Minnesota Sports Forum

monsterpile wrote:I'm not sure the Clippers were looking to move Harris but when the Sixers come with 2 first round picks Shamet TWO 2nds (from Detroit who isn't exactly awesome) AND now the Clippers will have a bunch of cap space and they don't have to worry about signing Harris to a big deal they can sigh someone else or whatever they want to do. That's a hell of a haul for a team that's rebuilding on the fly. So the Clippers return for Blake Griffins is now 3 first round picks three 2nds cap space and Avery Bradley. Reminder they came out pretty good on that Chris Paul deal with a guy they had to move to one specific team.

So what you're saying is that the Clippers are yet another team that (1) was better than the Wolves (2) broke apart (3) and rebuilt... while the Wolves continue its 15-year quest for relevance.

Cool.

AbeVigodaLive wrote:

monsterpile wrote:I'm not sure the Clippers were looking to move Harris but when the Sixers come with 2 first round picks Shamet TWO 2nds (from Detroit who isn't exactly awesome) AND now the Clippers will have a bunch of cap space and they don't have to worry about signing Harris to a big deal they can sigh someone else or whatever they want to do. That's a hell of a haul for a team that's rebuilding on the fly. So the Clippers return for Blake Griffins is now 3 first round picks three 2nds cap space and Avery Bradley. Reminder they came out pretty good on that Chris Paul deal with a guy they had to move to one specific team.

So what you're saying is that the Clippers are yet another team that (1) was better than the Wolves (2) broke apart (3) and rebuilt... while the Wolves continue its 15-year quest for relevance.

Cool.

Yeah and Doc Rivers used to run it all and is now just a good head coach while the front office has done some good things. It doesn't hurt to have Jerry West in your corner...

I needed a dose of irony today, and this board isn't letting me down! For at least a couple decades the Clippers were known as perhaps the worst franchise in all sports (the wolves were always in that conversation too)...I lived in LA for a few years, so I can tell you first hand about the empty seats on Clipper game nights and ridicule. And now they are being heralded here as a smart winning franchise. That's the point about "loser's mentality" I'm trying to make. The concept is a false narrative, because a franchise can turn around on a dime with some good decisions and a little luck. Look at Philly. Look at the Clippers. There will be some LA rubes who will whine because they don't get to watch their team get destroyed in the playoffs this year, but Jerry West knows more what's good for that franchise than they do, and this move will pay off long-term.

Unfortunately, the Wolves don't have anything close to a Jerry West, and until they do, I'm afraid they are going to have to hope for a little luck rather than good decisions to turn this thing around. That's why I think it would have been lucky for them to lose that last game last year. This franchise needed to rid itself of the stench Thibs had surrounded it with (I sense some here are still in denial about how toxic things were at 600 1st Avenue), and missing the playoffs would have done it. Yeah, we eventually got rid of him halfway through the season, but not until after he was given the opportunity to destroy this franchise even more, and to make us even more of a laughingstock as the national media mocked how we aired our dirty Butler laundry...nobody other than Thibs would have allowed that circus to happen. And who knows? Maybe the Thibs/Butler debacle has a lot to do with Wiggins becoming an even less effective basketball player...for some reason he has regresses even further this season.

I understand that getting to watch one playoff win was fun, but don't kid yourselves by believing that one win instantly transformed us from losers to winners...the start to this season is all you need to see to know that isn't true. It's 9 months later now and if I could go back in time, I'm still trading that one playoff win over Houston (as fun as it was) for the chance to get rid of the Thibs stench earlier, trading Butler during the summer plus the 14th pick.

longstrangetrip wrote:I needed a dose of irony today, and this board isn't letting me down! For at least a couple decades the Clippers were known as perhaps the worst franchise in all sports (the wolves were always in that conversation too)...I lived in LA for a few years, so I can tell you first hand about the empty seats on Clipper game nights and ridicule. And now they are being heralded here as a smart winning franchise. That's the point about "loser's mentality" I'm trying to make. The concept is a false narrative, because a franchise can turn around on a dime with some good decisions and a little luck. Look at Philly. Look at the Clippers. There will be some LA rubes who will whine because they don't get to watch their team get destroyed in the playoffs this year, but Jerry West knows more what's good for that franchise than they do, and this move will pay off long-term.

Unfortunately, the Wolves don't have anything close to a Jerry West, and until they do, I'm afraid they are going to have to hope for a little luck rather than good decisions to turn this thing around. That's why I think it would have been lucky for them to lose that last game last year. This franchise needed to rid itself of the stench Thibs had surrounded it with (I sense some here are still in denial about how toxic things were at 600 1st Avenue), and missing the playoffs would have done it. Yeah, we eventually got rid of him halfway through the season, but not until after he was given the opportunity to destroy this franchise even more, and to make us even more of a laughingstock as the national media mocked how we aired our dirty Butler laundry...nobody other than Thibs would have allowed that circus to happen. And who knows? Maybe the Thibs/Butler debacle has a lot to do with Wiggins becoming an even less effective basketball player...for some reason he has regresses even further this season.

I understand that getting to watch one playoff win was fun, but don't kid yourselves by believing that one win instantly transformed us from losers to winners...the start to this season is all you need to see to know that isn't true. It's 9 months later now and if I could go back in time, I'm still trading that one playoff win over Houston (as fun as it was) for the chance to get rid of the Thibs stench earlier, trading Butler during the summer plus the 14th pick.

That's a nice thought. But we are still far away from this being a success for the Clippers. They are still the Clippers, and a deranged tech giant, Jerry West, and Doc Rivers may not be able to change that. I'm a bit more skeptical of their move going forward. High risk, low reward was the formula that has kept the Knicks a joke for a long time. I do think West has amazing skill and knowledge, but sometimes there's a stink on an organization that is too much for smart people to figure out. Our stench was bigger than Thibs, and won't change until Taylor is long gone.

I said I am stuck on the island until the 23rd. The KOM says if the Wolves play like a middling team they will finish 7 games out of the playoffs. But if they play like a contender, they will make the playoffs.

The first 10 games after the break will be a tease, because the Wolves have a very light schedule compared to the teams ahead of them. There is a good chance the Wolves could catch the 8th seed during that stretch!

So I better round up LST and whoever else I can find on this island and start fixing it up, because I expect it to start getting crowded.

The challenge will be what happens after those 10 games. The Wolves will have to play like legit contenders to stay in the playoffs. It could be fun. As Harlen likes to say, "Buckle up!"

60WinTim wrote:I said I am stuck on the island until the 23rd. The KOM says if the Wolves play like a middling team they will finish 7 games out of the playoffs. But if they play like a contender, they will make the playoffs.
The first 10 games after the break will be a tease, because the Wolves have a very light schedule compared to the teams ahead of them. There is a good chance the Wolves could catch the 8th seed during that stretch!

So I better round up LST and whoever else I can find on this island and start fixing it up, because I expect it to start getting crowded.

The challenge will be what happens after those 10 games. The Wolves will have to play like legit contenders to stay in the playoffs. It could be fun. As Harlen likes to say, "Buckle up!"

If 45 wins gets you in the playoffs, that means we have to go 18-7 the rest of the way. I don't see it happening

kekgeek1 wrote:

60WinTim wrote:I said I am stuck on the island until the 23rd. The KOM says if the Wolves play like a middling team they will finish 7 games out of the playoffs. But if they play like a contender, they will make the playoffs.
The first 10 games after the break will be a tease, because the Wolves have a very light schedule compared to the teams ahead of them. There is a good chance the Wolves could catch the 8th seed during that stretch!

So I better round up LST and whoever else I can find on this island and start fixing it up, because I expect it to start getting crowded.

The challenge will be what happens after those 10 games. The Wolves will have to play like legit contenders to stay in the playoffs. It could be fun. As Harlen likes to say, "Buckle up!"

If 45 wins gets you in the playoffs, that means we have to go 18-7 the rest of the way. I don't see it happening

Sure... the Wolves probably only have about 5 stretches of 18 - 7 ball in the 30-year history of the franchise... but maybe we're due?

I love the irony of hearing

60WinTim wrote:I said I am stuck on the island until the 23rd. The KOM says if the Wolves play like a middling team they will finish 7 games out of the playoffs. But if they play like a contender, they will make the playoffs.

The first 10 games after the break will be a tease, because the Wolves have a very light schedule compared to the teams ahead of them. There is a good chance the Wolves could catch the 8th seed during that stretch!

So I better round up LST and whoever else I can find on this island and start fixing it up, because I expect it to start getting crowded.

The challenge will be what happens after those 10 games. The Wolves will have to play like legit contenders to stay in the playoffs. It could be fun. As Harlen likes to say, "Buckle up!"

No need to round me up, Tim. That 3-game losing streak had me scanning the sky looking for a helicopter to get me off the island, but it didn't come and I'm still there. I don't think I agree that we need 45 wins...42 might even do it, and that only requires a 15-10 the rest of the way. The only team in the race currently more than 3 games over .500 are the Clippers, and most observers think they threw in the towel when they traded their best player. The Lakers look dreadful. So that leaves Sac-town, and they are not exactly a playoff-experienced team. IF RoCo is healthy, we WILL finish ahead the Clip joint and Lake show, and MAY catch the Kings.

It took way to long but Saric is starting now and I don't think that's changing. If we can get RoCo healthy or win until he gets healthy and keep 2 of the three Teague, Rose, Tyus healthy we might rattle off enough wins combined with west beating up on each other to once again sneak in. I'm not counting on it and Wiggins taking 20+ shots with low FG% is much more likely to have us losing some close games and the board chanting SLOW TANK......SLOW TANK....SLOW TANK. I'll be really happy though if this roster starts to jell and makes a run.

Doogie had this to say yesterday:

Darren Wolfson @DWolfsonKSTP
18h hours ago
Doesn't appear as if the #Twolves will be waiving/buying any guys out -- guys would have to be set free by 10:59 Central to be playoff eligible. There was some loose chatter, but the Wolves remain convinced that the playoffs are still reachable. Thus, roster remaining intact.


So, the Wolves still think they are fighting for the playoffs. And now Covington is back with the Wolves, although I guess he will not play tomorrow night. If the Wolves finish the season like real contenders, then I suppose they could sniff the playoffs. But they have not done so, yet, and I don't know if Covington's return will be enough to elevate them to where they need to be.