Minnesota Sports Forum

Q-is-here wrote: ↑Sat Dec 16, 2023 8:59 pm I know they are missing Haliburton, but hard to see the Pacers even at full strength being a serious playoff threat in the East with their porous interior defense. KAT is just making them look silly.

Completely agree Kat has played Toppin off the court and he still has -17 for the night.

I love this team.

What I saw tonight has taken my excitement about this team to another level. It’s not that we beat a great team and I know Halliburton wasn’t out there tonight. Of course, I was already excited about this team before tonight. What I mean is this: I’ve been waiting to see the Ant/KAT tandem pick up where they left off two seasons ago and emerge as a dominant duo. Having two great two-way players is still at the heart of being a championship contender and we appear to have that in Ant and KAT. I still recall Ant, as a second year 20-year old, combine with the often frustratingly immature KAT to carry this team to 46 wins two years ago. Ant has now become a 22 year old all-star and budding superstar while KAT has apparently discovered adulthood and substantially elevated his defense and all-around game. KAT has been struggling a bit to find his fit on the offensive end this season while Ant was temporarily derailed by a hip injury. Tonight’s game was an example of what these two players can do together. What we saw from these two tonight is why it’s legitimate to talk about this team as a true contender.

Pairing KAT with just one other all-star player has always delivered a winning season and playoff appearance. But the Ant of two seasons ago wasn’t even quite at all-star level, which contrasts with the budding superstar version of Ant this season. KAT is now more mature and not only does he have a much better version of Ant with him on the court; he and Ant both have a substantially better supporting cast with Rudy Gobert back to his elite defensive form along with the additions of Slo Mo and NAW. Meanwhile, Troy Brown Jr is looking like one of the steals of last summer’s free agency and we haven’t yet seen the best of Jaden who has struggled with injuries.

The Nuggets lose and we are now 5 games up in the loss column over Denver. I hesitate to say it, but that seems significant.

Coolbreeze44 wrote: ↑Sat Dec 16, 2023 11:18 pm The Nuggets lose and we are now 5 games up in the loss column over Denver. I hesitate to say it, but that seems significant.

The northwest division holds 3 of the top 4 spots in the west. Unreal.

Q-is-here wrote: ↑Sat Dec 16, 2023 8:59 pm I know they are missing Haliburton, but hard to see the Pacers even at full strength being a serious playoff threat in the East with their porous interior defense. KAT is just making them look silly.

I love Halliburton, but he is so indifferent on defense, he actually makes the Pacers worse at that end.

This was a great win...I thought everyone except Rudy and Jaden had a terrific game. The ball movement was outstanding (33 assists on 48 buckets) and our 60% 3-point shooting was off the charts. What a fun team to watch!

Coolbreeze44 wrote: ↑Sat Dec 16, 2023 11:18 pm The Nuggets lose and we are now 5 games up in the loss column over Denver. I hesitate to say it, but that seems significant.

The superstitious side of me wishes you hadn’t said that, Cool. . But it does seem significant. Nevertheless, once the Nuggets are fully healthy I still see them as the team to beat and I’m not yet ready to put my money on the Wolves get past the Nuggets in the playoffs. Look out for OKC, Pelicans and Lakers too.

FNG wrote: ↑Sun Dec 17, 2023 8:14 am

Q-is-here wrote: ↑Sat Dec 16, 2023 8:59 pm I know they are missing Haliburton, but hard to see the Pacers even at full strength being a serious playoff threat in the East with their porous interior defense. KAT is just making them look silly.

I love Halliburton, but he is so indifferent on defense, he actually makes the Pacers worse at that end.

This was a great win...I thought everyone except Rudy and Jaden had a terrific game. The ball movement was outstanding (33 assists on 48 buckets) and our 60% 3-point shooting was off the charts. What a fun team to watch!

They remind me a bit of the 7 seconds or less offense the Phoenix Suns deployed with Steve Nash, Shawn Marion, etc.

Amusing tweet from a fan today:

I think for the all-star game this year they should select the 15 best players from the other 29 teams and see if they can beat the Timberwolves

Very late to this thread... but...

- While watching on DVR... I went back to watch a Wolves defensive possession... TWICE! I can't remember doing that even one time previously.

- Defense. What a novel concept for an NBA team.