Minnesota Sports Forum

I thoroughly enjoyed almost all the interviews and spent way too much time yesterday absorbing them. There's no question that we have a lot of good guys on our team who are easy to cheer for. I didn't hear anything yesterday though that made me feel any more comfortable about laying down any serious coin on the Wolves winning more than 34.5 games.

I believe the only no-show yesterday (other than camp players not expected to make the roster) was Pat Beverley. That was unfortunate, because he was the one guy I wanted to hear from. Not sure why he was absent, but he was clearly there in spirit...almost every player mentioned him during their interview. Ant said Rubio was the leader of the team last year, and his departure leaves a leadership void. I'm convinced after listening to the interviews yesterday that PatBev has already emerged as the new leader, and I see that as a good thing. He always plays hard. I'm still wondering why he missed the media show though, and presumably the first day of practice. Maybe he was at the beach with Ben Simmons.

Dane Moore reports that two Wolves are "in the process of getting vaccinated", and the entire team will be vaxxed after they get their second dose. I'm going to conclude that PatBev is one of the two in process, and with the team being very careful with Covid, that might have been the reason for his absence yesterday.

I also found it interesting that Dane named Naz as the quiet leader in the locker room.

I don't know if there are any other Ted Lasso fans here other then Monster and me, but I loved that our two new owners referenced this great show yesterday:

ARod said he was going to work to make everything better, starting with the shower heads. I think this was a charming admission by ARod that he knows nothing about basketball but is enjoying the ride (Ted Lasso is a basketball coach hired to coach a UK soccer team, and his first move is to improve the shower heads).

Lore quipped that he was upset he didn't get any questions from Trent Crimm of the Independent. Crimm is a reporter who is a constant thorn in the side of Lasso.

I love these guys. There's an outside chance they may be even more fun than Glen!

Video of a bunch of guys getting a photo together and Towns and McDaniels are next to each other.

https://twitter.com/danemoorenba/status/1442673111221026816?s=21

FNG wrote:Dane Moore reports that two Wolves are "in the process of getting vaccinated", and the entire team will be vaxxed after they get their second dose. I'm going to conclude that PatBev is one of the two in process, and with the team being very careful with Covid, that might have been the reason for his absence yesterday.

I also found it interesting that Dane named Naz as the quiet leader in the locker room.

I don't know if there are any other Ted Lasso fans here other then Monster and me, but I loved that our two new owners referenced this great show yesterday:

ARod said he was going to work to make everything better, starting with the shower heads. I think this was a charming admission by ARod that he knows nothing about basketball but is enjoying the ride (Ted Lasso is a basketball coach hired to coach a UK soccer team, and his first move is to improve the shower heads).

Lore quipped that he was upset he didn't get any questions from Trent Crimm of the Independent. Crimm is a reporter who is a constant thorn in the side of Lasso.

I love these guys. There's an outside chance they may be even more fun than Glen!

Just wanted to say Ted Lasso is great and Roy Kent is the best character.

We heard all that talk about instability and short-term relationships from Karl-Anthony Towns yesterday... Does anyone still believe that the franchise would trade D'Angelo Russell? This is a guy that Towns refers to as his brother. They've shared holidays and family get-togethers. Now, I'm a strong proponent of keeping D-Lo around for basketball reasons, but there are additional factors at play.

Camden wrote:We heard all that talk about instability and short-term relationships from Karl-Anthony Towns yesterday... Does anyone still believe that the franchise would trade D'Angelo Russell? This is a guy that Towns refers to as his brother. They've shared holidays and family get-togethers. Now, I'm a strong proponent of keeping D-Lo around for basketball reasons, but there are additional factors at play.

Cam - As you know, I haven't been a DLO fan and I"m among those who would trade him for Simmons - provided we didn't have to give up too much more. However, I agree with your assessment that it's highly unlikely the Wolves will move DLO as part of a deal for Simmons. And I agree that KAT's relationship with DLO is one important factor working against the possibility of trading DLO. I'll add that I like what I heard from DLO yesterday and what's been reported about him regarding his focus and approach this offseason. He's clearly a student of the game. I like that he recognizes Ant's talent and the need to adapt his game to fit Ant, KAT and the other guys on the team.

lipoli390 wrote:

Camden wrote:We heard all that talk about instability and short-term relationships from Karl-Anthony Towns yesterday... Does anyone still believe that the franchise would trade D'Angelo Russell? This is a guy that Towns refers to as his brother. They've shared holidays and family get-togethers. Now, I'm a strong proponent of keeping D-Lo around for basketball reasons, but there are additional factors at play.

Cam - As you know, I haven't been a DLO fan and I"m among those who would trade him for Simmons - provided we didn't have to give up too much more. However, I agree with your assessment that it's highly unlikely the Wolves will move DLO as part of a deal for Simmons. And I agree that KAT's relationship with DLO is one important factor working against the possibility of trading DLO. I'll add that I like what I heard from DLO yesterday and what's been reported about him regarding his focus and approach this offseason. He's clearly a student of the game. I like that he recognizes Ant's talent and the need to adapt his game to fit Ant, KAT and the other guys on the team.

I think I would still trade Russell if it made sense but I think Cam makes a good point about Thea wolves not wanting to trade Russell. I also would not be surprised if the Wolves to some extent believe in Russell more than what many people do. Maybe not as much as Rosas did but also possibly more than what Morey would value him in a trade.

I'll also add that Towns stability etc might make a case for NOT trading for Simmons. I do think Simmons is justified in a lot of ways for wanting out. I also think there are some small red flags about Simmons the person. I don't want to sound like I'm terrified of Simmons coming here and ruining what is...idk know what exactly there is to ruin but I do see some potential for that.

As for a Russell I really liked that when he was asked about Ben Simmons situation he said he didn't give a shit what happened. I don't know exactly why he said that or whatever but I liked it. Lol Again I think that if Finch can get the best out of Russell even just offensively Russell is gonna be a really good player for us.

Monster, I personally think D'Angelo Russell responded to the Ben Simmons question in the manner that he did because it's not something he can control nor is it something he's focused on. I believe him when he says he attacked this offseason like it was a contract year, which basically means total dedication to the craft and ignoring outside noise. He also made sure to note that he feels great physically after having issues with his knee last year. It should come as no surprise here, but I think D-Lo's going to have a hell of a season for Minnesota.

Camden wrote:Monster, I personally think D'Angelo Russell responded to the Ben Simmons question in the manner that he did because it's not something he can control nor is it something he's focused on. I believe him when he says he attacked this offseason like it was a contract year, which basically means total dedication to the craft and ignoring outside noise. He also made sure to note that he feels great physically after having issues with his knee last year. It should come as no surprise here, but I think D-Lo's going to have a hell of a season for Minnesota.

Cam - No surprise that you think DLO's going to have a great season. What might be surprising is that I do too. :)

monsterpile wrote:Video of a bunch of guys getting a photo together and Towns and McDaniels are next to each other.

https://twitter.com/danemoorenba/status/1442673111221026816?s=21

Interesting. Accounting for Jaden's hair and KAT's slight slouch, I still looks like Jaden is KAT's height. I'd say that Jaden definitely grew a couple inches since the Wolves drafted him. His length, athleticism, skills and basketball IQ combine to give him enormous upside. Again, I simply would not include him in any deal for Simmons.