Minnesota Sports Forum

worldK wrote:

Q12543 wrote:

Camden wrote:I'm surprised by all the positivity towards Saunders. Personally, I don't see much of a difference with this team. That's probably because the players have a greater impact on the game than the head coach, but it just feels like Saunders is *there* -- not really changing anything or making any kind of impact. Sure, he's much more likely to make you smile and he's less likely to yell at you. Cool. Everyone wants him to be the next guy, but it's likely that he's just a placeholder.

LOL, what did you expect, a total overhaul of the offense in the middle of the season? He's definitely changed the substitution patterns He also interacts with his players in a much different way than Thibs. Whether this actually translates to more wins is TBD, but I like what I've seen so far.

Agreed q. Any fan who watch the games will noticed the substitution patterm and minutes management has improved.

I agree with Cam to some extent this team looks a lot the same as it did under Thibs. Last night there was some horrific forced possessions where nothing really happened for plenty of time while Bayless spent a bunch of time trying to get it to someone posting up before someone jacking up a bad shot. Obviously the substitution patterns are different and a more willingness to put various players in the game is a deparatation from Thibs.

If you want to go with Lip's assertion that development is about playing time and the players and Abe saying its about the players (both positions I actually agree with for a large degree) it's about your head coach not screwing things up. Your head coach doesn't need to be some sort of magical tactical genius but someone who can manage things to either get the most out of their players or not screw them up. I think most people were worried Thibs actually got in the way. With Ryan the question will be if he doesn't get in the way AND actually helps. Sure at some point you have to be good tactically but you can also lean on some very good assistants. IF...Ryan ends up being the guy he may need to add some of those types of people if he doesn't have all of that himself. Ryan seems to be about a collaborative effort. You can see that with his rotations. There is a chance players will have a chance to play and make a difference and obviously injury etc have pushed the envelope even farther there. For how good the team pushed against the Jazz the first game against the Suns wasn't exactly a good look even if they were down some guys also.

Meanwhile although the schedule has been a mixed bag Ryan is playing without Covington Teague has missed games Tyus has now missed 5 games and those games Bayless has played major minutes. Tyus being out is kind of a big deal. Being 5-4 right now is not too shabby. I think a lot of people were worried we would fall off after Covington was out. We are still alive and kicking with Bayless starting and being the main PG. I think it's safe to say and it's fair to say there are some early good returns on Ryan Saunders. That doesn't mean he is awesome or will end up being the guy a few months from now but there are a few positives to hold onto both for Ryan and these players too. I'm a homer but I was also skeptical that Ryan would be ready. That first Suns game I was not happy. Last night was a heck of a performance in a loss. Let's see what the next few games bring. It's hard for me to hope for but what If Ryan is the right guy? It may not be far fetched. Let's see how it goes.

A lengthy article with a some new info and a little different perspective than I have read before.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2019/01/27/meet-ryan-saunders-nbas-first-millennial-head-coach/

monsterpile wrote:A lengthy article with a some new info and a little different perspective than I have read before.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2019/01/27/meet-ryan-saunders-nbas-first-millennial-head-coach/

Great article. Ryan brings such a refreshing approach. Unfortunately, the injuries are stacking the deck against him right now.

Sample size is getting more significant, and this change is quite meaningful. Under Thibs, the Wolves were 29th in defensive 3-point percentage...in Ryan's first 11 games, they improved to 4th. They've gone from 37.3 % to 34%! That was one of our big frustrations under Thibs, so it's good to see this improvement. Ryan talked about some scheme and philosophy things they are changing, but I tend to agree more with what Taj says: the players aren't as tired. "Look at the minutes, as far as the way Ryan is playing guys. We're short-handed, but he's out there playing a lot of different lineups".

I'm honored that you've been reading my posts, Taj...

longstrangetrip wrote:Sample size is getting more significant, and this change is quite meaningful. Under Thibs, the Wolves were 29th in defensive 3-point percentage...in Ryan's first 11 games, they improved to 4th. They've gone from 37.3 % to 34%! That was one of our big frustrations under Thibs, so it's good to see this improvement. Ryan talked about some scheme and philosophy things they are changing, but I tend to agree more with what Taj says: the players aren't as tired. "Look at the minutes, as far as the way Ryan is playing guys. We're short-handed, but he's out there playing a lot of different lineups".

I'm honored that you've been reading my posts, Taj...

One thing they mentioned in the broadcast last night was Ryan actually plays bigger lineups than Thibs which helps defend the 3. When Thibs would go Tyus, Rose and Okogie it would be easy to just shoot over them at basically every position. Plug in a guy like Deng with legit size and that's a lot harder. It's hard to go small in a league where most teams have tall wings who can shoot right over you. I think when Roco comes back you downshift Wiggins to the 2 again with Deng coming off the bench at the 3 and we will continue to see improvement defending the 3.

A pretty good read with some numbers and quotes from players etc.

https://zonecoverage.com/2019/featured/assessing-ryan-saunders-is-about-more-than-andrew-wiggins/amp/?__twitter_impression=true

Edit: Sorry I missed this was posted in another thread.

I think we're giving Rob a little too much credit. He will help when he comes back but let's not get too excited.

BizarroJerry wrote:I think we're giving Rob a little too much credit. He will help when he comes back but let's not get too excited.

He was a defensive player of the year candidate. He instantly vaults us into the top 10 defensively and we have enough offensive weapons to grind out wins down the stretch. He makes a big impact on the game.

From Dane Moore

Ryan Saunders vs. Tom Thibodeau

- Ryan: 16-22
- Thibs: 19-21
- Offense 2.6 points per 100 better under Ryan
- Defense 6.0 points per 100 better under Thibs
- Fewer 3s under Ryan
- Faster pace under Thibs

Latest Pod: The Differences Between Ryan + Thibs:
https://t.co/kHEHnyvCMe

kekgeek1 wrote:From Dane Moore

Ryan Saunders vs. Tom Thibodeau

- Ryan: 16-22
- Thibs: 19-21
- Offense 2.6 points per 100 better under Ryan
- Defense 6.0 points per 100 better under Thibs
- Fewer 3s under Ryan
- Faster pace under Thibs

Latest Pod: The Differences Between Ryan + Thibs:
https://t.co/kHEHnyvCMe

In before anybody else runs with the "but all the injuries" thing...

We know that it was time for Thibodeau to go. Whether you thought he was a screaming ogre who was destroying players' will to live... or that his botched handling of the Butler situation was so astronomically terrible... or something else... or a bit of all of it.

What we don't know... not a single one of us... is whether Ryan Saunders is good enough to be the head coach next season.

I'm less than thrilled with Saunders and with the direction of the club. But fortunately, we all have ultimate faith in Glen Taylor to carry the organization through this important time.