Minnesota Sports Forum

No doubts about it. The Wolves have a losing culture. It seems to be that way form top to bottom. It shows in the SL. It shows in the coaching search. Nobody is buying Flip's BS. We have young talent to build a winner, but it really concerns me that we won't make the Thunder type leap from young to contender because the culture is just bad. I think KG was a good move, but he can't do it alone. I think it starts at the top and filters down. I think for most people it is about winning more then the job. I don't get that feeling with Flip. Which is fine at POB, but not as ooach. Thibs would be a guy that is more about winning then money, but I don't see him having interest in this job.

Really looking forward to seeing what Hoiberg does with the Bulls. I have a feeling it will put the job Thibs did in a little more perspective.

Cool - I think Hoiberg will do great. Again I think it comes from the top. The Bulls organization is not happy with losing. I am sure if Flip would have expressed interest in being the Bulls coach they would have said thanks but no thanks.

Thibs does and should get credit for the success the Bull have had but whoever is responsible for drafting and then developing talent there plus bringing in some decent vet guys cheap deserves alot of credit also. my point is that really talent matters and the Bulls have done a heck of a job in that respect. If we can do what the Bulls have been doing the last few years in regards to talent we will be in pretty good shape.

When it comes to culture I think Flip has brought alot of good things to MN. I don't think we are quite the joke we once were and part of that is Flip. He is trying to make the franchise more legit in a number of ways (Mayo facilities) while also trying to do what he can to make the wolves sort of a cool place to be. Flip to me is low BS guy that seems to be pretty energetic and upbeat. He seems like a fun guy to be around in general and that's probably a good thing for his role. I think he does a pretty good job of selling the franchise. As far as Flip and coaching or looking or coaching...thats a big deal but I do think if Flip does the rest of his job well I tend to think the rest will fall into place. I get the level of frustration and lack of confidence on that end (coaching) that people have though.

For me I see Flip to eager to pat himself on the back and try and compare his team to the best in the league. I understand you have to sell, but it is just annoying to me. Last 2 years he has set out to be a playoff team. He failed both years. Last year he was not even remotely close. The SL is not important attitude clearly broke my spirit. This would be where you find the plan C or D for your roster. It matters to the free agents on the team trying to land a gig and it should matter in setting a foundation with our young players on this is how we approach things. (message is halfass)

bleedspeed177 wrote:For me I see Flip to eager to pat himself on the back and try and compare his team to the best in the league. I understand you have to sell, but it is just annoying to me. Last 2 years he has set out to be a playoff team. He failed both years. Last year he was not even remotely close. The SL is not important attitude clearly broke my spirit. This would be where you find the plan C or D for your roster. It matters to the free agents on the team trying to land a gig and it should matter in setting a foundation with our young players on this is how we approach things. (message is halfass)

If you took from what I said that Flip basically doesn't care at all about SL then I feel I miss-characterized what he said. there was some context like teams triple teaming Towns trying to win etc. it's tough to know how seriously to take SL on so many levels. It's often not much different than moderately coached glorified pickup ball.

I do think in general the wolves haven't always put forth the biggest presence in general in SL going back to KG's days so it's a fair critic. Remember some of the other franchises have d-league teams which helps them when it comes to SL teams also. The Spurs played in Salt Lake City also. I've been critical of Flip and Glen for not having a d-league team but I will say that the new Mayo facilities sound pretty good so maybe Flip and Glen really have been working on the d-league situation and are trying to do it first class if they are going to do it. I am pretty impatient though about it as probably every poster here knows.

I think the reality is the Wolves have a losing culture until that changes and we won't know if the Wolves have really changed their culture for a couple years even if they surprise and have a pretty good season this year.

Edit: I agree with you Flip pats himself on the back too much. Running the Wolves he may need to give himself some encouragement to stave off deep depression though. Lol

The thing Flip doesn't seem to get is that three point shooting like any other basketball skill requires dedication to become adequate at this level and his coaching philosophy of take shots you're comfortable with is not a dedicated approach to improving from behind the arc. How long can he get his ass kicked on that part of the box score before he realizes it should be something he should have been developing all along? We now have 4 stretch bigs who all will probably never reach their 3 point shooting potential under Flip while guys like Serge Ibaka are at least figuring out the corner 3 because they realize how important spacing is to the game. Flip doesn't seem to be a good coach which I think is sort of backed up by the fact that he wasn't getting any calls before Glenn gave him the POBO job. He's doing good work as a GM, but I think he's dropping the ball on the coaching front which might do more damage to this team's future winning potential.

This is a pretty epic July 19th post. We need some real basketball to get here fast before we all lose our minds.

I believe the Wolves are a loser franchise.

But at least they are a professional one now... instead of what we endured during the Kahn regime. That man was not qualified for the job. And it was revealed at almost every turn.

You don't change a culture overnight. Especially with a bunch of young guys. But with a a bit of luck (Wolves got this with James going back to Cle and pushing for the Wiggins deal... and the draft lottery win) and patience and players who are legit... the culture can change.

Hopefully, we start to see signs of it as early as this season.

There's no question that the Wolves have to be classified as a loser organization...their record over the past decade+ allows no other label. But I don't buy into all the "culture" discussion. Ultimately, you win because you have better players than the other teams, and if those players are healthy, and the Wolves have lagged the rest of the league in quality of player and health for most of their existence. Taylor, Saunders, KG, Wittman, McHale and Lowe were all part of the 2004 team that went to the conference championship, and all (except perhaps KG) have been labeled as losers at one time or another. Did we have a losing culture in 2004? Of course not, and we don't now. The difference between 2003-4 and 2014-5 was not culture, because many of the lead characters were there on both teams...it was about players and health.

That's why I don't get concerned about losing games in SL. A quick look at the lack of shooters on the roster shows that Flip was not interested in winning the league...he only wanted to give his young guys a chance to play at a higher level and to analyze their play. Guys like KAT have won their entire lives...losing with an inadequate roster in Vegas is not going to change their perception and style.

I'm happy for the Spurs doing so well this summer with Becky Hammon coaching, but their winning culture won't mean anything in 9 months if Parker, Duncan and Leonard are all hurt.

Now, the comments about Saunders' coaching have some merit. While he has been successful in his career, there is ample evidence that he is not a defensive coach. And his lack of love for the 3-point shot is out of touch with today's NBA. I still think the Wolves have the players to be a playoff team this year, if healthy, even with Saunders coaching. But I think a new, more modern coach will maximize the potential of this great young core.