Minnesota Sports Forum

Carlos Danger wrote:

lipoli390 wrote:As for Miller, he looks really old up close. He looked like an old man in a pick-up game at the YMCA. He wore his shirt out, hanging down to his thighs. He had the big fro and looked like he hadn't shaved in a couple days.

Thank you. I thought the exact same thing when I watched their first practice online. I was shocked. He looked some mid-40's dude they pulled off the street vs. a professional athlete. I had no problem with the signing. But if Ty Jones comes in and shows he's ready to play right away, then I'd rather keep LoBro than Miller.

longstrangetrip wrote:

monsterpile wrote:Any thoughts on Lorenzo Brown? He was about the only guy I dont think you mentioned other than Nick Wiggins and the big dude.

Ha, forget about little Wig and Cleon! But Brown is in the mix for 15th man, so he deserves discussion. He was largely what we know he is. He managed the game well but didn't create easy looks for his teammates. He scored well, but a lot of his points were in the last couple minutes of garbage time. He did have one of the best individual moves of the night, though, when he jocked someone (Tyus?) on a clever baseline move. I think Rudez is slightly ahead of him for the 15th spot, but he didn't do anything to hurt his chances last night.

Here are Sam's biggest decisions right now, along with his current thinking ( I think):

1) Payne over Bjelica for backup PF. This is Sam's toughest call right now, I think , because both have strengths and weaknesses. The Canis Hoops article raves about NB's passing, and they're right, but Payne's non-stop motor led to last night's only double double, and I thought his defense looked improved over last year (and better than NB's). The fact that Sam had him playing with Miller, Martin, Bazz and Gorgui tells me he is in the lead for the backup 2, but it couldn't be any closer.

2) LaVine over Martin for starting SG. Zach may have been the best overall player on the court last night, but it's difficult to overlook Kevin's elite 3-point shooting. Zach's overall game has him ahead here.

3) Towns over Gorgui for starting center. BTW, Towns also had some effective minutes at PF when Cleon was in the game at center.

4) Rudez over Brown for 15th man. I was surprised at two things last night about Rudez...his ability to move the basketball quickly when his shot wasn't there, and his camaraderie with the team (including KG). I saw a comfort level that I wasn't anticipating, and it told me he may have had a good week of practice. I don't love his game (how can someone that big have NO interest in rebounding), but you can't ignore his 3-point skills.

CoolBreeze44 wrote:

Carlos Danger wrote:

lipoli390 wrote:As for Miller, he looks really old up close. He looked like an old man in a pick-up game at the YMCA. He wore his shirt out, hanging down to his thighs. He had the big fro and looked like he hadn't shaved in a couple days.

Thank you. I thought the exact same thing when I watched their first practice online. I was shocked. He looked some mid-40's dude they pulled off the street vs. a professional athlete. I had no problem with the signing. But if Ty Jones comes in and shows he's ready to play right away, then I'd rather keep LoBro than Miller.

I had a problem with the signing of Miller. Still don't understand why we needed to sign a geezer point guard.

Carlos Danger wrote: I'd hope they have enough sense to dump guys like Miller and/or Prince if they determine they won't add any value over a younger player.