Game Report - Wolves v. Hawks
Posted: Sat Dec 29, 2018 12:46 am
A big crowd tonight at Target Center to watch the Wolves host one of the worst teams in the NBA. What did the Wolves give those fans? An inexcusable loss. Obviously, the Wolves lost this game in oh so many ways and for oh so many reasons. Coming out flat as a team and falling behind by 20 points in the first quarter was unacceptable. Coming back and building a 9-point lead in the 3rd, however, should have been the beginning of the end for the Hawks. Alas, the Wolves fell flat again on the offensive end and allowed the Hawks to get back in the game. The end result was an overtime loss and an understandably angry crowd of Timberwolves fans.
Of all the things that contributed to this loss, including missed free throws by multiple Wolves' players, the following three things stand out for me:
1. The entire team coming out flat in the first quarter;
2. The complete inability of Derrick Rose to stay anywhere close to Young defensively; and'
3. The ridiculous failure of the team to run the offense through Towns.
The last point is the one that gets me the most. With all the missed free throws (and KAT had his share of those) and the lackluster start to the game, what takes the cake for me was the team's failure to get KAT as much as a single on multiple possessions, which goes beyond the utter failure to run the offense through him as our best offensive player. As early as the 2nd quarter, I told the guy behind me that KAT would score 40+ points if the Wolves would just get him the ball consistently. No one on the Hawks could stop KAT. But fortunately for Atlanta, Thibodeau and Derrick Rose were able to contain him.
The fact that KAT took 17 shots, hitting 59% of them, while Rose took 24 shots on 42% shooting is unacceptable. Towns is the Wolves best offensive player by far. And tonight Towns was having a great game, ending up with 31 points and 19 rebounds. Atlanta had a hard time stopping him. When KAT wasn't scoring, he was making some terrific passes that led to 5 assists. Note he would have had 7 assists if Covington didn't showboat his way to two missed dunks.
It's bad enough that the Wolves don't run their offense through KAT. Even worse is that the Wolves often fail to get KAT a single touch on multiple possessions every game and tonight was no exception. The most memorable and consequential failure to get KAT a touch was the last play of regulation when the Wolves had the ball with the game tied. Rose never shared the ball with anyone, ultimately dribbling away the remaining time, driving recklessly into traffic and getting his shot blocked. You may not have noticed on TV that KAT was wide open for a 2-pointer and Rose had a clear passing lane to get him the ball but chose to drive into a packed lane instead.
Tyus actually played well tonight and should have had even more of Derrick Rose's minutes. Tyus was much better than Derrick defending both Lin and Young. Tyus also, as usual, did a better job of getting good shots for his teammates. Had the minutes of Rose and Tyus been inverted, the Wolves would have probably won in spite of all the other crap. But the bottom line is this. Give KAT a touch on every half-court possession tonight, and there is no doubt the Wolves would have won in spite of all the other crap. That's the ball game.
As for the other crap, let's start with Wiggins. He actually had some nice hustle plays and pulled down 6 rebounds. But missing 7 of 12 free throws (42%) from the foul line AND scoring only 16 points on 35.7% shooting from the field is totally unacceptable for a core member of the rotation, much less a max player. KAT missed 5 of 15 free throws (66.7%). That's bad, but it's better than 42% and, more importantly, KAT scored 31 points on 59% shooting and pulled down 19 rebounds. Covington missed two dunks that should have been easy layups and hit only 60% of his 5 free throws, but he scored 28 points on 50% shooting and hit some really big shots. He also had 4 assists to go with his 7 rebounds. All players make mistakes and have flaws that show up in games. But what matters is a player's overall play. Both KAT and Covington more than made up their mistakes and misses. That's what good players do. The time has passed when I'm prepared to praise Wiggins simply for a couple blocks, a few hustle plays and 6 rebounds when he otherwise produces so little.
For more crap, I'll point to Dario Saric. He looked like a deer in headlights tonight down the stretch. He was afraid to shoot, repeatedly passing up open threes. And when he shot down the stretch he was tentative and tight, repeatedly hitting the front of the rim. He ended up 3 for 11 from the field. That's not acceptable. It wasn't because he was particularly well defended. The player who stopped Saric tonight was Saric.
Probably the worst moment of tonight's game, and there were many to choose from, came late in the first quarter as I watched Jeff Teague and Bayless laughing and joking on the bench while their teammates were getting their collective ass kicked by nearly 20 points. It was shades of the Wes Johnson era. Watching Teague yuck it up with Bayless for an extended time while the team was getting the crapped kicked out of it by one of the League's worst teams made me sick.
I want players who give a shit, play hard and show heart all the time - on the court and on the bench. That's what I see in Derrick Rose, KAT, Covington and Saric. I'll live with the mistakes and flaws in all four of these players. But ball-watching and lazy body-language on the court or yucking it up on the bench while their teammates are getting their ass kicked are things I can't accept any more than I can accept tonight's loss to Atlanta.
Of all the things that contributed to this loss, including missed free throws by multiple Wolves' players, the following three things stand out for me:
1. The entire team coming out flat in the first quarter;
2. The complete inability of Derrick Rose to stay anywhere close to Young defensively; and'
3. The ridiculous failure of the team to run the offense through Towns.
The last point is the one that gets me the most. With all the missed free throws (and KAT had his share of those) and the lackluster start to the game, what takes the cake for me was the team's failure to get KAT as much as a single on multiple possessions, which goes beyond the utter failure to run the offense through him as our best offensive player. As early as the 2nd quarter, I told the guy behind me that KAT would score 40+ points if the Wolves would just get him the ball consistently. No one on the Hawks could stop KAT. But fortunately for Atlanta, Thibodeau and Derrick Rose were able to contain him.
The fact that KAT took 17 shots, hitting 59% of them, while Rose took 24 shots on 42% shooting is unacceptable. Towns is the Wolves best offensive player by far. And tonight Towns was having a great game, ending up with 31 points and 19 rebounds. Atlanta had a hard time stopping him. When KAT wasn't scoring, he was making some terrific passes that led to 5 assists. Note he would have had 7 assists if Covington didn't showboat his way to two missed dunks.
It's bad enough that the Wolves don't run their offense through KAT. Even worse is that the Wolves often fail to get KAT a single touch on multiple possessions every game and tonight was no exception. The most memorable and consequential failure to get KAT a touch was the last play of regulation when the Wolves had the ball with the game tied. Rose never shared the ball with anyone, ultimately dribbling away the remaining time, driving recklessly into traffic and getting his shot blocked. You may not have noticed on TV that KAT was wide open for a 2-pointer and Rose had a clear passing lane to get him the ball but chose to drive into a packed lane instead.
Tyus actually played well tonight and should have had even more of Derrick Rose's minutes. Tyus was much better than Derrick defending both Lin and Young. Tyus also, as usual, did a better job of getting good shots for his teammates. Had the minutes of Rose and Tyus been inverted, the Wolves would have probably won in spite of all the other crap. But the bottom line is this. Give KAT a touch on every half-court possession tonight, and there is no doubt the Wolves would have won in spite of all the other crap. That's the ball game.
As for the other crap, let's start with Wiggins. He actually had some nice hustle plays and pulled down 6 rebounds. But missing 7 of 12 free throws (42%) from the foul line AND scoring only 16 points on 35.7% shooting from the field is totally unacceptable for a core member of the rotation, much less a max player. KAT missed 5 of 15 free throws (66.7%). That's bad, but it's better than 42% and, more importantly, KAT scored 31 points on 59% shooting and pulled down 19 rebounds. Covington missed two dunks that should have been easy layups and hit only 60% of his 5 free throws, but he scored 28 points on 50% shooting and hit some really big shots. He also had 4 assists to go with his 7 rebounds. All players make mistakes and have flaws that show up in games. But what matters is a player's overall play. Both KAT and Covington more than made up their mistakes and misses. That's what good players do. The time has passed when I'm prepared to praise Wiggins simply for a couple blocks, a few hustle plays and 6 rebounds when he otherwise produces so little.
For more crap, I'll point to Dario Saric. He looked like a deer in headlights tonight down the stretch. He was afraid to shoot, repeatedly passing up open threes. And when he shot down the stretch he was tentative and tight, repeatedly hitting the front of the rim. He ended up 3 for 11 from the field. That's not acceptable. It wasn't because he was particularly well defended. The player who stopped Saric tonight was Saric.
Probably the worst moment of tonight's game, and there were many to choose from, came late in the first quarter as I watched Jeff Teague and Bayless laughing and joking on the bench while their teammates were getting their collective ass kicked by nearly 20 points. It was shades of the Wes Johnson era. Watching Teague yuck it up with Bayless for an extended time while the team was getting the crapped kicked out of it by one of the League's worst teams made me sick.
I want players who give a shit, play hard and show heart all the time - on the court and on the bench. That's what I see in Derrick Rose, KAT, Covington and Saric. I'll live with the mistakes and flaws in all four of these players. But ball-watching and lazy body-language on the court or yucking it up on the bench while their teammates are getting their ass kicked are things I can't accept any more than I can accept tonight's loss to Atlanta.