Seeing Some Positives

[Coolbreeze44]

Starting to see some encouraging things with the team, especially our young core:

1) We were blitzed 7-0, and then 14-6 to start the game last night against a team desperate to pound out a win. But we didn't back off at all. In fact we didn't even blink. We competed from the beginning to end, and though we never want to relish moral victories we can take some good things from the effort. You saw the NBA at it's finest officiating last night. Lebron drives the lane, gets breathed on and goes to the line for a 3 point play. Andrew nearly gets his arm broken on a hard foul and no whistle. The officials didn't cost us the game, but my point is we had a lot of things working against us and we kept our resolve.

2) Towns is ridiculously talented and we have seen that all year. But now he's starting to realize that his game is good enough to allow him to impose his will on the opponent. I've seen him turn a corner the last few games. Just need to keep him out of foul trouble, play big minutes, and then watch out.

3) I get excited when I see Zach play like he did last night. We know Towns and Wiggins are going to be all stars, so the challenge becomes surrounding those two with the right players. I still think it's just a matter of time before Zach becomes more consistent and can supplement the big 2. He is really starting to push the ball now, and he's also attacking the basket better. Not sure where this is coming from - is he just maturing or has Sam finally talked to this team about running - but it is exciting to see.

4) Shabazz and Wiggins look like they are going to be able to play together. This is huge because they are both multi-threat players that put pressure on the defense. They will be even better together once we get some outside shooting to compliment their games.

5) The team defense isn't great, but again I'm starting to see some signs that the guys are coming along. Kat's going to become an eraser at the rim. Andrew is starting to anticipate better and we should start to see his steal totals go up. And the team just seems to have a better compete level on defense now.

I would not be surprised to see us start to win more consistently, especially at home. This may be too optimistic to some, but I really am starting to see some good signs.

[Monster]

This team is playing better. Last night the Wolves played more like I think a lot of us expected them to play a decent chunk of the year. They were scrappy getting to ball and like you said they didn't get buried they had an answer. It feels like there has been a light switch go on for them getting down the floor. I don't know what it is but it's fun. That was a fun basketball game to watch I really can't ask for much more from this team.

[TAFKASP]

I agree with 99% of your post Cool! I would only reserve judgement based upon the fact that the Cavs are a terrible defensive team, thus the Wolves were able to operate efficiently on offense in ways that they couldn't against an average defensive team. I agree though, the youth are making encouraging strides!

[Q12543 [enjin:6621299]]

The team has perked up a bit over the last few games, but it's too early to tell if we have fully pulled out of the tailspin that ensued after the 8-8 start.

I'd like to see the young guys play better defense. It seems like without KG or Prince in the game, we still are way too easy to score on.

[Mstermisty [enjin:6864008]]

Yeah, agreed, the last few games have been a breath of fresh air in comparison to the putrid stench that permeated the team since 8-8.

I think they have a chance of turning things around and finishing strong (strong = closer to .500 ball) but I wouldn't be surprised to see us lose 13 of 15 again simply because this coaching staff is so dumb.

Sad that it took about 45 games into the season to realize the team is better off playing to it's strength of being young and athletic instead of a starting 3 guys together who barely score much less get out and run. Yeah the defense is better but it hasn't resulted in many wins and has only hindered development.

Time to play the "what if" game: What if Sam had actually stuck to his early pre-season declaration of starting Zack at the 2 guard and stuck with it? Or even better, started Bazz off the jump and stuck with the Wiggs/Bazz wing combo up until now?

I'm not completely against what Sam has done in starting the wise and crafty vets in KG and Prince. But then again, couldn't those guys have been wise and crafty and actually anchored a second unit with players that desperately need anchoring like Bazz, Lavine, Bjelica, Dieng etc.? Instead we have had second unit lineups that make me cringe, mostly this one: Lavine/K-Mart/Bazz/Bjelica/Dieng.

Well hopefully from here on out even Sam will see what is right in front of him: Zack is much better playing the 2, we need to play the young guys more as units of 5, and we need to get out and run.

And finally, KAT is really REALLY good. Already. Can't imagine what he's gonna look like when he gets his man strength. Also, can we please play him more than 29 minutes a game!

[Porckchop]

Yeah, agreed, the last few games have been a breath of fresh air in comparison to the putrid stench that permeated the team since 8-8.

I think they have a chance of turning things around and finishing strong (strong = closer to .500 ball) but I wouldn't be surprised to see us lose 13 of 15 again simply because this coaching staff is so dumb.

Sad that it took about 45 games into the season to realize the team is better off playing to it's strength of being young and athletic instead of a starting 3 guys together who barely score much less get out and run. Yeah the defense is better but it hasn't resulted in many wins and has only hindered development.

Time to play the "what if" game: What if Sam had actually stuck to his early pre-season declaration of starting Zack at the 2 guard and stuck with it? Or even better, started Bazz off the jump and stuck with the Wiggs/Bazz wing combo up until now?

I'm not completely against what Sam has done in starting the wise and crafty vets in KG and Prince. But then again, couldn't those guys have been wise and crafty and actually anchored a second unit with players that desperately need anchoring like Bazz, Lavine, Bjelica, Dieng etc.? Instead we have had second unit lineups that make me cringe, mostly this one: Lavine/K-Mart/Bazz/Bjelica/Dieng.

Well hopefully from here on out even Sam will see what is right in front of him: Zack is much better playing the 2, we need to play the young guys more as units of 5, and we need to get out and run.

And finally, KAT is really REALLY good. Already. Can't imagine what he's gonna look like when he gets his man strength. Also, can we please play him more than 29 minutes a game!

I'm pretty happy with the amount of minutes KAT has played . What's the sense in over working him in a season down the drain?

[Monster]

The team has perked up a bit over the last few games, but it's too early to tell if we have fully pulled out of the tailspin that ensued after the 8-8 start.

I'd like to see the young guys play better defense. It seems like without KG or Prince in the game, we still are way too easy to score on.

Yep agreed. Everyone would like to see better defense but lets also remember reality and that's we probably would have been somewhat thrilled if this team was even average defensively. That doesn't mean we shouldn't want to see them improve there, but I don't know how realistic that is. Sam emphasized defense from the start and has some old vets in KG and Prince to lean on at times, but Sam isn't actually a defensive coach and to our knowledge there isn't one on the staff. I have seen some guys improve basics thoughout the year. lavine is always down in his stance and puts for effort on every play and doesnt just give up anywhere nearly as much. Bazz looks less like a lost puppy out there. Dieng for all his faults has improved tremendously over last year in some areas where at times he was a total disaster.

[MikkeMan]

I think that Lavine has looked a lot better lately in defense. I really liked how well he was defending Irving in Cavs game and he looked very good also against Conley in Memphis game. I even think that our point guard defense has looked better lately with Lavine than what it has been with Ricky.

Another player that has looked a lot better defensively lately is Bjelica. He still gets occasionally manhandled in low post against stronger opponents like Love or Randolph but he has been able to stay very well with some smaller players when we have switched in pick and roll play.

[Q12543 [enjin:6621299]]

I think that Lavine has looked a lot better lately in defense. I really liked how well he was defending Irving in Cavs game and he looked very good also against Conley in Memphis game. I even think that our point guard defense has looked better lately with Lavine than what it has been with Ricky.

Another player that has looked a lot better defensively lately is Bjelica. He still gets occasionally manhandled in low post against stronger opponents like Love or Randolph but he has been able to stay very well with some smaller players when we have switched in pick and roll play.

LaVine has always been good at guarding the ball handler in space. It's when he gets screened or his guy is playing off the ball that he gets totally lost at times. He also tends to be easily fooled by cross-overs. I do think he's improved, but it's gone from horrible to just plain bad.

What I don't get is given his limited minutes why they aren't taking him and having him press guys full court. Yes, he sometimes picks guys up full-court, but it's always half-hearted. He has elite foot speed and length for a PG and could really force the other team's PG to exert a ton more energy to just get the offense set up.

As for Bjelica, he seems to have solid fundamentals, but he is called for so many fouls. I think part of that is him being a bit overwhelmed by the athleticism of the NBA and another part of that is referee bias. They see a rookie white dude from Europe and automatically blow the whistle every time he touches someone. Hopefully that situation gets better next year.

[Monster]

I think that Lavine has looked a lot better lately in defense. I really liked how well he was defending Irving in Cavs game and he looked very good also against Conley in Memphis game. I even think that our point guard defense has looked better lately with Lavine than what it has been with Ricky.

Another player that has looked a lot better defensively lately is Bjelica. He still gets occasionally manhandled in low post against stronger opponents like Love or Randolph but he has been able to stay very well with some smaller players when we have switched in pick and roll play.

LaVine has always been good at guarding the ball handler in space. It's when he gets screened or his guy is playing off the ball that he gets totally lost at times. He also tends to be easily fooled by cross-overs. I do think he's improved, but it's gone from horrible to just plain bad.

What I don't get is given his limited minutes why they aren't taking him and having him press guys full court. Yes, he sometimes picks guys up full-court, but it's always half-hearted. He has elite foot speed and length for a PG and could really force the other team's PG to exert a ton more energy to just get the offense set up.

As for Bjelica, he seems to have solid fundamentals, but he is called for so many fouls. I think part of that is him being a bit overwhelmed by the athleticism of the NBA and another part of that is referee bias. They see a rookie white dude from Europe and automatically blow the whistle every time he touches someone. Hopefully that situation gets better next year.

Belly does get called for some fouls because he swipes low at the ball like a guard more than your typical guy his size. He has to be smarter with that. Speaking of swiping at the ball low that's something Zachary has improved a lot at. His transition or help defense has some worth because he has become aggressive and more of a nose for the ball than he did last year.

Q the difference between Lavine pressing up on offensive players this year compared to last year is pretty stark. I agree he should be putting even more pressure on but last year it was nearly all half hearted and you could tell quickly he didn't know what the hell he was doing. This year he is in his stance seems to at least have some sort of plan of attack. It's not there yet but I do think he looked more the part after the Glove worked with him. Yeah he hasn't arrived yet but so think he has made some reasonably encouraging strides. I ripped Derrick Williams plenty but his man post defense from his rookie to second year was significant. Team defense not so much but At least he was t a complete liability in that regard. I see Lavine having a higher defensive ceiling obviously but I like seeing some legit progress. I wonder what a legit defensive coach could do with some of these guys.