Pelicans-Wolves game report
Posted: Sun Jan 13, 2019 8:55 am
I'm tired of waiting for Lip or Kek to file an in person report, so I guess I have to step up.
Great win last night in a game we needed to win against a team that had won three in a row by double digits. And we did it without Covington and Rose! WARNING TO CAM: I'M GOING TO SAY SOME NICE THINGS ABOUT RYAN SAUNDERS AND NOT ABOUT THIBS, SO STOP READING IF THAT WILL BE PAINFUL FOR YOU!
The first thing I looked for when I came into the arena was whether KAT was warming up or not since he had said Friday night he might not be able to go. What a relief when I saw him under the basket joking around with teammates...obviously, we don't win last night without KAT's incredible 27-27 and tough defense against the remarkable Davis...4 blocks for the second consecutive night.
Not the biggest crowd for a Saturday night, but the energy level was there My long-time seatmate to the left commented on how the fun was back in Target Center now that Thibs was gone (he was at the Dallas loss the night before and commented on the positive energy even in a loss).
This was clearly KAT's night, but I'll cover some other things that stood out last night. The differences between Saunders and Thibs were palpable last night, and I may cover some of them in the "differences" thread. But the moment that stands out most to me was when Luol Deng entered the game...Thibs had clearly forgotten he was on the roster. Now Luol is not going to get many minutes this year, but using him to buy a precious 5 minutes of rest for tired starters on the back end of a BTB was brilliant (at Greer's suggestion apparently...who knew coaches were allowed to collaborate!). And he responded. His body to body defense was remindful of the tough defense we used to see in his prime, and he even contributed 5 points on his 2 shots. And I can't begin to describe the joy in the arena when Ryan greeted him at midcourt after Luol's big 3-pointer! Not a sight we ever would have seen during the Thibs Dark Ages. Not every move is going to work so well for Ryan as his Deng move, but maybe we don't win last night without Deng's team-leading +12 in his five minutes. And it also gave us the chance to see an NBA first (I would guess)...3 African-born players on the court at the same time!
I recognize that Teague might have been a little gimpy (although he didn't look like it when he returned from halftime) but I wonder if Tyus playing the last 17 minutes down the stretch might be a sign of a changing of the guard. Tyus played under control and was more aggressive than we have seen him (I'm guessing under encouragement from Ryan to look for his shot). He played solid defense, kept the ball moving, added 14 points on 9 shots, and again had ZERO turnovers. I continue to think Tyus will always do what he needs to win, and that he should be our starting PG...maybe Ryan agrees.
The most misleading stat in the box score is Taj's 2 rebounds, because he was involved in keeping alive at least 8-9 more. KAT was grabbing every rebound in sight, but Taj's tough work on the boards was a big factor in our 15 offensive rebounds. And his footwork on the few times he gets involved in the offense is a joy to watch...led to his 5-7 shooting. And it was terrific to have our other PF Saric back contributing, and I give Ryan a lot of credit for that. I had the binoculars on Ryan during a timeout (really fun to watch how the team responds to him compared to, well, you know who) and he was clearly designing a play to get Saric an open look...he knew that he needed to get Saric going. And it worked, and it was clear that Saric got him mojo back...14 points and 4 rebounds in only 15 minutes.
So, a great win that we needed to stay in the playoff hunt. And the fun is back in Target Center!
Great win last night in a game we needed to win against a team that had won three in a row by double digits. And we did it without Covington and Rose! WARNING TO CAM: I'M GOING TO SAY SOME NICE THINGS ABOUT RYAN SAUNDERS AND NOT ABOUT THIBS, SO STOP READING IF THAT WILL BE PAINFUL FOR YOU!
The first thing I looked for when I came into the arena was whether KAT was warming up or not since he had said Friday night he might not be able to go. What a relief when I saw him under the basket joking around with teammates...obviously, we don't win last night without KAT's incredible 27-27 and tough defense against the remarkable Davis...4 blocks for the second consecutive night.
Not the biggest crowd for a Saturday night, but the energy level was there My long-time seatmate to the left commented on how the fun was back in Target Center now that Thibs was gone (he was at the Dallas loss the night before and commented on the positive energy even in a loss).
This was clearly KAT's night, but I'll cover some other things that stood out last night. The differences between Saunders and Thibs were palpable last night, and I may cover some of them in the "differences" thread. But the moment that stands out most to me was when Luol Deng entered the game...Thibs had clearly forgotten he was on the roster. Now Luol is not going to get many minutes this year, but using him to buy a precious 5 minutes of rest for tired starters on the back end of a BTB was brilliant (at Greer's suggestion apparently...who knew coaches were allowed to collaborate!). And he responded. His body to body defense was remindful of the tough defense we used to see in his prime, and he even contributed 5 points on his 2 shots. And I can't begin to describe the joy in the arena when Ryan greeted him at midcourt after Luol's big 3-pointer! Not a sight we ever would have seen during the Thibs Dark Ages. Not every move is going to work so well for Ryan as his Deng move, but maybe we don't win last night without Deng's team-leading +12 in his five minutes. And it also gave us the chance to see an NBA first (I would guess)...3 African-born players on the court at the same time!
I recognize that Teague might have been a little gimpy (although he didn't look like it when he returned from halftime) but I wonder if Tyus playing the last 17 minutes down the stretch might be a sign of a changing of the guard. Tyus played under control and was more aggressive than we have seen him (I'm guessing under encouragement from Ryan to look for his shot). He played solid defense, kept the ball moving, added 14 points on 9 shots, and again had ZERO turnovers. I continue to think Tyus will always do what he needs to win, and that he should be our starting PG...maybe Ryan agrees.
The most misleading stat in the box score is Taj's 2 rebounds, because he was involved in keeping alive at least 8-9 more. KAT was grabbing every rebound in sight, but Taj's tough work on the boards was a big factor in our 15 offensive rebounds. And his footwork on the few times he gets involved in the offense is a joy to watch...led to his 5-7 shooting. And it was terrific to have our other PF Saric back contributing, and I give Ryan a lot of credit for that. I had the binoculars on Ryan during a timeout (really fun to watch how the team responds to him compared to, well, you know who) and he was clearly designing a play to get Saric an open look...he knew that he needed to get Saric going. And it worked, and it was clear that Saric got him mojo back...14 points and 4 rebounds in only 15 minutes.
So, a great win that we needed to stay in the playoff hunt. And the fun is back in Target Center!