Minnesota Sports Forum

kekgeek wrote: ↑Fri Oct 23, 2026 10:30 pm

FNG wrote: ↑Fri Oct 23, 2026 10:22 pm

Coolbreeze44 wrote: ↑Fri Oct 23, 2026 9:24 pm I can see how Melo is susceptible to injury the way he plays. He initiates and takes a lot of contact and he's not really built for that. I didn't know he was so long, he gets his hand on passes you don't think he can reach. And so far I have no problem with how hard he is working on defense. Just have to keep him on the court because he makes all the difference in the world when he is out there. He's a plus 35 so far.

Yeah, his length is such an asset for him. And if he plays hard like he has the first two games, he will be a plus defender. I thought JK would be a plus defender based on what I saw from him last season with Atlanta, but Ball's defense has been a pleasant surprise. He and Ant seem to be feeding off each other at both ends of the court.

I do think Ball is getting beat off the dribble a ton and Rudy is bailing him out. With that said Ball is doing great rotating when beat

Jester1534 wrote: ↑Sat Oct 24, 2026 7:47 am

kekgeek wrote: ↑Fri Oct 23, 2026 10:30 pm

FNG wrote: ↑Fri Oct 23, 2026 10:22 pm

Yeah, his length is such an asset for him. And if he plays hard like he has the first two games, he will be a plus defender. I thought JK would be a plus defender based on what I saw from him last season with Atlanta, but Ball's defense has been a pleasant surprise. He and Ant seem to be feeding off each other at both ends of the court.

I do think Ball is getting beat off the dribble a ton and Rudy is bailing him out. With that said Ball is doing great rotating when beat

I think difference Kek is Conely was same was getting beat off the dribble but Ball length makes up for it.

Theyre asking him to play Conley roll on defense and hes alreay an upgrade because of his length alone. I
Loved old man but he got bullied and liability the last two years

Lipoli390 wrote: ↑Fri Oct 23, 2026 11:04 pm

rapsuperstar31 wrote: ↑Fri Oct 23, 2026 9:11 pm

Lipoli390 wrote: ↑Fri Oct 23, 2026 8:06 pm

I’m not seeing downs from Shannon so far in these two games.

He' a tad out of control, but playing well to start the season, much better than the pre season. I do think he could use a little more finesse/change of pace, he has one speed and makes it harder for him to hit open guys on his passes. I was really hoping he hit Evans there at the end for the wide open corner three to get him his first bucket.

He was actually more in control tonight than Edwards. And his passing was excellent overall. Interspersed among his many really nice plays were some mistakes, which isn’t different from any other player. Putting aside what we’ve seen from him in the past - his reputation - and looking objectively at his play these two games has been excellent overall. I’ll say the same for Melo, Ayo, Jaden, JK and Rudy. Ant was off the charts great against Miami but pretty bad tonight. Beringer was better than he was against Miami but still has quite a ways to go. But knowing that perfection isn’t the standard and that TSJ isn’t a star or expected to be one, TSJ’s play has been excellent through these first two games. We’ll see how things go with him over the course of the season. He’ll undoubtedly have some bad games and bad moments within games. I’ll be watching to see if he continues to asset himself effectively on the defensive end as he has so far while also making good decisions and winning plays on the offensive end. You really can’t expect more from your 7th or 8th guy in your rotation than we’ve gotten so far from from TSJ.

Jester1534 wrote: ↑Sat Oct 24, 2026 7:47 am

kekgeek wrote: ↑Fri Oct 23, 2026 10:30 pm

FNG wrote: ↑Fri Oct 23, 2026 10:22 pm

Yeah, his length is such an asset for him. And if he plays hard like he has the first two games, he will be a plus defender. I thought JK would be a plus defender based on what I saw from him last season with Atlanta, but Ball's defense has been a pleasant surprise. He and Ant seem to be feeding off each other at both ends of the court.

I do think Ball is getting beat off the dribble a ton and Rudy is bailing him out. With that said Ball is doing great rotating when beat

I think difference Kek is Conely was same was getting beat off the dribble but Ball length makes up for it.

Theyre asking him to play Conley roll on defense and hes alreay an upgrade because of his length alone. I
Loved old man but he got bullied and liability the last two years

rapsuperstar31 wrote: ↑Sat Oct 24, 2026 9:39 am I figured both of these games were going to be tough physical games to start the season off, and so far so good. Toronto is going to be the first real test next game. They beat up bad Bulls team (who did beat Milwaukee) by 43. Toronto has a lot of defenders to handle all five of our guys on the court one on one. We will need to be sharp, hit our shots in this next game, and keep playing hard on defense. After a tough game with Toronto, our reward is a game 24 hours later in Cleveland.

Lipoli390 wrote: ↑Fri Oct 23, 2026 11:09 pm Can’t say enough about what Melo does for this team. One thing in particular is that he substantially raises the collective IQ of the team. Yes, he gets careless at times and takes some shots I wish he wouldn’t. But overall, he’s does so much to raise the level of this team’s play.

And what a night for Dosunmu. 14 points on better than 50% FG shooting along with 7 rebounds, 9 assists, 1 steal, 1 block and zero turnovers. You can’t overstate what he meant to this team tonight, especially with Edwards playing so poorly.