Stringing wins together - Griz at Wolves GDT

[Q-is-here]

Also you shouldn’t take my opinions with much weight. I am just an average dude who enjoys the wolves. Who enjoys taking about basketball with other wolves fans on this board for 15ish years.

Kek, you're analysis and knowledge is highly valued here! Your 15-year anniversary mug is in the mail!

As for DLO, I actually agree he helped get us over the hump as a franchise and helped take us from miserable to OK. But once we got to OK, it was time to move on from him, much to Cam's dismay, LOL.

[kekgeek]

I'm reacting to your BS, not starting anything. Dlo was the reason we got over the hump? Point proven.

A reason yes. Not the only reason. The wolves hit their ceiling with Dlo, so it was smart to move on.

Like I said in my last post. I’m just a normal dude who likes to use data to support my thoughts and I like talking ball with other wolves fans.

I don't take shit very well, but I don't go out of my way to start arguments.

All good man. Wasn’t trying to take a shot at you. I do think the Ant discourse is pretty ridiculous because I think a lot of your dislike is because he has impregnated multiple people but I got nothing against you Cool. Just two dudes talking ball

[Coolbreeze44]

A reason yes. Not the only reason. The wolves hit their ceiling with Dlo, so it was smart to move on.

Like I said in my last post. I’m just a normal dude who likes to use data to support my thoughts and I like talking ball with other wolves fans.

I don't take shit very well, but I don't go out of my way to start arguments.

All good man. Wasn’t trying to take a shot at you. I do think the Ant discourse is pretty ridiculous because I think a lot of your dislike is because he has impregnated multiple people but I got nothing against you Cool. Just two dudes talking ball

Good enough, I'm far from perfect and I too enjoy your presence here.

[kekgeek]

I do think the wolves really need a dynamic guard or forward to help out Ant. Like Ant was bad tonight. But Ant also must be the biggest focus of game plans in the NBA. Like he was face guarded for 90 feet all game today, then when a screen comes he gets doubled. Teams dare the wolves to beat them 4 on 3 and besides tonight the wolves have really struggled to do that. The wolves are probably the only team that is guarded like this the whole game

We need to find a way to make Ant life easier. Not to take the blame off him tonight.

[kekgeek]

I don't take shit very well, but I don't go out of my way to start arguments.

All good man. Wasn’t trying to take a shot at you. I do think the Ant discourse is pretty ridiculous because I think a lot of your dislike is because he has impregnated multiple people but I got nothing against you Cool. Just two dudes talking ball

Good enough, I'm far from perfect and I too enjoy your presence here.

Same to you.

[FNG]

Disappointing finish to what I thought was the best game of the year. DiVo was spectacular all game, and Randle was great until the last two possessions. Memphis's offensive rebounding though was absurd...only terrific shooting kept us in this game.

Not a good game for Ant, but I continue to see signs of growth from him. Memphis was giving him nothing (Wells was unbelievable on defense), but I thought he made the right reads.

Can't say enough about Jaden tonight...he was on Ja like a cheap suit. Can anyone explain to me though why Finchie switched to Any on Ja in the last two minutes?

Great game. Tough loss.

[Phenom]

I feel like this team has never had the ability, whether it's players or coaches drawing up plays, to get quality last second shots up. It's always something with the utmost difficulty.

[Q-is-here]

I do think the wolves really need a dynamic guard or forward to help out Ant. Like Ant was bad tonight. But Ant also must be the biggest focus of game plans in the NBA. Like he was face guarded for 90 feet all game today, then when a screen comes he gets doubled. Teams dare the wolves to beat them 4 on 3 and besides tonight the wolves have really struggled to do that. The wolves are probably the only team that is guarded like this the whole game

We need to find a way to make Ant life easier. Not to take the blame off him tonight.

This is why I think the trade that landed us Dillingham was a good move in the long run, even though we don't know if it will ultimately pay off. He may ultimately just be too small/weak to be a legit starting PG, but skills-wise he absolutely has the chops to be a dynamic play maker, shooter, and scorer.

Game planning for PFs like Randle or the PF version of KAT next to Rudy is relatively easy for good teams. But guarding two dynamic guards that can shoot, pass, and score is a lot harder IMO.

[Lipoli390]

I do think the wolves really need a dynamic guard or forward to help out Ant. Like Ant was bad tonight. But Ant also must be the biggest focus of game plans in the NBA. Like he was face guarded for 90 feet all game today, then when a screen comes he gets doubled. Teams dare the wolves to beat them 4 on 3 and besides tonight the wolves have really struggled to do that. The wolves are probably the only team that is guarded like this the whole game

We need to find a way to make Ant life easier. Not to take the blame off him tonight.

This is why I think the trade that landed us Dillingham was a good move in the long run, even though we don't know if it will ultimately pay off. He may ultimately just be too small/weak to be a legit starting PG, but skills-wise he absolutely has the chops to be a dynamic play maker, shooter, and scorer.

Game planning for PFs like Randle or the PF version of KAT next to Rudy is relatively easy for good teams. But guarding two dynamic guards that can shoot, pass, and score is a lot harder IMO.

I agree, Q. When I think about great players like Ja Moran, Mike Conley and Steph Curry who are all about the same size as Dilly, I’m not worried about his size holding him back. Quickness, IQ, shooting, handle - those are the things that will determine how good he becomes. Yes, he’ll need to add some more weight/strength and at age 19 it’s a given he will. I’ll be curious to see how quick, skilled and smart he is. I’m hoping he pans out because, as you noted, he’s precisely what this team needs next to Ant. I think the fate of this team during the Ant era will depend a lot on the development of Dilly and TSJ.

[Lipoli390]

Disappointing finish to what I thought was the best game of the year. DiVo was spectacular all game, and Randle was great until the last two possessions. Memphis's offensive rebounding though was absurd...only terrific shooting kept us in this game.

Not a good game for Ant, but I continue to see signs of growth from him. Memphis was giving him nothing (Wells was unbelievable on defense), but I thought he made the right reads.

Can't say enough about Jaden tonight...he was on Ja like a cheap suit. Can anyone explain to me though why Finchie switched to Any on Ja in the last two minutes?

Great game. Tough loss.

I love what we’ve been seeing from Jaden lately. Donte was fantastic tonight but I wasn’t surprised. He’s clearly been starting to get himself on track recently. Ant had a bad night shooting. It happens. But I agree he made a lot of good reads. He’s getting ground down, but he still needs to perform. He will likely bounce back next game, but he still needs another teammate who commands double teams with the ball. Teams with only one all-star rarely finish much above .500 and certainly don’t compete for NBA titles. When Ant had KAT playing last season we were a title contender, but without KAT because of injury two seasons ago we weren’t. Now this season without KAT because of the trade we’re not a title contender. Hmm. I like Randle, but he’s not at KAT’s level. Some things are maybe too obvious to see.

It was great to see the Wolves score over 120 points tonight. That’s a good sign. The good news overall is that we seem to be solidifying into a solid, competitive team. I no longer see the Wolves headed for a lottery finish this season. The keys for me are Jaden and Donte getting on track as they have been recently and Ant sucking it up and taking on the challenge of attacking even though he doesn’t have a teammate to take the defensive focus off of him. I see us playing competitive basketball and ending up in the 5-7 range if our key players stay healthy. I’m OK with that for now.

I’m more interested in what our front office does to take this team back to the level it was at last season and beyond. One thing I’m sure of is that we won’t get to the next level with this roster. I see us moving forward with a core of Ant, Jaden, Naz and DDV. We’ll have to move on from either Randle or Rudy and we’ll probably need to move on from NAW. What we get in return and the development of our young guys - Dilly, TSJ, Minott, Clark and Miller - will ultimately determine whether we become a title contender again in the Ant era.