Minnesota Sports Forum

The NBA stats page has a fairly simple stat known as net rating, which is basically the difference between team points per 100 possessions and opponent points per 100 possessions while any given player is on the floor. Again, this is purely an "On" rating, not a delta between On and Off.

Let's look at how the Wolves stack up through 21 games:

Rubio +5.6
Prince +4.5
Miller +2.9
Rudez +1.5
KG +1.3
Dieng 0
Bjelica -.9
Towns -1.3
Martin -1.6
Wiggins -2
LaVine -2.3
Muhammed -2.9
Payne -5.9

Here are a few takeaways:

- No one should be shocked that Rubio leads the team in net rating. It's a trend that has held true since he was a rookie (for the most part). We outscore opposing teams by an average of 5.6 points per 100 possessions when he's in the game.

- Kudos to Flip for bringing in vets that truly are adding value - look at the remaining names below Rubio that have positive net ratings. Those guys must be doing something right.

- That being said, there is obviously interplay between individual players. For example, if we trotted out a lineup of Rubio, Miller, Prince, KG, and Dieng, my guess is that they would hardly be world beaters. Who would score? Those guys are never out there without higher usage players that "absorb" the brunt of shot-taking. That allows these guys to focus on what they do best.

- However, what this list tells me is that the higher usage guys (LaVine, Wiggins, Shabazz, Martin, KAT) are more "plug and play" for now, meaning that as long as you have a couple of these guys in any given lineup to take shots, it doesn't matter who or what combination. But boy, having Prince and Rubio out there seems to be a clear difference-maker.

- Obviously, we should all hope that this list evolves over time and we start seeing Wiggins, KAT, and LaVine in the positive column. That's when you know we're getting good. But they aren't having that kind of impact yet.

Good analysis, Q. Obviously Muhammad has been a disappointment this year, and it shows up in these numbers. My hopes for Muhammad were for him to be a consistent volume scorer paired with Martin in a high-scoring bench, but he has taken a step back offensively this year. I think we're seeing signs of a reemergence for Bazz though and that will be a very good thing for this team. I'd love to see him getting scoring 12 PPG in 20 MPG...he's certainly capable of numbers like that.

I think those numbers just reflect that the NBA is a learning process.

Sure, LaVine "looks" great. As does Wiggins. Muhammad, et al. But it's about sustaining little successes and being more consistent. At least they've had their fair share of flashes and moments. Keep those coming a bit more frequently and they'll learn more about the intricacies of the game that actually help teams win along the way.

Hopefully.

AbeVigodaLive wrote:I think those numbers just reflect that the NBA is a learning process.

Sure, LaVine "looks" great. As does Wiggins. Muhammad, et al. But it's about sustaining little successes and being more consistent. At least they've had their fair share of flashes and moments. Keep those coming a bit more frequently and they'll learn more about the intricacies of the game that actually help teams win along the way.

Hopefully.

Without question that's a big factor. I looked at Orlando which is sort of like us in that they have a mix of youngsters and vets both in the starting lineup and coming off the bench, as well as sporting a .500-ish record. Their Net rating leaders? Jason Smith, Channing Frye, and CJ Watson.

The other common thread is that when you look why Rubio/Prince and Smith/Frye/Watson lead their respective squads in net rating, it's almost all attributed to their defensive rating. Defense especially is where the subtleties and nuances of the game come into play. It's also an area that tends to have a longer learning/growth curve for players than offensive proficiency.

Man Flip and Milt are geniuses getting Rudez in that trade. He can be locked in for another year dirt cheap and we will have his bird rights after that and can pay him whatever we need to to keep him. Why is he not getting more run?

monsterpile wrote:Man Flip and Milt are geniuses getting Rudez in that trade. He can be locked in for another year dirt cheap and we will have his bird rights after that and can pay him whatever we need to to keep him. Why is he not getting more run?

I would caution against reading too much into Rudez's numbers, as he hasn't played many minutes. However, it's not unusual for 3-point specialists to have high net ratings because their ability to space the floor helps the entire team offense. I would need to see more minutes from him before declaring him a net positive though.

Q12543 wrote:

monsterpile wrote:Man Flip and Milt are geniuses getting Rudez in that trade. He can be locked in for another year dirt cheap and we will have his bird rights after that and can pay him whatever we need to to keep him. Why is he not getting more run?

I would caution against reading too much into Rudez's numbers, as he hasn't played many minutes. However, it's not unusual for 3-point specialists to have high net ratings because their ability to space the floor helps the entire team offense. I would need to see more minutes from him before declaring him a net positive though.

Thanks for the thoughtful response. Sorry I didn't use the sarcasm font in my post. I do like Rudez but not that much. :)