Minnesota Sports Forum

1. "protect the rim"

The biggest problem for the wolves is that they can't "protect the rim". Most people on here have no clue what that means. The wolves don't have anybody who blocks two shots a game therefore we don't "protect the rim". We need to trade for a guy like Ibaka because he puts two shots into the stands. That must make him a good defender. Nevermind the fact that Love and Pek went for 30 and 30 against the rim protectors of the thunder and have constantly done so against the Thunder. Who leads the league in blocks? Anthony Davis. NO also happens to be one of the worst defensive teams but most measures out there. The term "protect the rim" has no substance behind it.

2. "cant create his own shot"

This one gets thrown around about Kevin Love a lot and how he can't create his own shot, he has to have someone set him up, gets points off offensive rebounds. blah blah blah. Love is 4th in the league in scoring ahead of people who so called can "create his own shot". Steph Curry, Chris Paul, kyrie irving, tony parker. on and on and on. No one in the league can avg 26 pts a game off offensive putbacks, and being set up by Rubio, who oh yea also sucks according to most people on here.

Did I miss anymore phrases that fans throw out there that mean absolutely nothing?

"Adelman doesn't play rookies" is another cute one. You're spot-on with the first two, though.

Well, they can maybe mean something if they are provided with context. For example, the Wolves do a poor job "protecting the rim" because opponents are shooting the highest percentage in the league within 5 feet of the rim.

How many shot creators do the Spurs have? Parker and Manu?

AbeVigodaLive wrote:Well, they can maybe mean something if they are provided with context. For example, the Wolves do a poor job "protecting the rim" because opponents are shooting the highest percentage in the league within 5 feet of the rim.

again, NO is right next to them and have the league leader in blocks. Clippers are right there too and they have rim protector Deandre Jordan

alexftbl8181 wrote:

AbeVigodaLive wrote:Well, they can maybe mean something if they are provided with context. For example, the Wolves do a poor job "protecting the rim" because opponents are shooting the highest percentage in the league within 5 feet of the rim.

again, NO is right next to them and have the league leader in blocks. Clippers are right there too and they have rim protector Deandre Jordan

To be fair, I never believed "protecting the rim" was the same as "blocking shots."

Protect the rim - blocked shots, hard fouls and the general fear instilled in anybody trying to score at the basket. Rim protectors affect player mentality by making guys think twice before trying to score at the rim whether they block or alter the shot or foul him hard enough to not want to go to the hole again.

Shot creator - if you give the ball to a guy, can he get a good shot or make a bad shot out of nothing.

This thread is stupid. These are both valid phrases used by more than just this board including respected journalists.

khans2k5 wrote:Protect the rim - blocked shots, hard fouls and the general fear instilled in anybody trying to score at the basket. Rim protectors affect player mentality by making guys think twice before trying to score at the rim whether they block or alter the shot or foul him hard enough to not want to go to the hole again.

Shot creator - if you give the ball to a guy, can he get a good shot or make a bad shot out of nothing.

This thread is stupid. These are both valid phrases used by more than just this board including respected journalists.

Good point. I am pretty sure I have heard successful coaches use these phrases. Is it ok for Flip to use the phrase?

A day after his first draft calling the shots for the Wolves, president of basketball operations Flip Saunders was playing defense.

"If (fans) are talking about us, that's good," he said. "Some people may like it; some don't. I'm excited about (Muhammad and Dieng) because we filled holes. We do have to protect the rim better, and Gorgui is going to be able to do that. We were very low in the league in scoring from our (shooting guards and small forwards), and Shabazz will help out with that

From:

http://www.twincities.com/ci_23563250/timberwolves-shabazz-muhammad-we-have-diamond-rough

Candidate for most incorrect post of the year?

If "protect the rim" were code for "blocks shots", you'd be right. But that's not what protect the rim means. It means the player is affecting an opposing offense's ability to score in the paint. Virtually every team on the short list of contenders features bigs who protect the rim. Does it matter if Love and Pek score 30 against these bigs? Not if our defense is giving up 60 to their wings while our own perimeter guys are held to 20. Scoring and rim protecting are not equivalent values. One can be shifted to different positions on the floor. One, traditionally, cannot.

If "create his own shot" were code for "iso player who kills ball movement a la Rudy Gay", you'd be right. But that's not what creating your own shot means. It means you can both handle the ball and shoot the ball, allowing you to move around the floor while simultaneously threatening and warping the defense. Almost every team in the league has at least one of these, and the good teams usually have 2-3 on the floor at all times. We have none unless you count JJ, and he's really too inefficient/limited. Martin's loose handle and Rubio's horrible shooting are limiting factors for our offense.

Listen to this quote:

"You know, I wish I had an answer for it," Rick Adelman said after the game when asked about if he felt the team had been impatient on offense as of late. "We've looked at the tape; we've looked at everything. This group... every group you have is different. But this group just seemed to be there rolling along, so that's why I was concerned at halftime. We were 14 points up.

I said, 'now we've seen this before. Suddenly, they get a couple baskets. We start going one-on-one. We don't stay disciplined.' Yeah, it's been a real trait of this team and we've got to figure that out. We cannot... we just roll along and then boom. We hit a wall and a lot of that is we don't have guys who can break you down off the dribble. We don't have somebody like that, so the ball's got to move as a group. That's how we're going to be effective, especially now that Pek's going. He's a load inside but we've got to have other people doing the right thing for him to get open."

http://www.awolfamongwolves.com/2013/12/timberwolves-120-wizards-98-down-the-stretch-they-start/

Isn't Adelman saying we don't have a shot creator?