Minnesota Sports Forum

Anyone else wonder why that is the case? By all accounts Shabazz isn't playing because of defense but what exactly is Budinger bringing defensively? He clearly isn't healthy and doesn't have his legs under him which is evident when every shot he takes is short. I say give Shabazz some run with the 2nd unit! It's not like the 2nd unit is a defensive juggernaut anyhow and its painful to watch them attempt to manufacture points.

Ricky Bricky wrote:Anyone else wonder why that is the case? By all accounts Shabazz isn't playing because of defense but what exactly is Budinger bringing defensively? He clearly isn't healthy and doesn't have his legs under him which is evident when every shot he takes is short. I say give Shabazz some run with the 2nd unit! It's not like the 2nd unit is a defensive juggernaut anyhow and its painful to watch them attempt to manufacture points.

he isn't playing because he stinks

Bud was in there at the last possession for defensive purposes guarding iggy. He plays because adelman trust him.

Shabazz has shown he is not ready to make an impact. Bud, on the other hand, will definitely make an impact as he works his way back into shape.

alexftbl8181 wrote:

Ricky Bricky wrote:Anyone else wonder why that is the case? By all accounts Shabazz isn't playing because of defense but what exactly is Budinger bringing defensively? He clearly isn't healthy and doesn't have his legs under him which is evident when every shot he takes is short. I say give Shabazz some run with the 2nd unit! It's not like the 2nd unit is a defensive juggernaut anyhow and its painful to watch them attempt to manufacture points.

he isn't playing because he stinks

Remind me what Budinger has done again?

60WinTim wrote:Shabazz has shown he is not ready to make an impact. Bud, on the other hand, will definitely make an impact as he works his way back into shape.

Its hard to make an impact from the bench. Bud has not done anything to speak of since his return.

worldK wrote:Bud was in there at the last possession for defensive purposes guarding iggy. He plays because adelman trust him.

That's my point. He should not be on the floor strictly because Adelman trusts him. He should be on the floor because he is healthy and ready to contribute. I have not seen anything that would indicate that. He had absolutely nothing to do with the final play defensively.

Bud is a great positional player, even half injured. I am a huge Shabazz supporter, have been for a while and been very vocal about it. But I see the point of having even less athletic Bud in there, he never gets in anyone's way. He is built for Adelman's system. If anything I would give Shabazz a try at some point as the backup 2 if Shved is cold. It would be fun to see that mismatch at some point.

thedoper wrote:Bud is a great positional player, even half injured. I am a huge Shabazz supporter, have been for a while and been very vocal about it. But I see the point of having even less athletic Bud in there, he never gets in anyone's way. He is built for Adelman's system. If anything I would give Shabazz a try at some point as the backup 2 if Shved is cold. It would be fun to see that mismatch at some point.

I agree with you doper regarding bud. H doesnt wow you defensively but he sticks to his role and wont make dumb and costly mistakes on d.

I'm not saying he should get 20 minutes a game. I am saying give the kid some burn in some semi-meaningful minutes and see what he brings to the table. Everyone knows what Bud is capable of. Nothing great, nothing awful...Shabazz has a much higher ceiling. Its worth seeing what he can do. Put him out there on the short leash the Derick Williams left in town. The 2nd unit needs scoring and that is what he does well. Anyone remember when Kevin Love was a young player that didn't see the court because of his defense? Well it hasn't gotten that much better but his impact offensively offsets his defensive liability which may be the case with Shabazz as well. The only way to find out is to get him on the floor.