Minnesota Sports Forum

MEETING WITH DIENG

I had the chance, along with some other season ticket holders, to meet Dieng last week. Here are a few take-aways from that meeting. First, the guy is incredibly tall and long. I know I'm not breaking any news here, but I was still taken aback by how long he is. He's also a really smart and well-spoken dude. And he's not shy at all. He felt very comfortable with us and clearly loves to talk. Unlike most players you meet in settings like that, he loved answering questions and his answers were sometimes pretty lengthy. He's very mature and independent. He also struck me as confident and fiercely competitive. Overall, he's a very impressive person.

Here's a sample of some of the Q & A as I remember it (which generally won't be verbatim, but will be very close):

1. When asked who on the team he looks to for off-the-court guidance, his response was surprising. He said he doesn't look to anyone and that he "doesn't need a baby-sitter." Yes, those were his exact words: "I don't need a baby sitter." He then elaborated. He said that he knows how to conduct himself in his personal life. He mentioned that he's never smoked and never consumed any alcohol. He said when he got to the U of Kentucky, he studied, went to class, worked out, practiced and played basketball. His tone was really emphatic. He is clearly proud of his self-discipline and solid character.

2. He was also asked to compare playing for Rick Pitino v. Rick Adelman. First he stated the obvious. RP was really emotional, always yelling and telling the players what to do. He said RA hardly says anything to the players. He was then asked if the different styles have an impact on how hard a player plays. He said it shouldn't. He went on to say that "hard work is a habit." He elaborated that you work hard because of the pride you take in your game, your desire for playing time and your drive to beat your opponent. He said you have a problem if you need a coach yelling at you to get you motivated. Very pointed response. This guy really tells you what he thinks and you can tell it's not pre-programmed crap, but his heart-felt conviction.'

3. He was asked if he's frustrated by his lack of playing time. He said he's motivated, not frustrated. He said he learns every day in practice going up against Pekovic. And he said that the coaches only have to explain something to him once for him to get it. He went on to say that he's focused on improving every day in practice. He mentioned that to get playing time and stay in the NBA you have to prove yourself and you have to keep improving. He want on to say the following: "I don't mean to sound arrogant, but I think I have the ability to be a very good player in the NBA for a long time."

Overall, I found him to be a very impressive and uniquely engaging young person and player. I look for some great things from him over time. But having watched him on the court with the Wolves so far, it's clear he has a ways to go.

SOME INTERESTING INFORMATION

I also had the chance to learn some interesting information about things inside the Wolves organization, particularly in relation to this year's draft. Apparently, Flip tried really hard to get certain players in the draft, but couldn't come up with an adequate offer to get any of them. That's why he sounded somewhat disappointed when he announced the Shabazz pick. Flip's three favorite draft prospects in order of preference were Oladipo, KCP and Olynyk. He tried hard to trade up for Oladipo and even made a solid offer to the Pistons to pry KCP away from them. I can't tell you what Flip offered for KCP, but it was a generous and reasonable offer in my view. Apparently, Joe Dumars liked KCP every bit as much as Flip did. Flip did the deal with Utah thinking he'd end up with Olynyk. Don't get me wrong, apparently Flip liked Shabazz and had no qualms about taking him at #14 as part of the Utah deal. But that wasn't what Flip envisioned. Flip also liked McCollum a lot.

As for Shabazz, he has apparently done a 180 from the way he was conducting himself during Summer League. I'm told he has become one of the hardest workers on the team. Apparently he is literally the first to arrive and last to leave every practice. And he apparently busts his behind at every practice. Also, Kevin Love urged the Wolves to consider drafting Shabazz. Knowing Kevin's super high basketball IQ, I take some comfort in Love's endorsement of Shabazz. These are all good things. Based on my own observations, Shabazz just needs to get more "team focused." I'd like to see him get longer and more athletic, but unfortunately, that's not going to happen. :) If Shabazz keeps working the way he has been in practice, I'm certain he'll get his chance sometime this season to establish himself as part of the rotation. So stay tuned.

This just got me even more excited for both Dieng and Shabazz, and I don't even think that was what this post was meant to do. Great, great insight Lip. I can't say it enough. Thanks for taking the time to post that because it was a hell of a read.

I'm going to assume you roughly know the deal that was offered to DET. If you say it was generous and reasonable, then I'm going to once again assume that D-Will wasn't part of it. So that makes me wonder what Flip would have been able to offer to Detroit for KCP. We didn't have many assetts going into the draft, so if the package was No. 9 and maybe Shved? I guess I could see that being offered. Just thinking out loud (in text form). I heard somewhere, probably here, that Flip also really liked Zeller. Are you insinuating that Flip liked Olynyk over Zeller? That would be news to me. Also, now I can understand why Flip sounded disappointed in announcing the Shabazz pick. After all those phone calls to try and get one of the guys you really, really wanted, how exhausted he must have felt. On another note, I feel great in how Dipo's been so far for Orlando. Just wish Flip would have been able to pull off that deal. I got so hyped up for it lol. At least my eye for talent is 20/20 ;)

Also, I'm glad to hear that K-Love was involved in the drafting process. If he's behind Shabazz, then so am I. Wonder if Love's promotion of Shabazz is because of the player or the college he came from. Maybe both? I'd be interested to know how Love and Shabazz act towards one another during practice and bench time.

well that sounds great, however our bench is not producing at all and even then Adelman is not playing either of them, even though one of main argument to draft them was that both are NBA ready. Well somebody messed up bigtime and both will have to practice hard to even get some minor minutes.

m4gor wrote:well that sounds great, however our bench is not producing at all and even then Adelman is not playing either of them, even though one of main argument to draft them was that both are NBA ready. Well somebody messed up bigtime and both will have to practice hard to even get some minor minutes.

Did anyone expect them to get significant minutes this year, though, especially early in the year? I would say no. If they do eventually earn their time on the court, I expect it to be towards the middle of the year or later on. Six games in, Dieng and Shabazz shouldn't be looked at for much contributions in games. Practice? For sure. That's where they'll grind for PT. Other than that, they're getting mental reps and practice time. Tough to expect anything more, in my opinion.

Camden wrote:

m4gor wrote:well that sounds great, however our bench is not producing at all and even then Adelman is not playing either of them, even though one of main argument to draft them was that both are NBA ready. Well somebody messed up bigtime and both will have to practice hard to even get some minor minutes.

Did anyone expect them to get significant minutes this year, though, especially early in the year? I would say no. If they do eventually earn their time on the court, I expect it to be towards the middle of the year or later on. Six games in, Dieng and Shabazz shouldn't be looked at for much contributions in games. Practice? For sure. That's where they'll grind for PT. Other than that, they're getting mental reps and practice time. Tough to expect anything more, in my opinion.

well, wolves/Flip were saying that Dieng is the most NBA ready big in draft, and he cannot get any minutes, however there are multiple bigs from this draft who can play 15+ minutes a game, shabazz was also ticked as NBA ready player

what we needed from this draft was a depth, some players who can eat some minutes and help our starters to safe some energy, we are playoff ready team, we no need to pick high risk/ high reward shots with players who will develop for few years and hardly play

Thanks for the interesting inside look, Lipoli. Really good read.

Dieng and Shabazz are completely different individuals, but aspects of their character was one of the things that excited me most about drafting them.

With Dieng, it is his intelligence. He is raw, but the athleticism is there, and his coaches always talk about what a quick study he is. That combination (athleticism and quick learner) projects very well. He could be the steal of the draft.

And I see Shabazz's alleged character defects as an asset. He is not, and never will be, lovable. There is a black cloud over his head and he never seems to happy. Relationships don't appear to be his highest priority. I think he has a competitive desire to be the best burning inside him, and it has allowed him to be successful at every level he has played. He is always going to provide us with fodder for criticism with his unusual demeanor, but we should not b surprised at reports that he is our hardest working guy, and we should not be surprised at the improvement that will bring.

Thanks Lip. I was a little more upbeat about the Shabazz pick than most from what I remember. I never had any delusions that he was a #1 go to guy but I thought his skillset would fit in nicely as someone who could finish what his teammates create for him. I am still very hopeful of that. I would be a huge boost if he and Dieng can become reliable 2nd unit guys.

Based on what we've seen from Shved and Williams, we really need Dieng and Shbazz, or at least one of them, to come thru for us this season. Flip again questioned Derrick's motor on the Friday Funkadelic. A player's motor is the one thing that rarely improves once he gets to the NBA. So I just don't hold out much hope for Derrick. I have more hope for Shved. His problems seem to be judgment and confidence. Both of those can improve with experience, good coaching and good teammates. So I'm still hoping that Shved will turn the corner and come through for us.

How much of motor is physical, though? In my opinion, as someone who played AAU/HS baseball growing up rather than basketball, having a good motor is more "want to" than anything. When I'd go hoop with my buddies who actually played basketball, I was a simple 3/D/cutting role player. I don't think I'm naturally gifted in stamina, but my effort and hustle are always high which makes my motor pretty good. Point is, the guys like Oladipo, Rubio, Tony Allen, etc. Those guys WANT to play all out. They want to leave all their energy on the floor. I don't see why D-Will can't be like this IF his mindset changed. It's just a matter of getting him to buy in... Ugh.

lipoli390 wrote:Based on what we've seen from Shved and Williams, we really need Dieng and Shbazz, or at least one of them, to come thru for us this season. Flip again questioned Derrick's motor on the Friday Funkadelic. A player's motor is the one thing that rarely improves once he gets to the NBA. So I just don't hold out much hope for Derrick. I have more hope for Shved. His problems seem to be judgment and confidence. Both of those can improve with experience, good coaching and good teammates. So I'm still hoping that Shved will turn the corner and come through for us.

Two things that jump out at me about the DW situation. First is that we have the only GM in the NBA who is bad mouthing his own player, and in the process lowering his value. Second is that I would hope that the brain trust realizes by now that this tactic isn't working with DW. I don't know what would, but maybe the guy needs to be coddled a little. If you are going to be paid ridiculous sums of money to manage and analyze players, I would hope you had a better strategy than what we have witnessed to this point.

I have the same attitude toward todays players that Adelman has. They should be professional, give their all without a coach having to babysit them. Unfortunately that isn't the case in todays professional sports, and it is up to our coach and FO to realize that and start making the most of their assets. If DW is a lost cause in their eyes than cut your losses and get what you can for him, but don't further run down his value by making your feelings public.

Flip, like McHale is completely out of his comfort zone trying to run a team.

One other thought is that DW didn't seem to have a "motor problem" in college.