Game Report - Wolves v. Spurs
Posted: Thu Nov 29, 2018 12:14 am
Sparse crowd tonight, but the few of us who showed up were treated to terrific play from the Wolves on both sides of the ball. The Wolves finally get a blowout victory as they extended their winning streak to four games, the longest of the season so far for this team. Some of the 40-point margin can be attributed to some poor shooting and overall poor energy from the Spurs. But a healthy portion of it resulted from some tremendous team and individual defense by the Wolves as well as unusually good ball movement by the Wolves on the offensive end.
The most important point in tonight's win was that it wasn't an anomaly, but instead a continuation of the trend we've seen from this team since the Butler trade -- excellent team defense, high energy and great team chemistry. These guys genuinely like each other and like playing together. You can see it on the court and on the bench -- not just in the way they play, but also in the way they interact.
I'd say that every single player to took the floor tonight for the Wolves played well. Andrew's offense looked bad again, but he defended well. Gorgui continued his renaissance, making a significant positive contribution to the team off the bench and showing the abilities that prompted Flip to draft him in the first place and that he showed in his first couple seasons -- blocking or changing shots, drawing charges, setting picks, etc. He looks like he has his confidence or mojo back. Tyus just did what he does -- playing smart, hard-nosed and winning basketball on both ends. He's just a positive force almost every time he's on the court and it showed again tonight. Teague actually played well on both ends tonight. That was good to see. Does he facilitate the offense and raise the level of the team's play as well as Tyus or Rose? No. But he still played well tonight.
The big three tonight, as usual, were Towns, Rose and Covington. I can't say enough about Covington's defense. He is the best defender I've seen on the Wolves since Kevin Garnet. Watching RoCo play - his defense, rebounding, 3-point shooting and overall demeanor -- is such a treat. His play and his attitude are clearly infectious. He's made me forget all about Josh Richardson. :) Towns was terrific again with 16 points, 11 boards, 5 assists and 2 steals in only 28 minutes tonight. And those stats uncharacteisticallhy UNDERSTATE his contribution to the team tonight. But it's not just one game with KAT. He's been showing vastly improved defense from the beginning of the season and has reclaimed his dominant offensive presence since Butler's departure. We can see KAT moving from allstar tosuperstar before our very eyes. Finally, what can you say about Derrick Rose. 16 points on 75% shooting in only 17 minutes. He's not too far from the player he was as a young MVP. At the same time, he's now a great teammate. I loved how he ran onto the court to greet Wiggins after Andrew's quarter-ending three-pointer. The joy and genuine love for Andrew at that moment spoke volumes about Rose as a team leader and about the developing character of this team generally.
To cap off a great night, we got to see Okogie get a decent 10-minute chunk of minutes. The crowed went crazy when Okogie too the floor for the first time in the 4th quarter. And thankfully, Okogie did not disappoint as he scored 12 points, including 9 points on 75% shooting from behind the arc and a thunderous dunk. He also had 2 rebounds and 2 assists. I actually though his best moment was when he dished he ball to Gorgui for a layup. That play was yet another example of Okogie's excellent instincts or high basketball IQ. Note he was quick with the ball against tonight, never holding it too long.
Boston on Saturday night will be a much tougher game. Beating Boston will, I think, require the Wolves A game. But I don't think this team is done improving. I think they are, for the first time since Thibodeau got here, developing and identity. I think they finally see themselves as a tough, defensive team which is what Thibodeau has always wanted. Covington and Saric give Thibodeau two guys that help the team forge that defensive identify. We traded one great defender in Butler for an equally great or possibly even better defender in Covington and a very good defender in Saric. A two-for-one deal. Meanwhile, Covington's personality and approach make his defense contagious among his teammates in a way Butler's did not.
It's fun again to watch the Wolves play basketball at Target Center. The Wolves are no at .500. I hope this run continues. This is a team you can't help but root for.
The most important point in tonight's win was that it wasn't an anomaly, but instead a continuation of the trend we've seen from this team since the Butler trade -- excellent team defense, high energy and great team chemistry. These guys genuinely like each other and like playing together. You can see it on the court and on the bench -- not just in the way they play, but also in the way they interact.
I'd say that every single player to took the floor tonight for the Wolves played well. Andrew's offense looked bad again, but he defended well. Gorgui continued his renaissance, making a significant positive contribution to the team off the bench and showing the abilities that prompted Flip to draft him in the first place and that he showed in his first couple seasons -- blocking or changing shots, drawing charges, setting picks, etc. He looks like he has his confidence or mojo back. Tyus just did what he does -- playing smart, hard-nosed and winning basketball on both ends. He's just a positive force almost every time he's on the court and it showed again tonight. Teague actually played well on both ends tonight. That was good to see. Does he facilitate the offense and raise the level of the team's play as well as Tyus or Rose? No. But he still played well tonight.
The big three tonight, as usual, were Towns, Rose and Covington. I can't say enough about Covington's defense. He is the best defender I've seen on the Wolves since Kevin Garnet. Watching RoCo play - his defense, rebounding, 3-point shooting and overall demeanor -- is such a treat. His play and his attitude are clearly infectious. He's made me forget all about Josh Richardson. :) Towns was terrific again with 16 points, 11 boards, 5 assists and 2 steals in only 28 minutes tonight. And those stats uncharacteisticallhy UNDERSTATE his contribution to the team tonight. But it's not just one game with KAT. He's been showing vastly improved defense from the beginning of the season and has reclaimed his dominant offensive presence since Butler's departure. We can see KAT moving from allstar tosuperstar before our very eyes. Finally, what can you say about Derrick Rose. 16 points on 75% shooting in only 17 minutes. He's not too far from the player he was as a young MVP. At the same time, he's now a great teammate. I loved how he ran onto the court to greet Wiggins after Andrew's quarter-ending three-pointer. The joy and genuine love for Andrew at that moment spoke volumes about Rose as a team leader and about the developing character of this team generally.
To cap off a great night, we got to see Okogie get a decent 10-minute chunk of minutes. The crowed went crazy when Okogie too the floor for the first time in the 4th quarter. And thankfully, Okogie did not disappoint as he scored 12 points, including 9 points on 75% shooting from behind the arc and a thunderous dunk. He also had 2 rebounds and 2 assists. I actually though his best moment was when he dished he ball to Gorgui for a layup. That play was yet another example of Okogie's excellent instincts or high basketball IQ. Note he was quick with the ball against tonight, never holding it too long.
Boston on Saturday night will be a much tougher game. Beating Boston will, I think, require the Wolves A game. But I don't think this team is done improving. I think they are, for the first time since Thibodeau got here, developing and identity. I think they finally see themselves as a tough, defensive team which is what Thibodeau has always wanted. Covington and Saric give Thibodeau two guys that help the team forge that defensive identify. We traded one great defender in Butler for an equally great or possibly even better defender in Covington and a very good defender in Saric. A two-for-one deal. Meanwhile, Covington's personality and approach make his defense contagious among his teammates in a way Butler's did not.
It's fun again to watch the Wolves play basketball at Target Center. The Wolves are no at .500. I hope this run continues. This is a team you can't help but root for.