AussieWolf3 wrote: ↑Wed Oct 29, 2025 2:15 pm
So I've been wondering about this since seeing Randle, Naz and Jaden on the floor together in- I think- the Pacers game, and it actually went ok for a minute or so on defense.
Anyway that parts not really related, but what I've been wondering about is this: the most obvious reason that the on/off defense is SO bad right now is that Naz just can't defend like you need a 5 to defend, and for all of his offensive gifts, they don't offset the difference that much or at all.
One answer is of course to get Naz playing more at the 4, but under the roster's current construction he needs to be the backup center. So if that is the case can the team switch up their defense from playing primarily drop with Naz to running a more high wall blitz?
Finch and Co. We're able to cobble together a decent defense with Kat in the year before Rudy got here (2022?). Like Naz, Kat isn't a great rim protector, but they were able to make it work.
Someone explain to me like I'm 5 why this is a bad idea
KAT is/was a vastly better Center than Naz Reid defensively. The two aren't even comparable. KAT is by no means a great defensive Center, but he did improve in the his later years with the Wolves and went from bad to adequate by the time he left. He simply plays bigger in the paint and literally is bigger than Naz.
As for playing a high wall/blitzing scheme, are we sure they aren't doing that already to a degree? I know they do a ton of switching when Randle and Reid are out there together. One of the problems with a high wall scheme is that it puts a lot of pressure on the low man to cover for the big diving to the rim, which can lead to wide open corner 3s. I'm not saying it's a bad scheme, but like everything else has its pros and cons.
First off, you are very correct about Kat and Naz, and I did not mean to suggest otherwise. My real point/question is whether there is a better way to utilize Naz defensively as a center that is more suited to his strengths (faster and more athletic than 90% of the other 5s in the league)
He just doesn't have the instincts for drop coverage like Rudy, so can you get him in lineups with Jaden and Clark and get better defense then there are getting right now with Naz being asked to protect the rim?
I really don't know if this can be a scheme fix or not and I won't pretend to have that level of knowledge to suggest I know enough of that side of things to create a real solution on my own, but right now their defense is just untenable with Rudy off the floor
I think the NAZ/Randle is just a bad combo. We need Rocco and/or Joan to develop very quickly so that TC can move one of those two. Of course, that is unlikely to happen this season. Unless TC can find a "temporary" solution somewhere...
60WinTim wrote: ↑Wed Oct 29, 2025 8:00 pm
I think the NAZ/Randle is just a bad combo. We need Rocco and/or Joan to develop very quickly so that TC can move one of those two. Of course, that is unlikely to happen this season. Unless TC can find a "temporary" solution somewhere...
Run the horses you got, which for the time being, is a lot of Randle/Naz in the frontcourt
60WinTim wrote: ↑Wed Oct 29, 2025 8:00 pm
I think the NAZ/Randle is just a bad combo. We need Rocco and/or Joan to develop very quickly so that TC can move one of those two. Of course, that is unlikely to happen this season. Unless TC can find a "temporary" solution somewhere...
It was on the list of offseason areas to address, i.e. go out and get a legit backup Center. But like the PG role the offseason before, we used the draft to get a really young prospect that isn't "Finch-ready", which may be a higher bar than a lot of other coaches not named Tom Thibodeau.
This is a great and depressing breakdown of the Wolves horrific defense so far this season. And sadly, the Wolves terrible defense is paired with a nearly equally terrible offense that has scored fewer points per game than all but four Western Conference teams.
