Minnesota Sports Forum

Wow, what a Thanksgiving treat from the Wolves...the house was packed and rocking, and our guys really fed off of it! We know there is a Big Three on this team, but how about the Baby Big Three...Ant, Vando and Jaden. All were terrific tonight. I have to admit I still like Jimmy Butler, but I loved Ant standing up to him even more. And the Miami announcers were raving about Vando and Jaden all night. They noticed what some of us have before...Vando channels Rodman by going out of bounds and then reentering to establish offensive rebounding position...he is relentless! I know we have also expressed concerns about our lack of size, but the Heat announcers went on and on about our length...especially when Finch employs his KAT/Vando/Jaden front court.

But we also have to mention Wide Load, because we probably don't win without his 29 points tonight. He works harder than anyone moving without the ball and using screens to get open...and tonight he made the shots.

The only downer of the night is PatBev's groin injury, because we all know how they can linger. Our D looked shaky at first after he went down, but it came alive in the second half. Robinson and Herro clanking wide open threes certainly helped, but our interior defense was for real tonight.

Let's hope Beverley isn't out too long so we can keep this streak going!

FNG wrote:
But we also have to mention Wide Load, because we probably don't win without his 29 points tonight. He works harder than anyone moving without the ball and using screens to get open...and tonight he made the shots.

Beasley played 38 minutes last night and was the guy we needed to play 2nd fiddle to Ant. Every game he looks better and better.

D'Natagal wrote:

FNG wrote:
But we also have to mention Wide Load, because we probably don't win without his 29 points tonight. He works harder than anyone moving without the ball and using screens to get open...and tonight he made the shots.

Beasley played 38 minutes last night and was the guy we needed to play 2nd fiddle to Ant. Every game he looks better and better.

Yep, and you can't question how hard he works every minute he's out there...never mails it in. His D causes me to throw things at the TV sometimes, but he can be a big help if he's making his shots like last night.

So the Wolves are at least somewhat serious about defense?

And they have only their 2nd 5-game winning streak since 2004. Those two things are definitely related. I like this development.

Great win... even if my DVR cut off the final 3 minutes... and I had to scramble to the Internet to see if the new Wolves were anything like the old Wolves and hung on for the win. LOL.

Regarding Patrick Beverley's injury:

"Told it wasn't too serious. Hard to say the outlook for this weekend just yet, but the belief is he won't miss a lot of time." - Jon Krawczynski

Camden wrote:Regarding Patrick Beverley's injury:

"Told it wasn't too serious. Hard to say the outlook for this weekend just yet, but the belief is he won't miss a lot of time." - Jon Krawczynski

Good news! But I also think it's safe to say that Beverley has already changed the culture of this team. And that means we should expect the Wolves to continue defending well while Beverley is out as they did last night. Nevertheless, we need his presence on the court -- defense, intensity, ball-handling, 3-point shooting and high IQ -- to maximize the team's success this season.

D'Natagal wrote:Abe had one of the best posts of the year in the GDT: Minnesota vs. Sacramento thread, showing Kat's reactions to Ant going one-on-one. Watching the game last night, I think Kat is starting to understand that Ant is the face of the team going forward. His reactions to the big shots that Ant made were less "wtf" and more, that's my boy. This is the natural way of things. Ant needs to be the lead dog due to his better mentality and not only lead the team but the entire franchise. Kat just doesn't have the right maturity level. If Wiggins would have had 30% of Ant's emotion when he was with the Wolves, he would still be here.

I think a big part of it is that Ant has that killer instinct that you can't teach. You can't have a guy of Ant's talent on your team on the court going for the throat and you're just mailing it in.

The Minnesota Timberwolves ranks over the full season (9-9):
?18th in offense
?4th in defense

In their first 13 games (4-9):
?26th in offense
?12th in defense

In their last 5 games (5-0):
?4th in offense
?2nd in defense

kekgeek1 wrote:The Minnesota Timberwolves ranks over the full season (9-9):
?18th in offense
?4th in defense

In their first 13 games (4-9):
?26th in offense
?12th in defense

In their last 5 games (5-0):
?4th in offense
?2nd in defense

It seems like the noticeable change in play even before the wins coincided with moving McDaniels out of the starting lineup. His play has come along since too.

thedoper wrote:

kekgeek1 wrote:The Minnesota Timberwolves ranks over the full season (9-9):
?18th in offense
?4th in defense

In their first 13 games (4-9):
?26th in offense
?12th in defense

In their last 5 games (5-0):
?4th in offense
?2nd in defense

It seems like the noticeable change in play even before the wins coincided with moving McDaniels out of the starting lineup. His play has come along since too.

That and the insertion of Jarred Vanderbilt into the starting lineup with the bulk of the minutes at the four. He's been nothing short of fantastic. The Wolves are winning on the glass with Vando's effort instead of getting crushed because Jaden McDaniels is playing out of position.

As for McDaniels, I wonder if we'll see him be reinserted into the starting lineup with Patrick Beverley likely missing games. Would Chris Finch go that route or give Malik Beasley the opportunity instead? I could make an argument for both guys.

Now that I say that it'll probably be Josh Okogie, which I'm not really a fan of.