What Do We Want To See From the Timberwolves Over The Next Few Months?

[thedoper]

What should the Wolves do the rest of this season? That's simple.

1. Play KAT, Wiggins, Zach, Bazz, and Dieng at least 32 minutes every game and Belly at least 25 minutes per game, which means little time for Pek, KG or Martin and less time for Prince. This would also mean playing KAT and Dieng together quite a but. This is essential to give the organization a good sense of what these young guys can do and further their development. The clock is ticking on all these guys and their rookie contracts.

2. Give Zach at least 16 minutes as a SG with Ricky, Wiggins and KAT on the floor.

3. Give Tyus some playing time

4. Start serious conversations with JVG and others regarding the POBO and head coach positions.

Agree 100% Lip. This is the way. There is no downside to going aggressive after JVG now.

[AbeVigodaLive]

I agree with you Drew, but the problem is good 3 & D wings are incredibly valuable. DeMarre Carroll got a huge contract from the Raptors. Harrison Barnes might actually get max money this offseason, which is incredible since he's probably the 4th or 5th best player on that team.

There is no way we can get a player of that caliber through trading Dieng, LaVine, or Shabazz.

I like the idea of going hard after either Barnes or Batum this offseason with aggressive free agent contracts. Let's get another 2-way wing that can shoot the damn ball next to Wiggins. And yes, we will have to overpay for it, but at some point this team needs to become competitive.

(Note: We always cite Jason Kidd as the poster boy for being a late-blooming 3-point shooter in our hopes that Rubio can eventually do the same thing. DeMarre Carroll is another poster boy. He was pretty much a non-factor from outside the arc until he turned 27. Now he's a consistently solid threat.)

Carroll is an interesting case. But I wouldn't say it's the usual path.

The guy only played about 2,000 NBA minutes through the age of 26 for 4 different teams.

He shot 27 - 89 over that time (30%) from behind the arc. Was that a sign he couldn't shoot the three ball... or simply wasn't shooting it much while bouncing from team to team in different roles each time? I dunno.

As soon as he got to Atlanta, and got regular playing time as a starter from the first game. And... he started shooting the three at a better than average rate immediately. Did he pick up that element of his game immediately over 3 months... or was it already there and he just needed a legit opportunity?

[Q12543 [enjin:6621299]]

Abe, DeMarre wasn't exactly lighting it up in college either, so it's not like he came into the NBA as an inherently good outside shooter.

My guess is that he worked his ass off over the years to eventually feel confident enough to take it in volume. It also begs the question as to whether having a coach that gives you a green light to shoot the 3 and design an offense that values the open 3 whether that in and of itself enhances 3-point shooting. Hell, look at his team mate Paul Millsap, who is another poster child of a late-blooming 3-point shooter. He blossomed at the same time Carroll did playing for the same team.

I agree that the path Millsap, Carroll, and Kidd took to becoming respectable 3-point shooters isn't the norm, but it is possible.

[AbeVigodaLive]

Abe, DeMarre wasn't exactly lighting it up in college either, so it's not like he came into the NBA as an inherently good outside shooter.

My guess is that he worked his ass off over the years to eventually feel confident enough to take it in volume. It also begs the question as to whether having a coach that gives you a green light to shoot the 3 and design an offense that values the open 3 whether that in and of itself enhances 3-point shooting. Hell, look at his team mate Paul Millsap, who is another poster child of a late-blooming 3-point shooter. He blossomed at the same time Carroll did playing for the same team.

I agree that the path Millsap, Carroll, and Kidd took to becoming respectable 3-point shooters isn't the norm, but it is possible.

True. And Carroll started off his NBA career in Memphis... where the long ball wasn't exactly embraced.

As for Kidd... it's not like he didn't have a three point shot early in his career. He shot nearly 400 attempts in his second season at a close-to-respectable 345 clip. He shot 37% in just his 3rd season.

From there, he teetered back-and-forth above/below the league average for accuracy until he got to Dallas where the gravitational pull of Dirk Nowitzki gave him such great looks and he went over 40% twice (reaching 42.5% in year 2) while nearly deserting driving to the hoop. Heck, about 60% of his shots were standstill three pointers.

Then, he fell back pretty close to his career average (34.9%).

[Coolbreeze44]

I agree with you Drew, but the problem is good 3 & D wings are incredibly valuable. DeMarre Carroll got a huge contract from the Raptors. Harrison Barnes might actually get max money this offseason, which is incredible since he's probably the 4th or 5th best player on that team.

There is no way we can get a player of that caliber through trading Dieng, LaVine, or Shabazz.

I like the idea of going hard after either Barnes or Batum this offseason with aggressive free agent contracts. Let's get another 2-way wing that can shoot the damn ball next to Wiggins. And yes, we will have to overpay for it, but at some point this team needs to become competitive.

(Note: We always cite Jason Kidd as the poster boy for being a late-blooming 3-point shooter in our hopes that Rubio can eventually do the same thing. DeMarre Carroll is another poster boy. He was pretty much a non-factor from outside the arc until he turned 27. Now he's a consistently solid threat.)

Wouldn't you agree that Harrison Barnes is more than just a "3 and D" guy? I don't think that's an accurate description of all he brings to the table. He only shoots 3-3's per game and has a very high percentage on non threes. I just think he's better than your typical Bruce Bowen type.

[Monster]

Abe, DeMarre wasn't exactly lighting it up in college either, so it's not like he came into the NBA as an inherently good outside shooter.

My guess is that he worked his ass off over the years to eventually feel confident enough to take it in volume. It also begs the question as to whether having a coach that gives you a green light to shoot the 3 and design an offense that values the open 3 whether that in and of itself enhances 3-point shooting. Hell, look at his team mate Paul Millsap, who is another poster child of a late-blooming 3-point shooter. He blossomed at the same time Carroll did playing for the same team.

I agree that the path Millsap, Carroll, and Kidd took to becoming respectable 3-point shooters isn't the norm, but it is possible.

I think we are all aware of the exception to the rule being something to expect but at some point you look at some guys and think of player X can shoot that well from 3 then why can't Rubio or some other Wolves player in the climate of the NBA right now? It's almost ridiculous. My example is Kris Humphrey who attempted just 26 total 3's in his ten year career before this year. Now he is getting up around 2.5 of them per game and hitting .348 percent of them and that's in a limited role off the bench. If Dante Cunningham can now hit 3's the. Rubio better be able to hit 34%. I think he will at least do that especially if he does get a solid value of them.

Question for the people that have been calling for him to be THE guy for this team going forward. Do we know for certain JVG values the 3 ball?

[Q12543 [enjin:6621299]]

I agree with you Drew, but the problem is good 3 & D wings are incredibly valuable. DeMarre Carroll got a huge contract from the Raptors. Harrison Barnes might actually get max money this offseason, which is incredible since he's probably the 4th or 5th best player on that team.

There is no way we can get a player of that caliber through trading Dieng, LaVine, or Shabazz.

I like the idea of going hard after either Barnes or Batum this offseason with aggressive free agent contracts. Let's get another 2-way wing that can shoot the damn ball next to Wiggins. And yes, we will have to overpay for it, but at some point this team needs to become competitive.

(Note: We always cite Jason Kidd as the poster boy for being a late-blooming 3-point shooter in our hopes that Rubio can eventually do the same thing. DeMarre Carroll is another poster boy. He was pretty much a non-factor from outside the arc until he turned 27. Now he's a consistently solid threat.)

Wouldn't you agree that Harrison Barnes is more than just a "3 and D" guy? I don't think that's an accurate description of all he brings to the table. He only shoots 3-3's per game and has a very high percentage on non threes. I just think he's better than your typical Bruce Bowen type.

I agree he's better than Bowen and Thabo, who are probably the most "pure" versions of a 3 & D wing. I use the term loosely to describe a guy that isn't a top option offensively, but can hit open 3's, defend opposing starter-level wings, and keep his mistakes/turnovers down. Basically Tayshaun Prince with a 3-point shot. Barnes does all of those things well.

[Q12543 [enjin:6621299]]

Abe, DeMarre wasn't exactly lighting it up in college either, so it's not like he came into the NBA as an inherently good outside shooter.

My guess is that he worked his ass off over the years to eventually feel confident enough to take it in volume. It also begs the question as to whether having a coach that gives you a green light to shoot the 3 and design an offense that values the open 3 whether that in and of itself enhances 3-point shooting. Hell, look at his team mate Paul Millsap, who is another poster child of a late-blooming 3-point shooter. He blossomed at the same time Carroll did playing for the same team.

I agree that the path Millsap, Carroll, and Kidd took to becoming respectable 3-point shooters isn't the norm, but it is possible.

I think we are all aware of the exception to the rule being something to expect but at some point you look at some guys and think of player X can shoot that well from 3 then why can't Rubio or some other Wolves player in the climate of the NBA right now? It's almost ridiculous. My example is Kris Humphrey who attempted just 26 total 3's in his ten year career before this year. Now he is getting up around 2.5 of them per game and hitting .348 percent of them and that's in a limited role off the bench. If Dante Cunningham can now hit 3's the. Rubio better be able to hit 34%. I think he will at least do that especially if he does get a solid value of them.

Question for the people that have been calling for him to be THE guy for this team going forward. Do we know for certain JVG values the 3 ball?

I don't know if Rubio will be one of those exceptions or not, but it doesn't seem like a total pipedream based on these other data points. His career % isn't that bad, but he's also shot enough volume where one wonders whether there really is room to improve. I hold out hope, but admittedly that's all it is....hope.

[Monster]

Abe, DeMarre wasn't exactly lighting it up in college either, so it's not like he came into the NBA as an inherently good outside shooter.

My guess is that he worked his ass off over the years to eventually feel confident enough to take it in volume. It also begs the question as to whether having a coach that gives you a green light to shoot the 3 and design an offense that values the open 3 whether that in and of itself enhances 3-point shooting. Hell, look at his team mate Paul Millsap, who is another poster child of a late-blooming 3-point shooter. He blossomed at the same time Carroll did playing for the same team.

I agree that the path Millsap, Carroll, and Kidd took to becoming respectable 3-point shooters isn't the norm, but it is possible.

I think we are all aware of the exception to the rule being something to expect but at some point you look at some guys and think of player X can shoot that well from 3 then why can't Rubio or some other Wolves player in the climate of the NBA right now? It's almost ridiculous. My example is Kris Humphrey who attempted just 26 total 3's in his ten year career before this year. Now he is getting up around 2.5 of them per game and hitting .348 percent of them and that's in a limited role off the bench. If Dante Cunningham can now hit 3's the. Rubio better be able to hit 34%. I think he will at least do that especially if he does get a solid value of them.

Question for the people that have been calling for him to be THE guy for this team going forward. Do we know for certain JVG values the 3 ball?

I don't know if Rubio will be one of those exceptions or not, but it doesn't seem like a total pipedream based on these other data points. His career % isn't that bad, but he's also shot enough volume where one wonders whether there really is room to improve. I hold out hope, but admittedly that's all it is....hope.

Well he shot the 3 at a solid rate in international play and that's farther out that. The college 3 so it's not like he is one of those guys that didn't hit college 3 and then magically transforms to a 3 point shooter. I think of all the things to hope for Rubio improving on that becoming a worthwhile 3 point shooter is easily the most reasonable one to hope or expect. Of course that doesn't mean it will happen but like you said it's not a total pipdream either.

[BizarroJerry [enjin:6592520]]

Do you guys still like Belly? Didn't our demise start when he got hurt? I think if he can start being a consistent outside threat, we could get out of this mess.