Minnesota Sports Forum

Camden wrote:Perhaps I see things a bit differently. I'd describe the Wolves' star players as follows:

Karl-Anthony Towns: competitive, immature, emotional

D'Angelo Russell: competitive, confident, lackadaisical

Anthony Edwards: competitive, cocky, inefficient

I see all three being competitive and ultra-talented to boot. They've shown more than enough individually to deserve that. But they each have their own flaws that hinder their games at this point. Towns lets his own emotions check himself out of the game mentally. Russell can be careless with the ball and less than determined defensively. Edwards has all the physical tools of a superstar, but hasn't used them to their maximum abilities yet.

Cam - I think your characterizations are fair. I think you totally nailed KAT. It's pretty early to tell with Edwards, but I think you characterization captures what we've seen so far. As for Russell, I'm just not sure. He's definitely confident and I think the term lackadaisical applies perfectly. The question in my mind is whether a player can be both lackadaisical and competitive. I suppose there are levels of competitiveness and some might be more consistently competitive than others. DLO was certainly competitive down the stretch in that Miami game I referred to. Your distinction is a fair one and worth thinking about. The question then is, what can the Wolves coaching staff or his teammates do to stop Russell from lackadaisical and play with consistent intensity on both sides of the ball?

We're still vastly overestimating what the return for Ben Simmons will be for Philadelphia and what other teams are even prepared to offer. Lip's hypothetical trade packages are more reminiscent of what Simmons' trade value perhaps looked like before last season's playoff series, but not right now. Things have obviously happened since then.

Again, Simmons is a very productive player, but he's also a very flawed player who will make north of $30-million annually for the next four years and has made his intentions of being traded away from the Sixers known via Klutch Sports. Training camp is in two weeks and Simmons will likely hold out, which will amplify the entire situation -- especially with the media, players, and the fans.

Daryl Morey has already overplayed his hand. His patience at this point is self-destructive. When Philadelphia met with him in Los Angeles they had hopes of restoring his trade value by having Simmons play at the start of regular season. Simmons told them that wasn't going to happen. Simmons' trade value is locked in at this point. Teams will essentially offer 30-cents on the dollar and the Sixers will choose the best among them. That means a Buddy Hield, Marvin Bagley, and first-round pick, for example -- not Harrison Barnes, Tyrese Haliburton, and multiple first-round picks. Those offers are not materializing.

lipoli390 wrote:

Camden wrote:Perhaps I see things a bit differently. I'd describe the Wolves' star players as follows:

Karl-Anthony Towns: competitive, immature, emotional

D'Angelo Russell: competitive, confident, lackadaisical

Anthony Edwards: competitive, cocky, inefficient

I see all three being competitive and ultra-talented to boot. They've shown more than enough individually to deserve that. But they each have their own flaws that hinder their games at this point. Towns lets his own emotions check himself out of the game mentally. Russell can be careless with the ball and less than determined defensively. Edwards has all the physical tools of a superstar, but hasn't used them to their maximum abilities yet.

Cam - I think your characterizations are fair. I think you totally nailed KAT. It's pretty early to tell with Edwards, but I think you characterization captures what we've seen so far. As for Edwards, I'm just not sure. He's definitely confident and I think the term lackadaisical applies perfectly. The question in my mind is whether a player can be both lackadaisical and competitive. I suppose there are levels of competitiveness and some might be more consistently competitive than others. DLO was certainly competitive down the stretch in that Miami game I referred to. Your distinction is a fair one and worth thinking about. The question then is, what can the Wolves coaching staff or his teammates do to stop Russell from lackadaisical and play with consistent intensity on both sides of the ball?

This isn't intended to be an excuse by any means, but maybe D'Angelo Russell is one of those stars that brings "it" when he's on a good team and turns "it" down when he's on bad teams. Granted, he's a professional so that shouldn't ever be the case, but I'd imagine it's much easier to get amped each night when you're in the playoff hunt than when you're getting beat by double digits every game. We've certainly seen games where D-Lo's locked in and executing on both ends of the court, but it hasn't been consistent in Minnesota. That's primarily why he can't be a team's best player. He won't ever be the guy that turns a franchise around or lifts them from the basement, but that doesn't necessarily mean that he couldn't be part of a collective effort to make that happen. Remember, we've never seen a full season of what Russell looks like as a number two, which is what he was brought to Minnesota to be. I'd imagine it would lead to winning basketball. I'm also keenly aware of how lonely it is here on D-Lo island, though. Hopefully by the end of the year we have a few more residents.

Camden wrote:

lipoli390 wrote:

Camden wrote:Perhaps I see things a bit differently. I'd describe the Wolves' star players as follows:

Karl-Anthony Towns: competitive, immature, emotional

D'Angelo Russell: competitive, confident, lackadaisical

Anthony Edwards: competitive, cocky, inefficient

I see all three being competitive and ultra-talented to boot. They've shown more than enough individually to deserve that. But they each have their own flaws that hinder their games at this point. Towns lets his own emotions check himself out of the game mentally. Russell can be careless with the ball and less than determined defensively. Edwards has all the physical tools of a superstar, but hasn't used them to their maximum abilities yet.

Cam - I think your characterizations are fair. I think you totally nailed KAT. It's pretty early to tell with Edwards, but I think you characterization captures what we've seen so far. As for Edwards, I'm just not sure. He's definitely confident and I think the term lackadaisical applies perfectly. The question in my mind is whether a player can be both lackadaisical and competitive. I suppose there are levels of competitiveness and some might be more consistently competitive than others. DLO was certainly competitive down the stretch in that Miami game I referred to. Your distinction is a fair one and worth thinking about. The question then is, what can the Wolves coaching staff or his teammates do to stop Russell from lackadaisical and play with consistent intensity on both sides of the ball?

This isn't intended to be an excuse by any means, but maybe D'Angelo Russell is one of those stars that brings "it" when he's on a good team and turns "it" down when he's on bad teams. Granted, he's a professional so that shouldn't ever be the case, but I'd imagine it's much easier to get amped each night when you're in the playoff hunt than when you're getting beat by double digits every game. We've certainly seen games where D-Lo's locked in and executing on both ends of the court, but it hasn't been consistent in Minnesota. That's primarily why he can't be a team's best player. He won't ever be the guy that turns a franchise around or lifts them from the basement, but that doesn't necessarily mean that he couldn't be part of a collective effort to make that happen. Remember, we've never seen a full season of what Russell looks like as a number two, which is what he was brought to Minnesota to be. I'd imagine it would lead to winning basketball. I'm also keenly aware of how lonely it is here on D-Lo island, though. Hopefully by the end of the year we have a few more residents.

Lol. Yep, you're pretty alone there on DLO Island. :). I can tell you I'd like nothing better than to join you on that sparsely populated Island by the end of next season.

lipoli390 wrote:

Camden wrote:

lipoli390 wrote:

Camden wrote:Perhaps I see things a bit differently. I'd describe the Wolves' star players as follows:

Karl-Anthony Towns: competitive, immature, emotional

D'Angelo Russell: competitive, confident, lackadaisical

Anthony Edwards: competitive, cocky, inefficient

I see all three being competitive and ultra-talented to boot. They've shown more than enough individually to deserve that. But they each have their own flaws that hinder their games at this point. Towns lets his own emotions check himself out of the game mentally. Russell can be careless with the ball and less than determined defensively. Edwards has all the physical tools of a superstar, but hasn't used them to their maximum abilities yet.

Cam - I think your characterizations are fair. I think you totally nailed KAT. It's pretty early to tell with Edwards, but I think you characterization captures what we've seen so far. As for Edwards, I'm just not sure. He's definitely confident and I think the term lackadaisical applies perfectly. The question in my mind is whether a player can be both lackadaisical and competitive. I suppose there are levels of competitiveness and some might be more consistently competitive than others. DLO was certainly competitive down the stretch in that Miami game I referred to. Your distinction is a fair one and worth thinking about. The question then is, what can the Wolves coaching staff or his teammates do to stop Russell from lackadaisical and play with consistent intensity on both sides of the ball?

This isn't intended to be an excuse by any means, but maybe D'Angelo Russell is one of those stars that brings "it" when he's on a good team and turns "it" down when he's on bad teams. Granted, he's a professional so that shouldn't ever be the case, but I'd imagine it's much easier to get amped each night when you're in the playoff hunt than when you're getting beat by double digits every game. We've certainly seen games where D-Lo's locked in and executing on both ends of the court, but it hasn't been consistent in Minnesota. That's primarily why he can't be a team's best player. He won't ever be the guy that turns a franchise around or lifts them from the basement, but that doesn't necessarily mean that he couldn't be part of a collective effort to make that happen. Remember, we've never seen a full season of what Russell looks like as a number two, which is what he was brought to Minnesota to be. I'd imagine it would lead to winning basketball. I'm also keenly aware of how lonely it is here on D-Lo island, though. Hopefully by the end of the year we have a few more residents.

Lol. Yep, you're pretty alone there on DLO Island. :). I can tell you I'd like nothing better than to join you on that sparsely populated Island by the end of next season.

The way Cam described Russell in this post reminds me a lot of Kyrie Irving although Kyrie is a better player he doesn't bring it all the time. Also as an aside Russell is more likable in my opinion.

Getting back to the theme of this thread, namely predicting what happens with Ben Simmons. Jon K reported the following:

Jon Krawczynski: Everyone that you talked to in the league believes that Simmons will eventually be traded, that the Sixers cannot afford to hold on to him and that Simmons is being very real in his threats not to show up. 16 hours ago - via Spotify

Nothing new or particularly or revealing here. But it is strong confirmation from a very reliable NBA reporter that Simmons will hold out and that the Sixers will be under enormous pressure to deal him before the season begins. That doesn't tell us what team will end up with Simmons, but it does suggest that his market value will remain discounted. I still think the Wolves are in the running, but I no longer believe Minnesota is Ben's most likely landing spot. Rosas isn't going to give up KAT or Edwards and is unlikely to give up Russell.

Yes, Rosas can offer 4 1st-round picks, but so can any number of other suitors. And those other suitors can and likely will offer a quality lead guard that Rosas won't offer unless he agrees to give up Russell. According to Cam's earlier post in another thread, Toronto has already offered VanVleet and Anunoby along with at least one future 1st. That's a better package than Beasley and 4 firsts for a team like Philly that wants to win now. Indiana has reportedly offered Brogdon. He's a high quality lead guard who would fit well with Embiid. Haliburton is reportedly not on the table, but the report Cam posted indicated that the Kings already offered Haliburton and Barnes. If they offered him once, they'll offer him again and probably with Hield and some future picks. That would also be a nice haul for Philly given the pickle their in with Simmons. I think the Cavs will offer Sexton, Ricky and future picks if they haven't already. None of those packages is what Morey had in mind when he decided to put Simmons on the block. But those packages define the market for Simmons and Jon K's recent report is a reminder that the market is not likely to change. Sooner or later, Morey will have to face the market reality staring him in the face. Embiid and Sixers' ownership won't let Morey waste a season to pursue Morey's speculation about what other teams MIGHT do or who MIGHT become available 4-9 months from now.

I'm on that island with you Cam. I find it hilarious how down people on this board are on DLO. And then so high on a guy who will make 40mil a year and can't shoot. DLO played hurt last year. He's not good on defense, we all get that. But he could be a great number 3 in a big three.

For the record, trading McDaniels in a trade for Simmons would be a giant mistake. He could be the defense stopper at pennies on the dollar compared to a max player. Not enough people on this board are talking about the impact Simmons will have on the cap

I think DLO can be a key player on a winning team, but the problem is that all three of our top guys are sub-par defenders. That's why a Simmons-DLO swap kind of makes sense for both teams. The Sixers get a highly skilled shot maker that will create even more space for Embiid and the Wolves add a guy that can defend.

Can you name a championship team that has a membership of their big three that's just for defense? Asking for a friend