News from the Orlando Bubble

[thedoper]

Psst... maybe Houston wins this series if they have Clint Capela.

I think this is right. Youve got to have something inside.

[Camden [enjin:6601484]]

Psst... maybe Houston wins this series if they have Clint Capela.

I think this is right. You've got to have something inside.

Lakers: 227 rebounds (45.4 RPG)
Rockets: 163 rebounds (32.6 RPG)

I don't even need to look at another statistic to know where the difference was made in this series. Houston got destroyed on the glass -- they never won the rebounding margin. That's a bunch of extra possessions that the Lakers had to work with. The Rockets did, however, make more threes than the Lakers every single game except tonight... yippee. Enjoy watching the NBA Finals at home just like every other year.

The absolute last thing I want is to go down that road despite the regular season success that Houston's had. Minnesota doesn't have a James Harden and the methodology they use leads to no where.

[thedoper]

Psst... maybe Houston wins this series if they have Clint Capela.

I think this is right. You've got to have something inside.

Lakers: 227 rebounds (45.4 RPG)
Rockets: 163 rebounds (32.6 RPG)

I don't even need to look at another statistic to know where the difference was made in this series. Houston got destroyed on the glass -- they never won the rebounding margin. That's a bunch of extra possessions that the Lakers had to work with. The Rockets did, however, make more threes than the Lakers every single game except tonight... yippee. Enjoy watching the NBA Finals at home just like every other year.

The absolute last thing I want is to go down that road despite the regular season success that Houston's had. Minnesota doesn't have a James Harden and the methodology they use leads to no where.

You can't go too far from the fundamentals. Yes analytics are good. But I find their take on the game smug and a bit dellusional. I never liked D'Antoni. I think hes a smart offensive mind but comes across as a dick whenever i hear him speak.

It will be interesting to see if Golden State can round back to form next year. The Lakers, Clippers, and them will be a fascinating contrast of styles. I hope they can all stay healthy and Lebron can eek out another year of high performance. It certainly feels like the league is at another tipping point with no clear cut star to take the reigns after KD and Lebron retire. Kawhi for a while then maybe Luca?

[Camden [enjin:6601484]]

Psst... maybe Houston wins this series if they have Clint Capela.

I think this is right. You've got to have something inside.

Lakers: 227 rebounds (45.4 RPG)
Rockets: 163 rebounds (32.6 RPG)

I don't even need to look at another statistic to know where the difference was made in this series. Houston got destroyed on the glass -- they never won the rebounding margin. That's a bunch of extra possessions that the Lakers had to work with. The Rockets did, however, make more threes than the Lakers every single game except tonight... yippee. Enjoy watching the NBA Finals at home just like every other year.

The absolute last thing I want is to go down that road despite the regular season success that Houston's had. Minnesota doesn't have a James Harden and the methodology they use leads to no where.

You can't go too far from the fundamentals. Yes analytics are good. But I find their take on the game smug and a bit dellusional. I never liked D'Antoni. I think hes a smart offensive mind but comes across as a dick whenever i hear him speak.

It will be interesting to see if Golden State can round back to form next year. The Lakers, Clippers, and them will be a fascinating contrast of styles. I hope they can all stay healthy and Lebron can eek out another year of high performance. It certainly feels like the league is at another tipping point with no clear cut star to take the reigns after KD and Lebron retire. Kawhi for a while then maybe Luca?

This off-season we'll get to see if Houston's management is honest with themselves or if their egos will come first. Do they care about winning or being right? They need a quality big man or two -- straight up. There's no logical way that they can come back next season and expect to go any further in the playoffs with the same strategy and personnel. The problem is quite clear. They get killed inside. P.J. Tucker is a useful piece, but what they're asking him to do is an impossible task.

And to your second point, I see a ton of young talent that is ready and willing to take on the torch once those guys call it a career or decline significantly. I can't think of an era in basketball that had more talent, actually. But yeah, if I had to narrow it down to several names it'd be Giannis Antetokounmpo, Luka Doncic, Jayson Tatum, and Ben Simmons.

[kekgeek]

Psst... maybe Houston wins this series if they have Clint Capela.

I think this is right. Youve got to have something inside.

Agree with both of you. I still believe that you need a C in the NBA. I don't know how much of a difference a great center moves the needle but you need a C in the NBA Tucker can't be your center

[Lipoli390]

What Denver has done with Jokic and Murray, the Wolves should be able to do with KAT and Russell. It's a matter of surrounding them with enough complementary talent and having a really good head coach. Ideally, we'd have an all-star caliber two-way wing, SG or SF, playing with KAT and Russell. Anthony Edwards has the physical tools a skill set to eventually be that guy if he can find a consistently high-revving motor inside himself. He'd be the athletic wing that could really help this team. But short of that, surrounding KAT and Russell with a number of high-caliber role players, coupled with really good coaching, could make this team a contender over time.

I think role players are easier to acquire by trade and free agency. Starting caliber wings with high upside are not. For a team like ours we have a chance at role players, Rosas managed that with Beasley. Id like us to come out of this draft with 2 high upside wings. Whether it is Edwards, Vassell, Nesmith or some combination of those players and/or someone else that would be the ideal situation for me.

Doper - I agree with you. A mid-market cold-climate franchise like the Wolves generally needs to rely on the draft for stars, but can rely on free agency and trades for role players. So your approach to the draft makes a lot of sense. I'd quibble a bit with which prospects fit the mold of the player with star potential who the Wolves should target in this year's draft. I like Vassell a lot and i also like Nesmith. But I see them more as good role players in the NBA. Edwards, on the other hand, clearly has star/perennial all-star potential. If the Wolves take your approach to the draft, using it to acquire potential stars, then they should look to draft Edwards, Wiseman or Ball - and maybe Okongwu, Patrick Williams or Deni.

I have no doubt about the star potential of the first three (Edwards, Wiseman, Ball). The only question I have about all three is whether they have the competitive drive, motor and basketball IQ to reach their full potential as NBA stars. I'm less sure about the upside of Okongwu, Williams and Deni, but I see all of them having star potential and I also see them having a higher probability of achieving their full potential. Of these three, I see so much Bam in Okongwu that I can't help but see him as having a very good chance of becoming an NBA allstar. I'm less sure about Williams and Deni. I love the potential of Williams. He's probably the least NBA ready of the group, but I see some Kawhi in him.

Lip, I'm not so sure about the Bam comparisons with Okongwu. The stats are similar in college, but Bam has completely outperformed even the most optimistic expectations, so I think it's kind of dangerous to make that comparison. Nine times out of ten a guy with those college stats becomes a solid NBA player, a great bench guy or a defensive starter to put next to a star. Probably not an All Star, especially these days. Not only has Bam totally outperformed the college statline that is similar to Okongwu's, but even coming out of college, he definitely had better handles, was a little more athletic, and showed shades of the passing he's really developed in the last year.

I like Okongwu a lot. He does remind me of lunch-bucket type guys I've always loved, like a more athletic Taj. Maybe he could end up being a bit of an early-career Serge Ibaka before he started trying to stretch the floor, hopefully with some ability to switch out and defend the perimeter a bit. We do need a defender next to KAT. If we could trade down, I could maybe get on board (although I'd lean toward Vassell). But from what I've seen, I think the Bam comparisons are setting up an eventual disappointment in Okongwu. Bam just seems so much more versatile with his handles and passing. I'm open to being convinced otherwise, and if we did take him, I'd hope like hell I'm wrong. But I just don't see the handles and passing that make Bam much more than an athletic, high-energy defender who rebounds and dunks well. I guess my comment is more about how much I like Bam than how many doubts I have about Okongwu, but personally, I'm not (yet) able to get on board with that comparison.

Look back at pre-draft video and reviews of Bam and you'll be hard pressed to see any indications that he'd be a good passer. And I see no evidence that Bam is more athletic than Okongwu. They are almost exactly the same size. While I agree that Bam has outperformed his college stats, he was highly thought of in that draft and I was surprised he fell to #14. Note that KAT has dramatically outperformed his college stats. If Okongwu would simply play up to his college stats, which were better than Bam's, then he'd be a great addition to the Wolves.

It's really hard to project from a prospect's college stats when he's a one-and-done. So you have to look at how he plays, his age and his impact on the team. Watching him play, you can see that Okongwu is really quick and athletic and has terrific defensive instincts. His quick-twitch explosiveness and lateral quickness remind me of both John Collins and Bam. He's a better defender than Bam was in college. So it's more than fair to be skeptical of the Bam comparison, what I've seen has me convinced that he has a good shot of ending up on about the same level as Bam only better defensively. I agree that ball-handling and passing are probably the biggest questions when it comes to comparing Okongwu to Bam. But Okongwu has great hands and appears to have excellent hand-eye coordination and good court awareness. So I think there's a better than 50-50 chance that Okongwu develops his ball-handling and passing to eventually be on par with Bam.

[Lipoli390]

This Miami-Boston game is a lot of fun to watch. I don't want either team to lose. I especially like the way Miami plays - the way they share the ball and keep it moving. Two really well run organizations with terrific head coaches.

[Camden [enjin:6601484]]

This Miami-Boston game is a lot of fun to watch.

Tyler Herro should be a Timberwolf. I'm sick.

[Lipoli390]

This Miami-Boston game is a lot of fun to watch.

Tyler Herro should be a Timberwolf. I'm sick.

I was about to post the same thought. It's been painful watching Herro and Murray - two players the Wolves could and should have drafted. You were calling for the Wolves to draft both.

[Lipoli390]

Psst... maybe Houston wins this series if they have Clint Capela.

I think this is right. Youve got to have something inside.

I agree.