Minnesota Sports Forum

It's gonna be tough, but wouldn't it be nice to break the W-L-W-L, never go over .500 pattern? The Spurs are only a 6-point favorite as Vegas continues to show a lot of respect for the Wolves. We all know how good the Spurs are, but let's talk about what the Wolves have going for them.

1) With Splitter out, the Wolves are much more physical inside than the aging Duncan + whatever, and both Pek and Love have a chance to have big games
2) The Wolves generally play well against the Spurs
3) Ginobili may not play, and that would be huge. He scored 20 off of us last game and really highlights the difference between our two benches. Come on Mario, take a night off!
4) Also narrowing the gap between the statistically best and worst benches in the league is our new improved bench play with the return of Turiaf and Budinger. Bud has looked much more athletic than I thought he would in his early return, and Turiaf just seems to inspire the second unit. I would love to see the same kind of energy they showed against Charlotte.

So, a few things going for our Wolves, so I think we can keep it close. I fear at the end of the day, though, we are likely to be 0-11 in close games. At least a close loss to San Antonio won't feel as bad as the Dallas and Phoenix losses did. But come on guys, we have to win a close one eventually.

Another pattern we need to break is being able to beat a quality team. We beat Portland and OKC (without westbrook) and that is it. We have really struggled against the elite in the league. It would be nice to see us step it up in a big game. I think it would be huge for the team as a whole, and a great remedy for all the off the court crap that has been going on.

I think this is the game we break out of this cycle. We seem to play well against the Spurs, and I think the "crap" might be what this team needs to stay focused. Maybe they actually play a little angry tonight.

Unfortunately, you point out a real problem this season, doper...the absence of a big win. As much as I loved the OKC and Portland wins, neither was a big win...OKC because (as you mentioned) Westbrook was out, and Portland because they were dead tired playing their 4th road game in 5 nights. A win in S.A,. even with Ginobili out, would definitely qualify as a big win. I'd love to see it, but I won't be looking for the closest bridge if we lose.

The Kevins are struggling early...1 for 10 from the field. Duncan with 3 blocks already

How does Pek get blocked by something called Jeff Ayres?

Damn Spurs announcers on my feed are a joke. On that last foul on JJ they said "He got a lot of ball". Honestly, he got a lot of JJ on that foul, but because he got some ball to it was questionable? I think these guys are so used to winning, so used to getting the phantom calls that they can't even see straight when a legit call goes against them.

And Love, better get your chit together before you get a post game public call out. Earn that max contract damn it.

God, the Spurs are good. It doesn't seem to matter who they have out there, the ball movement is exceptional. Wish we had Pop as coach.

JJ is being a stupid jerk. But he sure is smiling about it...

60WinTim wrote:JJ is being a stupid jerk. But he sure is smiling about it...

Yeah, he can be annoying. Second unit looks good again tonight though...so far.