Minnesota Sports Forum

Lipoli390 wrote: ↑Sat May 11, 2024 12:11 am I just got back from Target Center. We missed a lot of shots we should make and they made their shots. But I thought the Wolves’ lack of intensity tonight was shameful. Missed bunnies like the many we saw from the Wolves tonight often reflect a lack of intensity. Our defense was poor and we were out-rebounded, more signs of a lack of intensity. We played as if this was a regular season game in December rather than a playoff game - in this case a home playoff game with a loud capacity crowd in the arena. Rudy was probably the worst offender on the squad. He looked like he was taking his second game off. Seriously, he looked like his mind and most of his body were elsewhere. Inexcusably poor game and lack of effort from Rudy tonight.

I’m typically not one to complain about officiating, but the officiating tonight in the first half was absurdly skewed in favor of Denver.

The Wolves should be embarrassed by their performance tonight and we should expect them to come back with a vengeance on Sunday. If they do that, they should crush the Nuggets on Sunday and win the series the next game in Denver. If they don’t come out with that sort of fire on Sunday they will lose on Sunday and lose the series.

Porckchop wrote: ↑Sat May 11, 2024 1:49 am The defending NBA champs weren’t just gonna roll over and die. After 2 games where they were significantly outplayed along with the criticism directed at Jokic for winning his 3rd MVP this was a highly motivated and still very talented veteran team. Minnesotas defensive performance in game two was beyond great and above what we’ve seen this season. Yes they’re a good defensive team but I never expected them to duplicate that performance. This was always going to be a tough matchup.

FNG wrote: ↑Sat May 11, 2024 9:19 am

Lipoli390 wrote: ↑Sat May 11, 2024 12:11 am I just got back from Target Center. We missed a lot of shots we should make and they made their shots. But I thought the Wolves’ lack of intensity tonight was shameful. Missed bunnies like the many we saw from the Wolves tonight often reflect a lack of intensity. Our defense was poor and we were out-rebounded, more signs of a lack of intensity. We played as if this was a regular season game in December rather than a playoff game - in this case a home playoff game with a loud capacity crowd in the arena. Rudy was probably the worst offender on the squad. He looked like he was taking his second game off. Seriously, he looked like his mind and most of his body were elsewhere. Inexcusably poor game and lack of effort from Rudy tonight.

I’m typically not one to complain about officiating, but the officiating tonight in the first half was absurdly skewed in favor of Denver.

The Wolves should be embarrassed by their performance tonight and we should expect them to come back with a vengeance on Sunday. If they do that, they should crush the Nuggets on Sunday and win the series the next game in Denver. If they don’t come out with that sort of fire on Sunday they will lose on Sunday and lose the series.

Lip, you had to see such a klunker...hopefully you'll get to see a better one next time.

I agree about the lack of intensity, but it wasn't entirely across the board. Ant didn't have a great scoring night, but I was impressed with his defensive effort when he was paired up with Murray. (And to echo Kek's point, Ant's leadership and maturity on the bench at the end of the game is another sign of his growth). But nobody had more to prove tonight than Rudy after we played the best game of the year in his absence, and he just didn't show up. He has been such an impactful player this year, but I hardly noticed him tonight at either end of the court. Halfway through the game I felt myself wishing his girlfriend would have another baby Sunday...I want the Monday version of this team, not last night's version. Rudy had 4 rebounds last night...do we need any more evidence that his head wasn't in the game?

And speaking of rebounds, out-rebounding our opponent has been one of our signatures this season, and tonight we had our asses handed to us. Our starting frontcourt seemed to have no interest in getting boards. And even worse...when Christian Braun has 2 more rebounds than your entire bench (pre garbage time), you're not going to win a game. Our garbage time reserves had more offensive rebounds in six minutes than our rotation guys did the entire game.

So we missed shots and didn't rebound, but Lip I don't agree that officiating had any impact on this game, and I hope our players pin this one on themselves and not talk about the referees at all. We had 20 fouls called on us tonight...exactly the same number of fouls called on us in games one and two. And Denver had 25 tonight! The Denver fans chanted "These refs suck!" Monday night even though the refs called 6 more fouls on us than them! I've watched basketball a long time, and games 2 and 3 are great evidence of one thing I know...if your team is getting their butts kicked because they're stinking up the court, it's much easier to blame the referees.

I know some are going to say the refs don't treat Jaden fairly, but I think this is Jaden's issue...not the refs. Fouling has been an issue for Jaden going back to college days (I think he averaged over 6 fouls per 100 possessions), and there is no conspiracy against him that college and NBA refs are collaborating on. For one thing, Jaden plays great defense...he cares, and almost never takes a defensive play off. An aggressive defender like Jaden is naturally going to get more fouls than a passive defender like Joker. But he can be better too. His last foul is a good example. He played elite defense on this man for at least 10 seconds without touching him, but then carelessly reached in and got the foul...I was like "yes, yes, yes, NOOOO!" He is still young and will get better, but right now we are going to have to live with his fouling. Luckily we have NAW ready to come in when Jaden goes to the bench, but we're better when we have both available.

I feel crappy about this game, but I guess we should have seen this coming. I was harboring some thoughts that Denver wouldn't get off the mat after Monday, but they are the World Champs and played like they had everything to lose. And we didn't. I'm hoping Rudy's paternity leave is over, and I expect him to show up Sunday like he has most of the season. And I think most of us think we will shoot better. This was the series most NBA fans have most been looking forward to, and instead we have had three blowouts. I think Game 4 will be a barnburner...buckle your seatbelts.

FNG wrote: ↑Sat May 11, 2024 9:19 am

Lipoli390 wrote: ↑Sat May 11, 2024 12:11 am I just got back from Target Center. We missed a lot of shots we should make and they made their shots. But I thought the Wolves’ lack of intensity tonight was shameful. Missed bunnies like the many we saw from the Wolves tonight often reflect a lack of intensity. Our defense was poor and we were out-rebounded, more signs of a lack of intensity. We played as if this was a regular season game in December rather than a playoff game - in this case a home playoff game with a loud capacity crowd in the arena. Rudy was probably the worst offender on the squad. He looked like he was taking his second game off. Seriously, he looked like his mind and most of his body were elsewhere. Inexcusably poor game and lack of effort from Rudy tonight.

I’m typically not one to complain about officiating, but the officiating tonight in the first half was absurdly skewed in favor of Denver.

The Wolves should be embarrassed by their performance tonight and we should expect them to come back with a vengeance on Sunday. If they do that, they should crush the Nuggets on Sunday and win the series the next game in Denver. If they don’t come out with that sort of fire on Sunday they will lose on Sunday and lose the series.

Lip, you had to see such a klunker...hopefully you'll get to see a better one next time.

I agree about the lack of intensity, but it wasn't entirely across the board. Ant didn't have a great scoring night, but I was impressed with his defensive effort when he was paired up with Murray. (And to echo Kek's point, Ant's leadership and maturity on the bench at the end of the game is another sign of his growth). But nobody had more to prove tonight than Rudy after we played the best game of the year in his absence, and he just didn't show up. He has been such an impactful player this year, but I hardly noticed him tonight at either end of the court. Halfway through the game I felt myself wishing his girlfriend would have another baby Sunday...I want the Monday version of this team, not last night's version. Rudy had 4 rebounds last night...do we need any more evidence that his head wasn't in the game?

And speaking of rebounds, out-rebounding our opponent has been one of our signatures this season, and tonight we had our asses handed to us. Our starting frontcourt seemed to have no interest in getting boards. And even worse...when Christian Braun has 2 more rebounds than your entire bench (pre garbage time), you're not going to win a game. Our garbage time reserves had more offensive rebounds in six minutes than our rotation guys did the entire game.

So we missed shots and didn't rebound, but Lip I don't agree that officiating had any impact on this game, and I hope our players pin this one on themselves and not talk about the referees at all. We had 20 fouls called on us tonight...exactly the same number of fouls called on us in games one and two. And Denver had 25 tonight! The Denver fans chanted "These refs suck!" Monday night even though the refs called 6 more fouls on us than them! I've watched basketball a long time, and games 2 and 3 are great evidence of one thing I know...if your team is getting their butts kicked because they're stinking up the court, it's much easier to blame the referees.

I know some are going to say the refs don't treat Jaden fairly, but I think this is Jaden's issue...not the refs. Fouling has been an issue for Jaden going back to college days (I think he averaged over 6 fouls per 100 possessions), and there is no conspiracy against him that college and NBA refs are collaborating on. For one thing, Jaden plays great defense...he cares, and almost never takes a defensive play off. An aggressive defender like Jaden is naturally going to get more fouls than a passive defender like Joker. But he can be better too. His last foul is a good example. He played elite defense on this man for at least 10 seconds without touching him, but then carelessly reached in and got the foul...I was like "yes, yes, yes, NOOOO!" He is still young and will get better, but right now we are going to have to live with his fouling. Luckily we have NAW ready to come in when Jaden goes to the bench, but we're better when we have both available.

I feel crappy about this game, but I guess we should have seen this coming. I was harboring some thoughts that Denver wouldn't get off the mat after Monday, but they are the World Champs and played like they had everything to lose. And we didn't. I'm hoping Rudy's paternity leave is over, and I expect him to show up Sunday like he has most of the season. And I think most of us think we will shoot better. This was the series most NBA fans have most been looking forward to, and instead we have had three blowouts. I think Game 4 will be a barnburner...buckle your seatbelts.

Lipoli390 wrote: ↑Sat May 11, 2024 9:52 am

FNG wrote: ↑Sat May 11, 2024 9:19 am

Lipoli390 wrote: ↑Sat May 11, 2024 12:11 am I just got back from Target Center. We missed a lot of shots we should make and they made their shots. But I thought the Wolves’ lack of intensity tonight was shameful. Missed bunnies like the many we saw from the Wolves tonight often reflect a lack of intensity. Our defense was poor and we were out-rebounded, more signs of a lack of intensity. We played as if this was a regular season game in December rather than a playoff game - in this case a home playoff game with a loud capacity crowd in the arena. Rudy was probably the worst offender on the squad. He looked like he was taking his second game off. Seriously, he looked like his mind and most of his body were elsewhere. Inexcusably poor game and lack of effort from Rudy tonight.

I’m typically not one to complain about officiating, but the officiating tonight in the first half was absurdly skewed in favor of Denver.

The Wolves should be embarrassed by their performance tonight and we should expect them to come back with a vengeance on Sunday. If they do that, they should crush the Nuggets on Sunday and win the series the next game in Denver. If they don’t come out with that sort of fire on Sunday they will lose on Sunday and lose the series.

Lip, you had to see such a klunker...hopefully you'll get to see a better one next time.

I agree about the lack of intensity, but it wasn't entirely across the board. Ant didn't have a great scoring night, but I was impressed with his defensive effort when he was paired up with Murray. (And to echo Kek's point, Ant's leadership and maturity on the bench at the end of the game is another sign of his growth). But nobody had more to prove tonight than Rudy after we played the best game of the year in his absence, and he just didn't show up. He has been such an impactful player this year, but I hardly noticed him tonight at either end of the court. Halfway through the game I felt myself wishing his girlfriend would have another baby Sunday...I want the Monday version of this team, not last night's version. Rudy had 4 rebounds last night...do we need any more evidence that his head wasn't in the game?

And speaking of rebounds, out-rebounding our opponent has been one of our signatures this season, and tonight we had our asses handed to us. Our starting frontcourt seemed to have no interest in getting boards. And even worse...when Christian Braun has 2 more rebounds than your entire bench (pre garbage time), you're not going to win a game. Our garbage time reserves had more offensive rebounds in six minutes than our rotation guys did the entire game.

So we missed shots and didn't rebound, but Lip I don't agree that officiating had any impact on this game, and I hope our players pin this one on themselves and not talk about the referees at all. We had 20 fouls called on us tonight...exactly the same number of fouls called on us in games one and two. And Denver had 25 tonight! The Denver fans chanted "These refs suck!" Monday night even though the refs called 6 more fouls on us than them! I've watched basketball a long time, and games 2 and 3 are great evidence of one thing I know...if your team is getting their butts kicked because they're stinking up the court, it's much easier to blame the referees.

I know some are going to say the refs don't treat Jaden fairly, but I think this is Jaden's issue...not the refs. Fouling has been an issue for Jaden going back to college days (I think he averaged over 6 fouls per 100 possessions), and there is no conspiracy against him that college and NBA refs are collaborating on. For one thing, Jaden plays great defense...he cares, and almost never takes a defensive play off. An aggressive defender like Jaden is naturally going to get more fouls than a passive defender like Joker. But he can be better too. His last foul is a good example. He played elite defense on this man for at least 10 seconds without touching him, but then carelessly reached in and got the foul...I was like "yes, yes, yes, NOOOO!" He is still young and will get better, but right now we are going to have to live with his fouling. Luckily we have NAW ready to come in when Jaden goes to the bench, but we're better when we have both available.

I feel crappy about this game, but I guess we should have seen this coming. I was harboring some thoughts that Denver wouldn't get off the mat after Monday, but they are the World Champs and played like they had everything to lose. And we didn't. I'm hoping Rudy's paternity leave is over, and I expect him to show up Sunday like he has most of the season. And I think most of us think we will shoot better. This was the series most NBA fans have most been looking forward to, and instead we have had three blowouts. I think Game 4 will be a barnburner...buckle your seatbelts.

I saw more intensity from Ant than I saw from Rudy by a long shot, but even he didn’t show the same level of intensity and urgency that he and the rest of the team had shown in the previous playoff games. It’s one klunker but it’s still inexcusable. Rudy’s performance in particular was unacceptable. He’s now had two games off in a row. The coaching staff and his teammates need to call him out in the locker room.

davemang wrote: ↑Fri May 10, 2024 10:24 pm

Wolvesfan21 wrote: ↑Fri May 10, 2024 10:02 pm You know what I noticed. Everytime the Wolves start doing interviews and get hype they come out weak as shit. This is embarrassing. (Saw KAT/Naz/Ant/Jaden and Conley do interviews in the last few days) Guys might be feeling themselves and not locked in.

Well if things keep going the way they are, media will go right back to shitting on the wolves and we can come into game 4 as an underdog again.