Wolves vs Mavs GDT

[FNG]

Some great observations, Q, and I'm glad you were able to enjoy a fun game. We're not going to have many nights when all three of Ant/Russell/Nowell are ice cold from beyond the arc, so I agree that we could have easily won the game on a normal shooting night. And that gives me some optimism that we hung with Dallas with 4 very key players out.

To answer your question about what happened when Dallas hit the 4 threes in the 4th quarter, both Ant and Finchie said that there were some poor rotational decisions. Ant took responsibility for one of them, but since I didn't see the game, I don't know who to blame. Do you agree with Alan Horton that we were actually pretty solid defensively until the 4th quarter?

[Q-is-here]

Some great observations, Q, and I'm glad you were able to enjoy a fun game. We're not going to have many nights when all three of Ant/Russell/Nowell are ice cold from beyond the arc, so I agree that we could have easily won the game on a normal shooting night. And that gives me some optimism that we hung with Dallas with 4 very key players out.

To answer your question about what happened when Dallas hit the 4 threes in the 4th quarter, both Ant and Finchie said that there were some poor rotational decisions. Ant took responsibility for one of them, but since I didn't see the game, I don't know who to blame. Do you agree with Alan Horton that we were actually pretty solid defensively until the 4th quarter?

Yes, absolutely we were solid defensively other than the fouling (esp. in the 1st quarter) and the breakdown in the 2nd half you are alluding to.

And as an aside, Gobert is really effing good. Finch and the players have just got to find a way to make things work with him (on both ends). I know he and Ant don't totally click offensively, but it's better now than it was two months ago and hopefully it will be even better in another two months. We need to give it more time.

Lastly, big picture....I know Lip and others really like the idea of a fast-paced offense and aggressive "flying around" defense. I love watching that too. But the reality is that the playoffs look a lot more like these two Dallas games than they do the Bulls game the other night. Lots of methodical half court sets, endless switch-baiting, physical defense. Dallas LOVES to play a slow-down, half court game. We need to be able to do it too even if that's not our preference.

[FNG]

Some great observations, Q, and I'm glad you were able to enjoy a fun game. We're not going to have many nights when all three of Ant/Russell/Nowell are ice cold from beyond the arc, so I agree that we could have easily won the game on a normal shooting night. And that gives me some optimism that we hung with Dallas with 4 very key players out.

To answer your question about what happened when Dallas hit the 4 threes in the 4th quarter, both Ant and Finchie said that there were some poor rotational decisions. Ant took responsibility for one of them, but since I didn't see the game, I don't know who to blame. Do you agree with Alan Horton that we were actually pretty solid defensively until the 4th quarter?

Yes, absolutely we were solid defensively other than the fouling (esp. in the 1st quarter) and the breakdown in the 2nd half you are alluding to.

And as an aside, Gobert is really effing good. Finch and the players have just got to find a way to make things work with him (on both ends). I know he and Ant don't totally click offensively, but it's better now than it was two months ago and hopefully it will be even better in another two months. We need to give it more time.

Lastly, big picture....I know Lip and others really like the idea of a fast-paced offense and aggressive "flying around" defense. I love watching that too. But the reality is that the playoffs look a lot more like these two Dallas games than they do the Bulls game the other night. Lots of methodical half court sets, endless switch-baiting, physical defense. Dallas LOVES to play a slow-down, half court game. We need to be able to do it too even if that's not our preference.

Great observation on pace of games come playoff time. And yes, you really appreciate Gobert when you watch him live, don't you?

As for the fouling thing, Horton pointed out that Dallas is top 3 in drawing fouls, and we're top three in fouling...so it's a bad matchup in that regard. Luka is brilliant in hunting fouls, but somehow his style in getting them isn't as annoying to me as it is some guys (like Harden for instance).

Speaking of Luka, he's rapidly becoming one of my favorite guys in the NBA. Apparently he spent an hour with the fans pre0game chatting and signing autographs...really cool. And then apparently he was verbally (and playfully) sparring with a couple fans during the game. He really seems like a lovable star who is great for the game.

[Lipoli390]

Some great observations, Q, and I'm glad you were able to enjoy a fun game. We're not going to have many nights when all three of Ant/Russell/Nowell are ice cold from beyond the arc, so I agree that we could have easily won the game on a normal shooting night. And that gives me some optimism that we hung with Dallas with 4 very key players out.

To answer your question about what happened when Dallas hit the 4 threes in the 4th quarter, both Ant and Finchie said that there were some poor rotational decisions. Ant took responsibility for one of them, but since I didn't see the game, I don't know who to blame. Do you agree with Alan Horton that we were actually pretty solid defensively until the 4th quarter?

Yes, absolutely we were solid defensively other than the fouling (esp. in the 1st quarter) and the breakdown in the 2nd half you are alluding to.

And as an aside, Gobert is really effing good. Finch and the players have just got to find a way to make things work with him (on both ends). I know he and Ant don't totally click offensively, but it's better now than it was two months ago and hopefully it will be even better in another two months. We need to give it more time.

Lastly, big picture....I know Lip and others really like the idea of a fast-paced offense and aggressive "flying around" defense. I love watching that too. But the reality is that the playoffs look a lot more like these two Dallas games than they do the Bulls game the other night. Lots of methodical half court sets, endless switch-baiting, physical defense. Dallas LOVES to play a slow-down, half court game. We need to be able to do it too even if that's not our preference.

Great observation on pace of games come playoff time. And yes, you really appreciate Gobert when you watch him live, don't you?

As for the fouling thing, Horton pointed out that Dallas is top 3 in drawing fouls, and we're top three in fouling...so it's a bad matchup in that regard. Luka is brilliant in hunting fouls, but somehow his style in getting them isn't as annoying to me as it is some guys (like Harden for instance).

Speaking of Luka, he's rapidly becoming one of my favorite guys in the NBA. Apparently he spent an hour with the fans pre0game chatting and signing autographs...really cool. And then apparently he was verbally (and playfully) sparring with a couple fans during the game. He really seems like a lovable star who is great for the game.

I appreciate Gobert both live and on TV. But even live I'm not impressed to the tune of $38 - $50 million per year. The fact remains, this team is not as good with him so far this season as they were without him last season and they also have a better winning percentage without him this season. He's solid, but he just doesn't move the needle, witness the fact that the Wolves are a game under .500 after playing a soft early season schedule. Meanwhile, the other former top Jazz player, Donovan Mitchell, has contributed substantially to Cleveland's 22-11 record. I get the old-school traditionalist appeal of Gobert. But I don't see his value anywhere near what he's paid or what the Wolves gave up to get him. And I continue to believe the Wolves should look to trade him to create a better mix of talent and more transactional flexibility (via salary and assets).

[Jester1534]

I missed tonight's game - thankfully. Looking at the box score indicates the team lost because of terrible shooting by DLO and Nowell. If either one had merely shot poorly rather that terribly, the Wolves would have won. Looks like another good game from Rivers. Ant hit 50% of his FG attempts. Or maybe the problem was Gobert. The Wolves won three in a row when he was out. He returned tonight and the Wolves lost. Must be Gobert. :)

Ha, yep...it's gotta be Rudy! I don't know that you should be happy about missing this one though, Lip. I actually listened to the entire game on the radio as I was driving in that blizzard, and the crowd sounded really loud!. Our announcers mentioned it, and so did Finchie after the game. Jester was there, and maybe he can weigh in.

Yep, we needed one of DLo/Nowell to shoot well, but we got neither. Monday everyone played well to cover for Russell's poor night, but last night our 3 most prolific 3-point shooters went 0-16! It's actually kind of surprising that we made this game so close. Alan Horton said we looked really good on defense most of the game, so maybe that's how we kept it close.

Fun to see this version of Austin Rivers. He said his hot streak is due to a change in his mechanics. I hope he's right and this is sustainable to some degree.

It was like a normal game say 80% full lower bowl was full and the corners in the upper deck were empty.

[Q-is-here]

Some great observations, Q, and I'm glad you were able to enjoy a fun game. We're not going to have many nights when all three of Ant/Russell/Nowell are ice cold from beyond the arc, so I agree that we could have easily won the game on a normal shooting night. And that gives me some optimism that we hung with Dallas with 4 very key players out.

To answer your question about what happened when Dallas hit the 4 threes in the 4th quarter, both Ant and Finchie said that there were some poor rotational decisions. Ant took responsibility for one of them, but since I didn't see the game, I don't know who to blame. Do you agree with Alan Horton that we were actually pretty solid defensively until the 4th quarter?

Yes, absolutely we were solid defensively other than the fouling (esp. in the 1st quarter) and the breakdown in the 2nd half you are alluding to.

And as an aside, Gobert is really effing good. Finch and the players have just got to find a way to make things work with him (on both ends). I know he and Ant don't totally click offensively, but it's better now than it was two months ago and hopefully it will be even better in another two months. We need to give it more time.

Lastly, big picture....I know Lip and others really like the idea of a fast-paced offense and aggressive "flying around" defense. I love watching that too. But the reality is that the playoffs look a lot more like these two Dallas games than they do the Bulls game the other night. Lots of methodical half court sets, endless switch-baiting, physical defense. Dallas LOVES to play a slow-down, half court game. We need to be able to do it too even if that's not our preference.

Great observation on pace of games come playoff time. And yes, you really appreciate Gobert when you watch him live, don't you?

As for the fouling thing, Horton pointed out that Dallas is top 3 in drawing fouls, and we're top three in fouling...so it's a bad matchup in that regard. Luka is brilliant in hunting fouls, but somehow his style in getting them isn't as annoying to me as it is some guys (like Harden for instance).

Speaking of Luka, he's rapidly becoming one of my favorite guys in the NBA. Apparently he spent an hour with the fans pre0game chatting and signing autographs...really cool. And then apparently he was verbally (and playfully) sparring with a couple fans during the game. He really seems like a lovable star who is great for the game.

I was sitting next to my (fairly elderly) Mom at the game and early on she asked me who that heavy-set white guy was on Dallas in a somewhat skeptical tone (like, what on earth is he doing on an NBA team?!). I told her he was an MVP candidate and easily the best player on the floor. As the game wore on, she came to the same realization.

[rapsuperstar31]

Some great observations, Q, and I'm glad you were able to enjoy a fun game. We're not going to have many nights when all three of Ant/Russell/Nowell are ice cold from beyond the arc, so I agree that we could have easily won the game on a normal shooting night. And that gives me some optimism that we hung with Dallas with 4 very key players out.

To answer your question about what happened when Dallas hit the 4 threes in the 4th quarter, both Ant and Finchie said that there were some poor rotational decisions. Ant took responsibility for one of them, but since I didn't see the game, I don't know who to blame. Do you agree with Alan Horton that we were actually pretty solid defensively until the 4th quarter?

Yes, absolutely we were solid defensively other than the fouling (esp. in the 1st quarter) and the breakdown in the 2nd half you are alluding to.

And as an aside, Gobert is really effing good. Finch and the players have just got to find a way to make things work with him (on both ends). I know he and Ant don't totally click offensively, but it's better now than it was two months ago and hopefully it will be even better in another two months. We need to give it more time.

Lastly, big picture....I know Lip and others really like the idea of a fast-paced offense and aggressive "flying around" defense. I love watching that too. But the reality is that the playoffs look a lot more like these two Dallas games than they do the Bulls game the other night. Lots of methodical half court sets, endless switch-baiting, physical defense. Dallas LOVES to play a slow-down, half court game. We need to be able to do it too even if that's not our preference.

Great observation on pace of games come playoff time. And yes, you really appreciate Gobert when you watch him live, don't you?

As for the fouling thing, Horton pointed out that Dallas is top 3 in drawing fouls, and we're top three in fouling...so it's a bad matchup in that regard. Luka is brilliant in hunting fouls, but somehow his style in getting them isn't as annoying to me as it is some guys (like Harden for instance).

Speaking of Luka, he's rapidly becoming one of my favorite guys in the NBA. Apparently he spent an hour with the fans pre0game chatting and signing autographs...really cool. And then apparently he was verbally (and playfully) sparring with a couple fans during the game. He really seems like a lovable star who is great for the game.

I appreciate Gobert both live and on TV. But even live I'm not impressed to the tune of $38 - $50 million per year. The fact remains, this team is not as good with him so far this season as they were without him last season and they also have a better winning percentage without him this season. He's solid, but he just doesn't move the needle, witness the fact that the Wolves are a game under .500 after playing a soft early season schedule. Meanwhile, the other former top Jazz player, Donovan Mitchell, has contributed substantially to Cleveland's 22-11 record. I get the old-school traditionalist appeal of Gobert. But I don't see his value anywhere near what he's paid or what the Wolves gave up to get him. And I continue to believe the Wolves should look to trade him to create a better mix of talent and more transactional flexibility (via salary and assets).

I agree that Mitchell is having a bigger impact than Gobert so far this season. Cleveland started last season 19-12 before getting the injury bug, so not a substantial leap over the start of last season. What we paid for Gobert was way too much, but we need to get over that, it's over and done.

[Lipoli390]

Some great observations, Q, and I'm glad you were able to enjoy a fun game. We're not going to have many nights when all three of Ant/Russell/Nowell are ice cold from beyond the arc, so I agree that we could have easily won the game on a normal shooting night. And that gives me some optimism that we hung with Dallas with 4 very key players out.

To answer your question about what happened when Dallas hit the 4 threes in the 4th quarter, both Ant and Finchie said that there were some poor rotational decisions. Ant took responsibility for one of them, but since I didn't see the game, I don't know who to blame. Do you agree with Alan Horton that we were actually pretty solid defensively until the 4th quarter?

Yes, absolutely we were solid defensively other than the fouling (esp. in the 1st quarter) and the breakdown in the 2nd half you are alluding to.

And as an aside, Gobert is really effing good. Finch and the players have just got to find a way to make things work with him (on both ends). I know he and Ant don't totally click offensively, but it's better now than it was two months ago and hopefully it will be even better in another two months. We need to give it more time.

Lastly, big picture....I know Lip and others really like the idea of a fast-paced offense and aggressive "flying around" defense. I love watching that too. But the reality is that the playoffs look a lot more like these two Dallas games than they do the Bulls game the other night. Lots of methodical half court sets, endless switch-baiting, physical defense. Dallas LOVES to play a slow-down, half court game. We need to be able to do it too even if that's not our preference.

Great observation on pace of games come playoff time. And yes, you really appreciate Gobert when you watch him live, don't you?

As for the fouling thing, Horton pointed out that Dallas is top 3 in drawing fouls, and we're top three in fouling...so it's a bad matchup in that regard. Luka is brilliant in hunting fouls, but somehow his style in getting them isn't as annoying to me as it is some guys (like Harden for instance).

Speaking of Luka, he's rapidly becoming one of my favorite guys in the NBA. Apparently he spent an hour with the fans pre0game chatting and signing autographs...really cool. And then apparently he was verbally (and playfully) sparring with a couple fans during the game. He really seems like a lovable star who is great for the game.

I appreciate Gobert both live and on TV. But even live I'm not impressed to the tune of $38 - $50 million per year. The fact remains, this team is not as good with him so far this season as they were without him last season and they also have a better winning percentage without him this season. He's solid, but he just doesn't move the needle, witness the fact that the Wolves are a game under .500 after playing a soft early season schedule. Meanwhile, the other former top Jazz player, Donovan Mitchell, has contributed substantially to Cleveland's 22-11 record. I get the old-school traditionalist appeal of Gobert. But I don't see his value anywhere near what he's paid or what the Wolves gave up to get him. And I continue to believe the Wolves should look to trade him to create a better mix of talent and more transactional flexibility (via salary and assets).

I agree that Mitchell is having a bigger impact than Gobert so far this season. Cleveland started last season 19-12 before getting the injury bug, so not a substantial leap over the start of last season. What we paid for Gobert was way too much, but we need to get over that, it's over and done.

In my view, you don't move on from the deal by ignoring its failure to have anything close to the positive impact intended. You move on by taking steps to rectify the mistake. I see a lot of posts praising Gobert. That's fine. I'll continue posting criticism of what I consider the poor fit and bad deal that brought him here until he's gone or the Wolves have the level of team success the team's front office thought Gobert would bring when they traded for him. Since its unlikely TC will trade Gobert, I'm hoping for success. But I'm not holding my breath.

[Monster]

Some great observations, Q, and I'm glad you were able to enjoy a fun game. We're not going to have many nights when all three of Ant/Russell/Nowell are ice cold from beyond the arc, so I agree that we could have easily won the game on a normal shooting night. And that gives me some optimism that we hung with Dallas with 4 very key players out.

To answer your question about what happened when Dallas hit the 4 threes in the 4th quarter, both Ant and Finchie said that there were some poor rotational decisions. Ant took responsibility for one of them, but since I didn't see the game, I don't know who to blame. Do you agree with Alan Horton that we were actually pretty solid defensively until the 4th quarter?

Yes, absolutely we were solid defensively other than the fouling (esp. in the 1st quarter) and the breakdown in the 2nd half you are alluding to.

And as an aside, Gobert is really effing good. Finch and the players have just got to find a way to make things work with him (on both ends). I know he and Ant don't totally click offensively, but it's better now than it was two months ago and hopefully it will be even better in another two months. We need to give it more time.

Lastly, big picture....I know Lip and others really like the idea of a fast-paced offense and aggressive "flying around" defense. I love watching that too. But the reality is that the playoffs look a lot more like these two Dallas games than they do the Bulls game the other night. Lots of methodical half court sets, endless switch-baiting, physical defense. Dallas LOVES to play a slow-down, half court game. We need to be able to do it too even if that's not our preference.

I started watching with about 5 minutes left in the game. The Mavs had that run of making what seems like 5 3's in a row and the Wolves stayed with them then Russell couldn't hit open 3's and someone else missed an open 3 and that was basically the ball game. At one point when Dallas was making those 3's they were getting pretty wide open looks and one was someone wide open in the corner and Rivers was guarding someone else on the wing and realized that guy was open and tried to contest but it was too late. That one looked like it was on Edwards he rotated down and it didn't seem like he needed to. It would have been nice to pull out that game but ther e were some nice moments like I think that Edwards block. People hate when it's said but that last 5 minutes was an excellent example of it being a make or miss league. Dallas made open 3's and Minnesota missed too many.

Also I need to see Matt Ryan standing near some other Wolves players. He looks bigger than his listed height.