Minnesota Sports Forum

monster... you make a good point.

Teams need an identity. And I'd add that I think it extends to entire organizations. And sadly, the Wolves franchise identity is well... ummm... errr... ummmm... we all know the story.

Remember everyone if we make the playoffs it's more important to stick to your talking points than enjoying the game.

If we win tonight, the season will have been a disappointing success. We will have beaten the Vegas predictions, made the playoffs for the first time in 14 years, and we've got a legit two-way star with Butler--the first time we've had that since KG. You've got to consider that a success. But it's tough not to think the team could have done better, which is why it will still feel like a failure. Our defense should definitely have been better, Thibs' rotations and depth should have been smarter, our iso-heavy style of play feels like a throwback, and there were so many games where there was disappointing effort. On top of that, even his biggest fans now admit Wiggins is playing terrible overall and it seems more and more clear that his contract is really going to hurt us, Towns has yet to really prove it consistently on the defensive end, and Patton looks like another failed draft pick. The bright young core people used to talk about doesn't appear to have been all that good to begin with (again, with Towns as the exception IF he can become a better defender and live up to the hype).

If we lose tonight, I know it'll just be one game difference, but that will just feel like a flat out failure. I can't even fathom getting this close and just slowly letting it slip away like this. I'll be sick to my stomach.

Aren't only posters who predicted more than 46 wins allowed to call this season a failure? It seems weird to change your expectations to higher than you originally had just so you can be perpetually miserable. Or maybe that is a perfect description of the Minnesota sports fan?

BizarroJerry wrote:Remember everyone if we make the playoffs it's more important to stick to your talking points than enjoying the game.

Thanks for reminding us JERRY! :shock:

thedoper wrote:Aren't only posters who predicted more than 46 wins allowed to call this season a failure? It seems weird to change your expectations to higher than you originally had just so you can be perpetually miserable. Or maybe that is a perfect description of the Minnesota sports fan?

Doper, what if they predicted lower because they expected the team to fail?

sjm34 wrote:

BizarroJerry wrote:Remember everyone if we make the playoffs it's more important to stick to your talking points than enjoying the game.

Thanks for reminding us JERRY! :shock:

thedoper wrote:Aren't only posters who predicted more than 46 wins allowed to call this season a failure? It seems weird to change your expectations to higher than you originally had just so you can be perpetually miserable. Or maybe that is a perfect description of the Minnesota sports fan?

Doper, what if they predicted lower because they expected the team to fail?

If they predicted lower because they expected the team to fail then the team exceeded their expectations, right? Isn't that cause for celebration?

I guess you are describing the other end of Minnesota sports fans, the perpetual cynic.

thedoper wrote:

sjm34 wrote:

BizarroJerry wrote:Remember everyone if we make the playoffs it's more important to stick to your talking points than enjoying the game.

Thanks for reminding us JERRY! :shock:

thedoper wrote:Aren't only posters who predicted more than 46 wins allowed to call this season a failure? It seems weird to change your expectations to higher than you originally had just so you can be perpetually miserable. Or maybe that is a perfect description of the Minnesota sports fan?

Doper, what if they predicted lower because they expected the team to fail?

If they predicted lower because they expected the team to fail then the team exceeded their expectations, right? Isn't that cause for celebration?

I guess you are describing the other end of Minnesota sports fans, the perpetual cynic.

Fair points, doper. I can only speak for myself. I am generally a hopeless optimist when it comes to Minnesota sports (I bravely told everyone around me that the Vikings would come back and win the Minneapolis Miracle game, for example)...but Thibs' dour, stubborn style has sucked the fun out of this season for me. And my 46-win prediction came with an 8-9 win "Thibs discount", which is about what is happened in my estimation. Even though it was part of my prediction, a coach causing a team to greatly underperform seems like a failed season to me.

longstrangetrip wrote:

thedoper wrote:

sjm34 wrote:

BizarroJerry wrote:Remember everyone if we make the playoffs it's more important to stick to your talking points than enjoying the game.

Thanks for reminding us JERRY! :shock:

thedoper wrote:Aren't only posters who predicted more than 46 wins allowed to call this season a failure? It seems weird to change your expectations to higher than you originally had just so you can be perpetually miserable. Or maybe that is a perfect description of the Minnesota sports fan?

Doper, what if they predicted lower because they expected the team to fail?

If they predicted lower because they expected the team to fail then the team exceeded their expectations, right? Isn't that cause for celebration?

I guess you are describing the other end of Minnesota sports fans, the perpetual cynic.

Fair points, doper. I can only speak for myself. I am generally a hopeless optimist when it comes to Minnesota sports (I bravely told everyone around me that the Vikings would come back and win the Minneapolis Miracle game, for example)...but Thibs' dour, stubborn style has sucked the fun out of this season for me. And my 46-win prediction came with an 8-9 win "Thibs discount", which is about what is happened in my estimation. Even though it was part of my prediction, a coach causing a team to greatly underperform seems like a failed season to me.

I think there are some great things to the culture of Minnesota, I think it is exemplified here too. People want more than just results, it's about character too. I get that and I think it speaks to the unique culture that sports (and just winning) are only so important to people. It definitely goes in a positive direction too. I can respect that.

As someone whose expectations were exceeded (I predicted 43 wins), I am one who technically should be pleasantly surprised and happy by where we stand today. But to LST's point, a lot of the process on how we got here (Thibs' style, the team's style, the lack of progress defensively) puts a damper on things.

No doubt though...it is nice to at least have a winning record. Yay.

I predicted 41 wins. And another playoff miss.

46 wins have rarely felt so hollow. I've commented before about how things are a bit of a slog... usually accompanied with a "who cares, just win" mantra following it. So I get the frustration with the aesthetics or the problems along the margins.

But after 14 years of various levels of mediocrity to abject suckiness... I'm gonna enjoy the season for what it is. Because I know how much worse it can be.






[Note: Yes, it's a telling statement that Wolves fans can't realistically detail how much better it can be... considering the team has only had one season of meaningful, measurable success in three decades.]