Minnesota Sports Forum

I only watched the highlights, but that Wiggins alley oop was sweet! And then the lane spin and dunk was awesome!

We need to free Portis from the Bulls. Obviously they could use some help.

I swear some of you fans are only happy when you're miserable. Wiggins shot 4-5 from 3's, had 1 turnover, forced Butler into 0-7 3 pt. shooting and you're complaining about a few missed free throws. Wow.

BizarroJerry wrote:I swear some of you fans are only happy when you're miserable. Wiggins shot 4-5 from 3's, had 1 turnover, forced Butler into 0-7 3 pt. shooting and you're complaining about a few missed free throws. Wow.

Exactly Todd. I thought he was great last night. He dominated an all star level player on the road. Good enough for me.

What I liked about Wiggins last night wasn't the 31 pts, but the way he attacked. He was calling for the ball, and was looking for lanes to drive. He still needs to finish stronger, but he looked like a scorer last night. I just hope this isn't a flash in the pan, and he goes back to lazy Wiggins (as Ricky referred to him).

BizarroJerry wrote:I swear some of you fans are only happy when you're miserable. Wiggins shot 4-5 from 3's, had 1 turnover, forced Butler into 0-7 3 pt. shooting and you're complaining about a few missed free throws. Wow.

Tale of two halves, sorta.

I missed the beginning of the game, but turned it on when Wiggins had outscored Butler 20 - 0. Can't take that away from the youngster. He set the tone and put the Wolves in position to stay in it and win it.

He finished the game 3 for his last 15 with 5 missed free throws. Butler missed his first 7 shots... went 4 - 8 after that. Overall, a horrible game for him and Wiggins should get legit credit for that.

As for Wiggins, amazing and dominant 1st half... but sans that FANTASTIC spin move/dunk... he didn't play well in the second half offensively. He finished poorly and even then, settled too often. But he's young. Let's hope we see more of the 1st half Wiggins moving forward.

sjm34 wrote:What I liked about Wiggins last night wasn't the 31 pts, but the way he attacked. He was calling for the ball, and was looking for lanes to drive. He still needs to finish stronger, but he looked like a scorer last night. I just hope this isn't a flash in the pan, and he goes back to lazy Wiggins (as Ricky referred to him).

It does sound like the back was legitimately bothering him those first couple of games. He definitely had more skip in his step last night and he did a terrific job on Butler.

Speaking of his back. He might have cooled off in the second half due to his back getting stiff. I am sure he can work through it, but if he truly is hurting now would be the time to give him a game or 2 off while we are healthy. It would be a a good opportunity to get LaVine some more minutes with Rubio. (M/artin needs to be back)

bleedspeed177 wrote:Speaking of his back. He might have cooled off in the second half due to his back getting stiff. I am sure he can work through it, but if he truly is hurting now would be the time to give him a game or 2 off while we are healthy. It would be a a good opportunity to get LaVine some more minutes with Rubio. (M/artin needs to be back)

It COULD have been his back. That would be a convenient excuse. Or, it COULD have been that he just didn't play well.

Wiggins was aggressively looking for his shot the entire game...albeit with more success in the first half. There are times when his deferential on-court behavior frustrates me, but there was none of that yesterday. He acted like he knew he was the man...good to see.

So, is it sustainable? And what brought on yesterday's aggressiveness? I'm going to suggest two possibilities.

1) His back has been bothering him, but felt much better yesterday.

2) The team leader (Rubio) called him out publicly for being "lazy" and exhorted him to look for his own shot.

I think is might be a little of both, but I think #2 is the more likely reason. If it is, that's a very good thing...this team needs a leader (other than KG) and Ricky is the most likely candidate. If Wiggins responded to Ricky's comments, I see that as a very positive development for this team.