Minnesota Sports Forum

Hicks123 wrote:

AbeVigodaLive wrote:

Hicks123 wrote:

AbeVigodaLive wrote:Now Kyrie Irving is out for the year.

Tough break(s) for Boston. That team COULD have been really really good. Imagine that team with Kyrie Irving at the point. And Brown, Tatum, Hayward and Horford switching EVERYTHING on defense. Finally a team that might give James/Cleveland a run for the Finals.

Heck, they're 28 - 11 on the road. That's incredible, especially for such a young team.


[Note: Seeing what's happening again this year in the East, why would James ever want to go to the West? Sure, Boston and Philly look promising... but neither has proven it in the playoffs... yet.]

Not surprised. Kyrie has been awesome....but he misses a ton of games every year. He has played 75% of games for his career to date. Real bummer for that team, as a 2nd knee surgery isn't good news.

They're saying all the right things... that the knee is sound and all that and they're just removing the screws. 5 months seems like a long recovery for something like that though.

And I forgot about Marcus Smart and Daniel Theis, too. Both were super good defensively. Both also done for the season. Injuries. Injuries. Injuries.

So what gives? Players are bigger. Stronger. Faster. Technology is better. Nutrition/sleep is better. Therapy is better. Travel is easier. There are more "off" days than ever. Heck, even shoes are better. But has it reduced injuries? Or, are there more than ever? Any studies/theories out there?

I think it is primarily 3 drivers:
- Guys are flat out bigger, and extra weight certainly puts wear and tear on joints.
- While working out is great, the extent of training these days, and the build of these athletes most likely plays a huge role in the deterioration of ligaments and joints. My kid is 7th grade, and they are already doing weight type training for many sports, which isn't good for growth plates, etc.
- There are a lot of studies related to the injury impact of single-sport specialization. Baseball, they are seeing kids get Tommy John surgeries in their early teens. Basketball is often considered the worst as the continuous play on hard courts are absolutely HORRIBLE on a persons joints. Additionally, since it is almost always played inside, there are also thoughts that the lack of sun and it's benefits to bone health, etc play a part.

I hate the specialization/monetization of youth sports.

A lot.

Watching some of these other teams get contributions from guys like mirotic, belli, illysova, etc.. Thibs really let this franchise down by not doing anything to help during this stretch run. We are seeing guys like wiggs, taj, and kat wear down and lumbering out on the court at the end of games with no pick me up in sight.

crazy-canuck wrote:Watching some of these other teams get contributions from guys like mirotic, belli, illysova, etc.. Thibs really let this franchise down by not doing anything to help during this stretch run. We are seeing guys like wiggs, taj, and kat wear down and lumbering out on the court at the end of games with no pick me up in sight.

His signing of Derrick Rose is where Thibs sort of jumped the shark for me. All the rumors of us being interested in Rose felt like a media-driven narrative to fit the caricature of Thibs. And then sure enough, he really was pursuing Rose!

crazy-canuck wrote:Watching some of these other teams get contributions from guys like mirotic, belli, illysova, etc.. Thibs really let this franchise down by not doing anything to help during this stretch run. We are seeing guys like wiggs, taj, and kat wear down and lumbering out on the court at the end of games with no pick me up in sight.

As you know, you're preaching to the choir with me on this point. Then Thibs signs Rose. As Q pointed out, Thibs and his characature became one in the same with that move.

So Toronto remains the only real threat to LeBron making it to the Finals again. This story is getting old...

BizarroJerry wrote:So Toronto remains the only real threat to LeBron making it to the Finals again. This story is getting old...

Don't forget the Sixers.

Q12543 wrote:

crazy-canuck wrote:Watching some of these other teams get contributions from guys like mirotic, belli, illysova, etc.. Thibs really let this franchise down by not doing anything to help during this stretch run. We are seeing guys like wiggs, taj, and kat wear down and lumbering out on the court at the end of games with no pick me up in sight.

His signing of Derrick Rose is where Thibs sort of jumped the shark for me. All the rumors of us being interested in Rose felt like a media-driven narrative to fit the caricature of Thibs. And then sure enough, he really was pursuing Rose!

If he really wanted Rose he would have signed him when he was first available. He didn't sign him until Jimmy went down and we needed another body to play. Bad Rose showed up last night and he didn't play in the second half. Everyone is trying to project this obsession that isn't there. Jimmy goes down. We need a quick replacement who can come in and play. Rose has played for Thibs before and can come in and play almost immediately because of that fact. Thibs would have signed him right when he was released and immediately benched Tyus if he was that big of a Rose fan boy. None of that happened.

khans2k5 wrote:

Q12543 wrote:

crazy-canuck wrote:Watching some of these other teams get contributions from guys like mirotic, belli, illysova, etc.. Thibs really let this franchise down by not doing anything to help during this stretch run. We are seeing guys like wiggs, taj, and kat wear down and lumbering out on the court at the end of games with no pick me up in sight.

His signing of Derrick Rose is where Thibs sort of jumped the shark for me. All the rumors of us being interested in Rose felt like a media-driven narrative to fit the caricature of Thibs. And then sure enough, he really was pursuing Rose!

If he really wanted Rose he would have signed him when he was first available. He didn't sign him until Jimmy went down and we needed another body to play. Bad Rose showed up last night and he didn't play in the second half. Everyone is trying to project this obsession that isn't there. Jimmy goes down. We need a quick replacement who can come in and play. Rose has played for Thibs before and can come in and play almost immediately because of that fact. Thibs would have signed him right when he was released and immediately benched Tyus if he was that big of a Rose fan boy. None of that happened.

Kahns -- If Thibs didn't like Rose he wouldn't have signed him. Did he REALLY like him? Well, I don't know how to answer that. Thibs apparently had no interest in signing anyone until he let Bazz go. My take-away from that is that he wanted to keep the open roster spot. He eventually signed Rose, which tells us he likes him and wanted to sign him.

Four of the six guys Thibs has brought here over the last year have been players who played for him with the Bulls. Does that mean Thibs only considers his former players? Not necessarily. But this team, even before Butler went down but especially afterwards, needed a wing and needed both defense and 3-point shooting. Rose offers none of the above. Moreover, Rose has a had a very hard time staying healthy. So signing Rose does suggest a bit of tunnel vision when you consider other players who were available to sign -- Illyasova, Belinelli, etc. MarShon Brooks was just signed by Memphis and had 23 points and 8 rebounds last night. Maybe all these guys were contacted by Thibs and turned him down. But on the surface, whether intended by Thibs or not, Thibs does look like a characature of himself. It may be totally innocent and coincidental, but that's how it looks.

..not to mention that Rose is literally a bad basketball player. He belongs overseas or in the G-league. I'd rather have Anthony Brown in the rotation (and I don't particularly like him either). What the hell is our G-league for if not developing guys using Thibs' system and then bringing them up as a band-aid when needed? Rose....ugh...

The Nuggets beat the Clippers tonight, giving them the same record as the Wolves. Looks like our last game of the season will be a big one.

Meanwhile, let's hope the Warriors, Rockets and Blazers all win tonight. The Warriors and Rockets are both playing at home against the Pelicans and Thunder respectively. The Blazers are at San Antonio, but if they're motivated they have a good shot at beating the inferior Spurs team. I believe that Lillard will be back in action tonight. All three of these teams, the Spurs, Pelicans and Thunder have 45 wins, the same number of wins as the Wolves.