Thoughts on the Post Trade Deadline Wolves

[Lipoli390]

I watched a replay today of the Wolves Feb. 26 win over the Heat in Miami. KAT was out that game. The game featured all of the team's key late-season acquisitions along with undrafted free agents JMac, Martin, Naz Reid and Jake Layman. The Wolves had a small lead entering the 4th quarter and then fell behind by 12 points with about 5 minutes left. But they came back to win with late game heroics from JMac among others. I'm not going to offer any new insights based on just that one game. But that game did reinforce some things about this team that I otherwise believed. Below is a list of those things, starting with general team observations and continuing with thoughts on certain individual players.

TEAM OBSERVATIONS

1. Team Chemistry -- Watching this game confirmed for me that this new group of players following the late-season acquisitions of Russell, Beasley, Johnson and Hernangomez has really good on-court chemistry. The way the team pulled together down the stretch - communicating, supporting one another -- was impressive. Much of the credit for communication goes to Russell. He really showed leadership in the huddles and on the court. And as he and other players talked, you could see the others were listening and acknowledging.

2. Poor Defense. The Wolves won, but gave up 125 points in that game. No surprise there, but a reminder that this team as currently constituted a really poor defensive team. Having said that, players (including Russell) made some nice defensive plays down the stretch. What I saw in that game suggests that Russell and others on this team can improve defensively if they're truly committed to that side of the ball.

3. Good Offense. On the flip side of the Wolves poor defense, this game confirmed that the Wolves currently have a lot of offensive firepower, scoring nearly 130 points even without KAT on the court.

4. Need for more speed/athleticism. Watching the prominent and critical role that JMac played down the stretch in this game underscored the team's need for more athleticism, particularly for someone who can break down defenses off the dribble. Right now, the only really athletic, fast players on the team are Okogie, Culver and JMac. I suppose Beasley could be viewed as athletic. He's certainly fast end to end without the ball.

INDIVIDUAL PLAYERS

1. Russell -- This game highlighted Russell's weaknesses and strengths. On the negative side, it underscored the fact that he's not fast, quick or athletic at all. Defenders know they can guard him out high and crowd him in the half court because he's not very effective driving around them. That's why he takes so many tough contested shots. IThat brings me to to the positive side. Russell is a big-time shot maker. He's also an excellent ball-handler and very good passer, especially in the open court. And he clearly has a high basketball IQ. While his lack of quickness and athleticism will likely prevent him from ever becoming a really good defender, I think he can become a decent defender with his length and IQ if he's consistently dialed in on that end of the floor.

2. Beasley -- I love watching this guy play. He is so dialed in and shows a level of toughness and competitiveness that you won't see in any other current Wolves' player and that we haven't seen much of over the years. At one point in the game, Jim Pete commented on the fact that, in his words, there's a lot of "dog" in Beasley. He's also probably the fastest player on the team end to end. In this game he was consistently the first T-Wolf player down the court on fast breaks. He's not the caliber defender the team would ideally have next to Russell in the backcourt, but I'm all in on re-signing him because of his perimeter shooting, speed and tenacity as well as his youth.

3. Johnson - He's quite a character. But he's also really talented. We all saw his extraordinary talent in this game as well as others since he arrived in Minnesota. It helps explain his contract. With his talent, he should be a perennial all-star. Obviously, there's a quirky side to him that has probably held him back. But I love watching him play and watching him interact with his teammates on the bench. I'll be perfectly happy if he picks up his option, which is likely. Perhaps the Wolves can avoid the luxury tax next season by re-signing Johnson to a multi-year contract at a lower annual salary. We'll see.

4. JMac. The Wolves really need to sign this guy. I see him as our JJ Barea, who was instrumental in the Mav's 2011 championship. He's currently the only guy on this roster who can effectively break down defenders offer the dribble. He made two penetration plays down the stretch in the Miami game that won the game for the Wolves - one in which he passed out and the other where he hit the winning layup. JMac was on the court with Russell in that 5 minutes stretch when the Wolves came back from 12 down. It underscored the need for a quick, dribble penetrator one the court with Russell for significant chunks of time.

5. Okogie. This game highlighted Okogie's improvement over the course of the season. He has really improved his driving and finishing at the rim. His energy is truly infectious. He's a valuable part of the rotation, although I don't see him as a starter at this point.

6. Culver. This game was a reminder that Culver is really talented. He's deceptively athletic and it looks like he really does have. 42" vertical. He glides to the basket and elevates over much bigger players. And he's a potentially elite defender in my view. Watching this game in the broader context of his improved shooting as the season progressed have convinced me that the Wolves should stick with him at least for another season. I wasn't happy that we traded up to draft him. But I'm higher on him now than I was on draft day last year. So in spite of his poor shooting this season, I feel better about him now than when we drafted him.

OVERALL

After watching this game, I'm comfortable moving forward with the core roster we have, supplemented by a couple smart draft picks. We'll have to trim Jacob Evans from the roster. And unless the Wolves intend to play Spellman, they''ll need to trim him as well. Assuming typical Wolves lottery luck, the Wolves will end up drafting in the 4-6 range. That means they won't have a shot at Edwards or Ball. That might be a good thing because other top players likely available in the 4-6 range will probably be better fits for the Wolves if they keep the current roster largely in tact. Options will likely include (1) Okongwu, an efficient, defensive-oriented big man who could help compensate for KAT's defensive inadequacies; and (2) Deni Advija, a playmaking forward with toughness and what looks like the potential to be a very good defender. Wiseman could fall into the 4-6 range. I'm not a Wiseman fan, but there's no denying his talent and he would potentially fill the Wolves need for a defensive big. The Wolves will also have some really good 3&D options in Vassell and Bey in the 4-6 range or at #16. Paul Reed could be an excellent defensive big option with the Wolves 2nd round pick.

That's it for now. If you haven't watched the Feb. 26 Miami game, I highly recommend finding and watching it. If you watched it back in February, I encourage you to watch it again. It was a lot of fun to watch and shines some light on what we might see from this team going forward.

[apollotsg [enjin:6592798]]

How plausible would it be to trade Johnson, Culver and both 1st rounders for Gobert?

Mitchell was really upset with Gobert this offseason, and he is on his last year I think. I realize Rosa will not trade for him but I see him as the perfect fit with this team the way it is built now:

DLO - Jmac
Beasley - Okogie
? - ?
Towns - ?
Gobert - Reid