but only when he was ready; then practicing on his own again, and so forth.

Hahahaha

LOL! Although I will say I know a number of coaches who preach the importance of breathing technique while executing skills. I'm not sure whether KAT was referring to breathing during the actual execution, or just during the competition in general...

Zach gets his second trophy of this year's Allstar weekend! We have a lot to look forward to as Wolves fans.

We have a big shot-blocking rebounder who beats little skill guys in skills competitions. We have a slam dunk winning wing who has a beautiful shooting stroke, jet-like quickness and excellent ball handing skills. Oh, and we have a guy named Andrew Wiggins. I should also mention Gorgui.

If you can't get excited about this group, you must be on a slab on your way to the morgue.

lipoli390 wrote:Zach gets his second trophy of this year's Allstar weekend! We have a lot to look forward to as Wolves fans.

We have a big shot-blocking rebounder who beats little skill guys in skills competitions. We have a slam dunk winning wing who has a beautiful shooting stroke, jet-like quickness and excellent ball handing skills. Oh, and we have a guy named Andrew Wiggins. I should also mention Gorgui.

If you can't get excited about this group, you must be on a slab on your way to the morgue.

I would say "cautiously excited with a healthy dose of skepticism" describes where I'm at. These All-Star festivities are great PR, but frankly, they mean virtually nothing as it relates to winning actual games. Towns is the only one that screams superstar to me, where as I believe Wiggins and especially Zach have a long ways to go still. We'll see how far they can go, but nothing is guaranteed.

I'm with you Q. We heard these same comments last year and I think KAT will be our only perennial All Star.

My excitement doesn't flow entirely or even primarily from these Allstar competitions. I see the performances of our guys at these competitions as an exclamation point on what we have already seen in NBA game competition from our core young players.

KAT's performance in the skills competition simply highlighted the extraordinary combination of talents he has already shown so far this season as he continues on track to become the Wolves send consecutive ROY.

LaVine's MVP trophy for a 30-point/ 7 rebound performance, scoring inside and out, highlighted the elite scoring and multi-dimensional capabilities we've already seen from Zach in a lot of games this season and late last season. Winning the slam dunk competition highlights Zach's hops and tremendous body control as well as his competitive nature. And unlike most other slam dunk competitors, Zach has great speed WITH THE BALL and high level perimeter shooting ability. I could see Zach performing well n the three-point shooting competition. And then there's Wiggins, Dieng and Ricky along with an upcoming lottery pick.

The only thing that could screw this up is a bad coaching staff.

lipoli390 wrote:My excitement doesn't flow entirely or even primarily from these Allstar competitions. I see the performances of our guys at these competitions as an exclamation point on what we have already seen in NBA game competition from our core young players.

KAT's performance in the skills competition simply highlighted the extraordinary combination of talents he has already shown so far this season as he continues on track to become the Wolves send consecutive ROY.

LaVine's MVP trophy for a 30-point/ 7 rebound performance, scoring inside and out, highlighted the elite scoring and multi-dimensional capabilities we've already seen from Zach in a lot of games this season and late last season. Winning the slam dunk competition highlights Zach's hops and tremendous body control as well as his competitive nature. And unlike most other slam dunk competitors, Zach has great speed WITH THE BALL and high level perimeter shooting ability. I could see Zach performing well n the three-point shooting competition. And then there's Wiggins, Dieng and Ricky along with an upcoming lottery pick.

The only thing that could screw this up is a bad coaching staff.

Not totally with you here Lip. Potential is what potential does, and until these guys actually translate their physical talent into actual results on the floor, I'll remain cautious. Nothing is guaranteed. There are plenty of lottery picks that looked promising early in their careers and then simply plateaued early too. Heck, look at Ricky Rubio. While he's a very good PG, he has made only small improvements since coming into the NBA. He's still very good, but he never became the perennial all-star many of us thought he could become after his first season.

Q12543 wrote:

lipoli390 wrote:Zach gets his second trophy of this year's Allstar weekend! We have a lot to look forward to as Wolves fans.

We have a big shot-blocking rebounder who beats little skill guys in skills competitions. We have a slam dunk winning wing who has a beautiful shooting stroke, jet-like quickness and excellent ball handing skills. Oh, and we have a guy named Andrew Wiggins. I should also mention Gorgui.

If you can't get excited about this group, you must be on a slab on your way to the morgue.

I would say "cautiously excited with a healthy dose of skepticism" describes where I'm at. These All-Star festivities are great PR, but frankly, they mean virtually nothing as it relates to winning actual games. Towns is the only one that screams superstar to me, where as I believe Wiggins and especially Zach have a long ways to go still. We'll see how far they can go, but nothing is guaranteed.

You really think Lavine is that far behind Wiggins? It could be argued that Lavine might actually be slightly ahead of him. He's improved a ton since last year. Still way too early to tell just how good these 2 will be, but it's certainly giving us A LOT to look forward to especially with the way Dieng and Towns have been playing together.

TheGrey08 wrote:

Q12543 wrote:

lipoli390 wrote:Zach gets his second trophy of this year's Allstar weekend! We have a lot to look forward to as Wolves fans.

We have a big shot-blocking rebounder who beats little skill guys in skills competitions. We have a slam dunk winning wing who has a beautiful shooting stroke, jet-like quickness and excellent ball handing skills. Oh, and we have a guy named Andrew Wiggins. I should also mention Gorgui.

If you can't get excited about this group, you must be on a slab on your way to the morgue.

I would say "cautiously excited with a healthy dose of skepticism" describes where I'm at. These All-Star festivities are great PR, but frankly, they mean virtually nothing as it relates to winning actual games. Towns is the only one that screams superstar to me, where as I believe Wiggins and especially Zach have a long ways to go still. We'll see how far they can go, but nothing is guaranteed.

You really think Lavine is that far behind Wiggins? It could be argued that Lavine might actually be slightly ahead of him. He's improved a ton since last year. Still way too early to tell just how good these 2 will be, but it's certainly giving is A LOT to look forward to especially the way Dieng and Towns have been playing together.

I think Andrew plays a more stable, less mistake-prone style of game. He's also a more reliable defender. Zach takes a lot of ill-advised shots and defensively he's still a liability.

I agree that these guys certainly give us some hope, but I'm not just going to assume they hit their ceilings as players.

I agree that Wiggins is more consistent than LaVine. But Wiggins has had the advantage of consistently big minutes at the same position, which happens to be his natural position and a less demanding position than the PG position Zach has been forced to play.

LaVine may make more mistakes than Wiggins, but that's because he's been playing PG with far more ball handling and passing responsibilities than Wiggins. LaVine is actually far less turnover prone than Wiggins as a ballhandler. And LaVine's game is far more versatile than Wiggins when you consider shooting range, passing and rebounding.

Kevin Lynch recently said that Zach has as high an upside as anyone in this team. I'll add that Zach has shown enough in game competition to demonstrate that he's more than just potential. His reputation for hard work as well as his obvious improvement defensively and as a playmaker make him far more than just a bundle of great potential.