Game Report - Wolves v. Nuggets
Posted: Wed Nov 01, 2023 10:58 pm
A nice redemption win tonight against the Nuggets after the Wolves epic collapse on Monday night. There was a good size crowd in Target Center and a positive vibe throughout the game. I’ll admit I was concerned about a possible repeat of Monday night’s second half collapse, but I had a gut feeling it wouldn’t happen again. Thankfully, the Nuggets just weren’t shooting well tonight. The Wolves defense deserves a slot of credit for that, but I think the Nuggets were a bit off tonight as well.
As we’ve discussed, talent isn’t the problem with the Wolves. It’s whether we have the right mix of talent and it’s a lack of mental toughness. So I keep looking for players on this roster who show signed of mental toughness to get this team out of holes and stop the team from collapsing the way it did on Monday. The player I noticed having mental toughness tonight was Mike Conley. It was the way he played and his leadership early in the second half, in my view, that kept the Nuggets from gaining ground and momentum. He essentially put the team on his shoulders those first few minutes of the 3rd quarter and effectively told his teammates we are not going to give any ground here. Actually, I’m not surprised. Mike Conley is quiet, but he’s always struck me as mentally tough even though he’s physically small.
Tonight’s win isn’t definitive by any stretch. I still have doubts about this team’s mix of talent and mental toughness. The collapse and loss Monday night was indicative of last season when this team finished under .500 to lottery teams. I listened to KAT interviewed after the game. It was the most authentic and impressive KAT interview I’ve ever seen. When asked about consistency, KAT said: “If we want to be the team we think we are we have to be consistent.” And he pretty much characterized tonight’s win as doing what this team is supposed to do. So I’m encouraged by this win tonight, but I can’t overlook the fact that this team should be 4-0 with the talent it has. So we’ll see.
Speaking of KAT, his defense on Jokic in the first half was outstanding. KAT has been playing really well defensively throughout the preseason and these first 4 regular season games. The team as a whole has played really well defensively for 7 of the 8 halfs they’ve played. KAT still didn’t shoot well. He and Edwards have been missing shots they typically don’t miss although Edwards was better tonight. The good news is that KAT will start consistently hitting those bunnies and threes he’s been missing.
More good news was Jaden McDaniels pulling down 9 boards tonight to go with 2 blocks. That’s what we need to see from Jaden. His offense was a bit shaky, but not bad. And it’s important to keep in mind that he didn’t really have the ramp up through preseason his teammates had because of his calf injury. He’ll need time to get in a rhythm offensively. He needs to stop committing dumb fouls. His push in the back was really stupid and could have cost us the game if it had been close.
Shake Milton continues to underwhelm in my view. If it were up to me, I’d give JMac his minutes. But I see the point about giving Shake a chance to get it together. Ultimately, I think the Wolves staff made a mistake thinking Shake can log significant minutes as a PG. I don’t see it.
Rudy’s defense was superb tonight. Of course his hands and shooting were anything but superb. We have to take the bad with the good when it comes to Rudy. The good news is that the Wolves didn’t seem as focused on getting him the ball. I like that the offense was running more through KAT the way it did two years ago without Rudy constantly rolling and his teammates trying so hard, often awkwardly, to get him the ball. Rudy was 0-7 from the field but he was 3-3 from the line and more importantly he had 12 rebounds and 2 blocks. I’d like to see Rudy’s shot count at 5 or less. Let him set picks, rebound and protect the paint. Is what he brings worth his max salary or what we gave up to get him? Of course not. But that doesn’t matter right now. If he keeps playing the way he has so far this season, that can be good enough. It’s up to Finch to make sure Rudy’s presence doesn’t interfere with getting max offensive production from the team, especially KAT and Ant.
Speaking of Finch, I thought he did a nice job. Among other things I love that he put KAT rather than Rudy on Jokic in the first half. Statistically, KAT has defended Jokic better than Rudy has over their respective careers. KAT is slightly shorter than Jokic but KAT is strong and has pretty long arms. Guarding Jokic tonight, KAT did a really nice job of defending without fouling, something that KAT has been doing through all four games so far this season.
A nice win and a happy good night to you all.
As we’ve discussed, talent isn’t the problem with the Wolves. It’s whether we have the right mix of talent and it’s a lack of mental toughness. So I keep looking for players on this roster who show signed of mental toughness to get this team out of holes and stop the team from collapsing the way it did on Monday. The player I noticed having mental toughness tonight was Mike Conley. It was the way he played and his leadership early in the second half, in my view, that kept the Nuggets from gaining ground and momentum. He essentially put the team on his shoulders those first few minutes of the 3rd quarter and effectively told his teammates we are not going to give any ground here. Actually, I’m not surprised. Mike Conley is quiet, but he’s always struck me as mentally tough even though he’s physically small.
Tonight’s win isn’t definitive by any stretch. I still have doubts about this team’s mix of talent and mental toughness. The collapse and loss Monday night was indicative of last season when this team finished under .500 to lottery teams. I listened to KAT interviewed after the game. It was the most authentic and impressive KAT interview I’ve ever seen. When asked about consistency, KAT said: “If we want to be the team we think we are we have to be consistent.” And he pretty much characterized tonight’s win as doing what this team is supposed to do. So I’m encouraged by this win tonight, but I can’t overlook the fact that this team should be 4-0 with the talent it has. So we’ll see.
Speaking of KAT, his defense on Jokic in the first half was outstanding. KAT has been playing really well defensively throughout the preseason and these first 4 regular season games. The team as a whole has played really well defensively for 7 of the 8 halfs they’ve played. KAT still didn’t shoot well. He and Edwards have been missing shots they typically don’t miss although Edwards was better tonight. The good news is that KAT will start consistently hitting those bunnies and threes he’s been missing.
More good news was Jaden McDaniels pulling down 9 boards tonight to go with 2 blocks. That’s what we need to see from Jaden. His offense was a bit shaky, but not bad. And it’s important to keep in mind that he didn’t really have the ramp up through preseason his teammates had because of his calf injury. He’ll need time to get in a rhythm offensively. He needs to stop committing dumb fouls. His push in the back was really stupid and could have cost us the game if it had been close.
Shake Milton continues to underwhelm in my view. If it were up to me, I’d give JMac his minutes. But I see the point about giving Shake a chance to get it together. Ultimately, I think the Wolves staff made a mistake thinking Shake can log significant minutes as a PG. I don’t see it.
Rudy’s defense was superb tonight. Of course his hands and shooting were anything but superb. We have to take the bad with the good when it comes to Rudy. The good news is that the Wolves didn’t seem as focused on getting him the ball. I like that the offense was running more through KAT the way it did two years ago without Rudy constantly rolling and his teammates trying so hard, often awkwardly, to get him the ball. Rudy was 0-7 from the field but he was 3-3 from the line and more importantly he had 12 rebounds and 2 blocks. I’d like to see Rudy’s shot count at 5 or less. Let him set picks, rebound and protect the paint. Is what he brings worth his max salary or what we gave up to get him? Of course not. But that doesn’t matter right now. If he keeps playing the way he has so far this season, that can be good enough. It’s up to Finch to make sure Rudy’s presence doesn’t interfere with getting max offensive production from the team, especially KAT and Ant.
Speaking of Finch, I thought he did a nice job. Among other things I love that he put KAT rather than Rudy on Jokic in the first half. Statistically, KAT has defended Jokic better than Rudy has over their respective careers. KAT is slightly shorter than Jokic but KAT is strong and has pretty long arms. Guarding Jokic tonight, KAT did a really nice job of defending without fouling, something that KAT has been doing through all four games so far this season.
A nice win and a happy good night to you all.