Clips @ Twolves GDT

[Monster]

This Clippers team has opened the season firing on all supercharged cylinders! That was just a machine out there when their starters were in, impressive! It will be interesting come playoff time if they're still playing at this level they could give the Spurs and Warriors a run. They almost seem to have a chip on their shoulder for being left out of the conversation among West contenders.

Oh, and the Wolves have a long way to go so it's hardly surprising they look like they were run through a wood chipper!

Yeah, that was a sobering loss because we really can't be pissed at anyone. Normally we like to point the finger at some player or our coach or the refs in the heat of a loss. This was just a vastly superior starting 5 taking us to the woodshed.

To be honest it actually feels like a loss that gives me hope. Wiggins struggled and credit the Clippers D. Luc had 15 points Jordan hit 10-16 FTs. The Clippers are the better team but the Wolves kept it interesting enough if a few things go their way they are in the game.

It will be interesting to see if the Clippers can stay healthy what kind of damage they can do when it comes to the playoffs. I'd like to see CP3 and Steph go head to head in the playoffs.

[Q12543 [enjin:6621299]]

- We scored 105 points on 45% shooting against the #1 defense in the NBA. This is only the third time in ten games the Clippers have given up 100 points or more.

- Not to beat a dead horse, but the only thing standing between this team and the playoffs is defense. Offense is not and will not be a problem unless multiple guys go down.

- Our bench played quite well, which was very good to see. Dunn did some nice stuff out there - love the way he can rebound the ball - but he's even less of a threat offensively than Rubio is right now.

- It was very interesting to see Tyus Jones end the game. I suspect Thibs felt he needed as many 3-point shooters out there as possible since we were so far behind. And clearly he trusts Wiggins with the ball in his hands more and more. Although we saw him make a mistake trying to take Paul off the dribble.

- The Clips are a healthy and determined team. Think about how long these guys have been really good, but not good enough. Paul, Redick, Griffin, and Jordan have been playing together for 4+ seasons now so they have great continuity.

- It's games like this where you realize how unbelievably good the top of the Western Conference is.

[Monster]

- We scored 105 points on 45% shooting against the #1 defense in the NBA. This is only the third time in ten games the Clippers have given up 100 points or more.

- Not to beat a dead horse, but the only thing standing between this team and the playoffs is defense. Offense is not and will not be a problem unless multiple guys go down.

- Our bench played quite well, which was very good to see. Dunn did some nice stuff out there - love the way he can rebound the ball - but he's even less of a threat offensively than Rubio is right now.

- It was very interesting to see Tyus Jones end the game. I suspect Thibs felt he needed as many 3-point shooters out there as possible since we were so far behind. And clearly he trusts Wiggins with the ball in his hands more and more. Although we saw him make a mistake trying to take Paul off the dribble.

- The Clips are a healthy and determined team. Think about how long these guys have been really good, but not good enough. Paul, Redick, Griffin, and Jordan have been playing together for 4+ seasons now so they have great continuity.

- It's games like this where you realize how unbelievably good the top of the Western Conference is.

Good summery Q.

I'll add to what you said about Dunn. He wasn't good today. It he made some plays espcially defensively.

An interesting thing to point out. The oldest players Thibs has been playing lately are Belly and Aldrich who are 28. One of those guys is in his 2nd year in the league. The next old guys are Dieng and Rubio at 26. Thibs is not playing old vets in front of young guys right now. He is playing guys that are young or are locked into the roster for a while. That could change if those guys don't do what he is asking but I would say they are especially a guy like Bazz who is clearly moving the ball and putting forth the effort on D. I don't think I've ever seen him down in his stance and hand up on basically every posssesion. I think he worked hard last year but wasn't as disciplined as I have seen him this year. Anyway my point is Thibs has gone young they have played well enough to deserve that time I think and it also means...it's a damn young group he is throwing out there right now.

[Coolbreeze44]

Just finished watching the game on tape delay. I'm somewhat demoralized. I realize the Clips are on fire right now so losing isn't the big issue. But they basically played with us. When they wanted to spurt they did. It just seemed like the result was decreed on high before the game even started. I had really hoped we would be further along than this. If we get beat by the Lakers tomorrow, and they demonstrate they are further along than we are I'm going to need counseling.

This isn't the most unlikeable team the Clips have had. It can't be without Matt Barnes there anymore. But they are still terribly unlikeable. I'm going to be rooting hard for even the likes of Golden State to take them out in the playoffs. My nightmare is having to watch another Clips-Blazers playoff series. Those two teams are almost unbearable.

But back to the Wolves. I'm starting to wonder if Towns is going to make that leap this year that most of us expected. Don't get me wrong, he's good, he's just not the factor we need him to be. He's a terrible defensive player and he doesn't have that one quality the great ones have: He doesn't make players around him better. At least not yet. Wig is really, really good, but on nights when his shot isn't falling it's really tough for us to compete. Zach continues to get better but like most of our team he needs more seasoning and development. The bottom line is we still need a rim protector, and we don't get enough offense from the PG position. I think Thayden has an awful lot of work to do on this roster to get us where we need to be.

Just please show you are better than the Lakers tomorrow. My sanity depends on it.

[Monster]

Just finished watching the game on tape delay. I'm somewhat demoralized. I realize the Clips are on fire right now so losing isn't the big issue. But they basically played with us. When they wanted to spurt they did. It just seemed like the result was decreed on high before the game even started. I had really hoped we would be further along than this. If we get beat by the Lakers tomorrow, and they demonstrate they are further along than we are I'm going to need counseling.

This isn't the most unlikeable team the Clips have had. It can't be without Matt Barnes there anymore. But they are still terribly unlikeable. I'm going to be rooting hard for even the likes of Golden State to take them out in the playoffs. My nightmare is having to watch another Clips-Blazers playoff series. Those two teams are almost unbearable.

But back to the Wolves. I'm starting to wonder if Towns is going to make that leap this year that most of us expected. Don't get me wrong, he's good, he's just not the factor we need him to be. He's a terrible defensive player and he doesn't have that one quality the great ones have: He doesn't make players around him better. At least not yet. Wig is really, really good, but on nights when his shot isn't falling it's really tough for us to compete. Zach continues to get better but like most of our team he needs more seasoning and development. The bottom line is we still need a rim protector, and we don't get enough offense from the PG position. I think Thayden has an awful lot of work to do on this roster to get us where we need to be.

Just please show you are better than the Lakers tomorrow. My sanity depends on it.

Something to consider as just one example these LA teams have pretty good backup guards in Jamal Crawford and Lou Williams that have each played more games than the whole Wolves starting lineup put together...ok maybe not quite in the case of Lou but I think you get my point. The Wolves simply don't have that kind of punch off the bench right now not to mention the don't have a vet like that in their starting lineup either espcially when Rubio is out. They may be developing bench depth with guys they have or add to it but they are playing guys every game with lower levels of experience right now. The closest thing to a vet off the bench the last few games for the Wolves is Aldrich who has only been a legit rotation player the last 2 years so it's not like he is wildly experienced either. This has to be one of the least inexperienced 9-10 man rotations in the league. That's a reality to consider going forward.

[SameOldNudityDrew]

I'm starting to wonder if Towns is going to make that leap this year that most of us expected. Don't get me wrong, he's good, he's just not the factor we need him to be. He's a terrible defensive player and he doesn't have that one quality the great ones have: He doesn't make players around him better. At least not yet.

I'm not sure what's more surprising, this claim or the fact that it's tough to argue with it--or at least it's tough to say that Towns is a good defender right now. When we drafted him, we were generally expecting a great defensive player who could also be a good offensive player. We ended up getting a much better offensive player than many were expecting, but also, it turns out so far, a worse defensive player. This is somewhat similar to when we got Gorgui too. The thing is, Towns has the tools to be a great defensive player, and at times he plays that way, but there have been too many blown plays this year from him. Especially with Thibs here, now is the time for him to learn to play a similar defensive role that KG did for the Celtics and that Noah played for the Bulls. He'll still be a great offensive player, but it's time for he and Gorgui to both step it up on D.

[Q12543 [enjin:6621299]]

Team Defensive Rating when player is on the floor:

Rubio - 116.9
Towns - 113.1
LaVine - 109.6
Wiggins - 108.6
Dieng - 108.2
Dunn - 108.2
Aldrich - 100.7
Jones - 100.7
Muhammed - 100.5
Bjelica - 98.7

Boy, that looks upside down!

Some of the guys on the bench only have to play against opposing bench units, so it's not surprising to see their DRatings lower, but our starting 5 numbers are awful.

[longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]]

Team Defensive Rating when player is on the floor:

Rubio - 116.9
Towns - 113.1
LaVine - 109.6
Wiggins - 108.6
Dieng - 108.2
Dunn - 108.2
Aldrich - 100.7
Jones - 100.7
Muhammed - 100.5
Bjelica - 98.7

Boy, that looks upside down!

Some of the guys on the bench only have to play against opposing bench units, so it's not surprising to see their DRatings lower, but our starting 5 numbers are awful.

Interesting numbers, Q...I suspect you're correct that much of the upsidedownness of the numbers is due to our backups playing mostly against less potent offensive players, but there's no excuse for the horrible numbers of the starters.

I watched parts of the game last night, and while I know the Clippers are locked in right now, I still thought it was one of the worst defensive performances I've ever seen from a Wolves' team...not at all what I was expecting with the advent of the Thibs era. Rubio's attempts to keep Paul in front of him were laughable...almost like Paul was doing a dribbling drill and Ricky was a stool on the floor. LaVine had a difficult time staying in the same zip code as Redick. Wig was lit up by the always explosively offensive Mbah a Moute, and KAT continued to look like strictly a 1-way player.

The Wolves have really regressed on defense from the end of last season in my view, and I'm hoping that the reason is that they are still trying to adjust to Thibs' system...but as we get deeper into the season, that thin string of hope is getting tougher and tougher to hold on to. I think we need to be open to the possibility that Thibs' defensive success in Chicago had more to do with players than system, because it's not working yet here. I'm going to my first game of the season tonight, and I'll be watching the defense closely...I hope to see much more than I saw last night.

[BizarroJerry [enjin:6592520]]

Anybody else happy they didn't spend the money on the NBA League pass this year?

[Monster]

Anybody else happy they didn't spend the money on the NBA League pass this year?

Personally I've been enjoying it. I have no regrets in spending the money.