Wolves lose third consecutive game, 93-90 at Clippers
Posted on November 3rd, 2009 – 5:25 AMBy Jerry Zgoda
Kurt Rambis praised his bunch for being scrappy, but that wasn’t enough to beat a Clippers team that was winless in its first four games (the only NBA team to reach 0-4 so quickly) tonight at Staples Center.
Al Jefferson followed Sunday’s 21-point, 33-minute game at Phoenix by playing 34:33 tonight, a good sign in his first regular-season back-to-back games since he injured his knee last February. When he played back-to-back games in preseason, that’s when that Achilles problem flared.
He had 24 points tonight and this time made more shots than he missed (9 for 16) for the first time this season.
Corey Brewer got his contract extension for 2010-11 Monday, then went out and delivered a performance that was hyperactive on both ends of the floor. That brought him six assists and five steals as well as a 6-for-21 shooting night. With a shot like that, I don’t think you want him leading you in shots, taking five more than Big Al, do you?
Kurt Rambis played Brewer 37:18, most on the team, while for the second straight game he opted to go with Ramon Sessions over Jonny Flynn when he sought to get that triangle offense organized and running efficiently.
For the second straight night, Sessions played more than Flynn (26 minutes to 22, compared to Sunday’s 31 to 18), but it’s clear Rambis is using a firm hand with Flynn to try to get him to learn to run a team rather than rely on instincts and individual skills.
Rambis played Flynn and Sessions together for a bit in the fourth quarter in Phoenix, then yanked Flynn after he took a poor shot and sat him the rest of the night. Tonight, he sent Sessions into the game abruptly 90 seconds into the second half after Flynn committed a turnover.
“The effort’s there,” Rambis said of Flynn. “He loves the game. He wants to be terrific. I’m making it very difficult on him. I’m not letting him run the pick-and-roll all the time. That’s what he wants to do. That’s what he’s comfortable with. That’s what he did at Syracuse. I’m challenging him to step out of that zone.”
About taking Flynn out of the game in favor of Sessions’ steadiness, he said, “You get turnovers, you get bad decisions. That game at that point start to slip away from us. We have those poor decisions. I’ll him make a mistake or two. If he can’t correct himself, I have no choice.”
So Rambis has called upon Sessions, who at age 23 is a veritable veteran because of his nearly two seasons in the league.
“He has been in the league,” Rambis said. “He understands what his role is, what the job is. When things go awry out there on the floor, he knows if he does a good job of getting us organized and playing together, he’ll get time. He’s figured that out.”
Sessions has played 26 and 31 minutes in the last two games after playing 18 and 21 in the first two.
“This offense, it’s not easy,” Sessions said. “It’s going to take a while. It feels like game by game, I’m starting to get more comfortable out there. I’m just trying to run the team. That’s what Coach wants. That’s what I’m trying to do.”
The Wolves are staying overnight here in L.A. tonight and flying back home in the morning. They’re not expected to practice Tuesday and will play K.G. and the Celtics Wednesday night at Target Center.
88 Responses to "Wolves lose third consecutive game, 93-90 at Clippers"
I talked about the Sessions Flynn situation at the end of the last thread. I like how Rambis is forcing him to break out of his comfort zone. It will take a while, and we all know breaking old habits sucks. Once Flynn gets over the mental part of it he will be a stud and get his minutes back.
The good thing is that Rambis seems like a good teacher and will allow a few mistakes before just yanking him from the game, unlike Witman.
I’m glad to hear that Rambis actually puts some thought into coaching. It’s been a couple of years since a Wolves coach used logic and analysis to decide how to divide the minutes.
thought and analysis in coaching…?
Brilliant!
When do we start using the word “uncoachable” to describe Brewer, at least on offense?
In all seriousness, we talk about guys like Zach Randolph being a knucklehead. We do it because Randolph will do things like take a horrible three-pointer when the game’s on the line. Maybe Z-Bo’s doing it because he’s confused about the game situation, maybe he’s just selfish…. But doesn’t Corey Brewer do these things too?
Does Brewer really take that many “bad” shots though? I know the last shot would fall in that category but throughout the rest of the game he doesn’t really do that. I think the coaches are still encouraging him to take the open shot which might be the problem.
I don’t think there should be a game the rest of the season where Brewer leads the team in shot attempts. I think that’s more on the coaching then Brewer himself. The coaches are the ones that are putting him in a position he shouldn’t be in, in my opinion.
I’m with jama — Brewer doesn’t take a lot of bad shots. Comapre the shots Brewer takes versus the junk that Telfair, Foye, and Carney put up last year — there’s no comparison.
Why does Brewer get so many decent shot attempts? First, the offense plays to his strengths as he is able to get shots in transition and the motion gets him open looks.
Second, defenses don’t respect him. If he starts consistently making teams pay, then there’s going to be a lot more effort focused on him.
Here’s what I’m not so sure about with Rambis: what’s so bad about the pick and roll? Isn’t it pretty much unstoppable if it’s well executed? And don’t we have two PGs who are supposed to be really good at it?
I’ve always thought that the mark of a good coach is that he gets the most out of the players that he has. I’m not at all convinced that a) we have the personnel to play the triangle; b) we’ll soon get the personnel to play the triangle (there’s no guarantee that we get a top notch wing from FA or the next draft); or c) that the triangle is so great that it’s worth the growing pains.
Watching Brewer definetly is a buzzkill
Brewer doesn’t take a lot of bad shots. His biggest problem so far is not finishing good drives to the hoop. If he had just finished well a few more times when he made nice cuts to the basket his shooting percentage would be fine.
I really like the way that he has been more aggressive this year driving the lane. Eventually, he is going to be more consistent in finishing those plays.
Considering both ends of the floor, he has been the best player on the Wolves roster so far this season.
On the pick-and-roll:
Sure, we might have squeezed out another win and been 2-2 if Rambis had just let Johnny create on the pick-an-roll. But he is trying to build something long-term, and to become a top-drawer NBA point guard Flynn needs to learn how to run a team, not just make his own play.
Trade Brewer now!!!! Maybe we can get someone who can shoot, dribble, drive, and finish.
I just hate the fawning the annoucers heap on this guy!
Mike 2: I don’t think Stockton was a me-first guy who was a flash in the pan, and he basically made his career on the pick and roll. I don’t care about wins and losses right now, so it’s OK with me if Rambis is just trying to get Flynn to expand his game, but will eventually let him run the pick and roll along with the rest of the offense. But if Rambis is taking the pick and roll out of the offense (or minimizing its role) for the long term, it goes against the strengths of the personnel we’ve acquired.
Ron G - So PPG and FG% is all that matters eh ?
Madison Dan: I get your drift…but I don’t think that Rambis is taking the pick-and roll out of the offense for the long term, I think that he is just trying to expand Flynn’s game. If you look at the way that the Lakers have run the triangle over the years, it isn’t as though they have eliminated the pick-and-roll for Kobe, or even for Farmar–who runs it really well with Gasol.
Player development…player development…player development.
Point taken, Mike 2.
I’m fine with the shots Brewer is taking now… I mean it’s not like we’re playing for anything this year. Picture the team with an athletic wing taking 21 shots a game and Brewer taking 6-8 and playing his outstanding defense.
I think it’s beneficial for Brewer to get comfortable with the offense now so in the future when he isn’t our first option on the wing he will have a feel for what type of shots he can get in the offense.
To look at Brewer’s offensive shortcomings and want to get rid of him is being too shortsighted. When we become a real team he won’t have anywhere close to the same burden offensively but he would be pretty hard to replace on defense.
Unless you get a top player who can operate out of all 5 spots in the triangle, it doesn’t work. Many coaches have tried it and failed. Phil is the only coach who has won with it. I’m more concerned with defense or lack of it. They’re lost on any form of help and recover D. That is the staple of any good defense in the NBA. Mad Dan did you hear Jim Pete say that Ellington is too small 2 games ago. Don’t doubt my eyes Mad. Hollins has 2 blocks in 4 games ole Mad Dan & his buddy Foo were telling me he’s a world class rim protector. He’s also ripped down 12 rebounds in the same 4 games.
I’m not complaining but is anyone else suprised Sasha Pavlovic hasn’t seen more time the last couple of games?
This Wolves team kind of reminds me of the Gophers team from last year. They don’t have any go to guys but have some depth and versatility. It’s early so I’m not worried, but at some point Rambis needs to get some sort of rotation.
Ellington has at least tried and put effort into D…that can make up for some size issues.
Plus he takes his shots in the flow of the offense unlike of our last UNC draft pick.
Eeyore, you truly are the master of the straw man argument. When did I say anything remotely resembling “Hollins is a world class rim protector”? All I said about him was that he could be a good complement to Al and Love, and seemed like a decent risk for the price. I haven’t seen anything so far that changes my opinion of him.
And yes, I doubt your eyes. I also doubt your judgment, your sincerity, your consistency (e.g., your recent emphasis on defense vs. your love of Randy Foye), and your ability to select an appropriate screen name.
Jama - The only thing that would surprise me is if we ran iso plays for Cardinal for the entire first half.
I think that Sasha has been getting fewer minutes because he has looked terrible most of the time so far.
In several games already he has gone through stretches where he repeatedly jacks up bad shots–missing 4, 5, 6 in a row. What was his line last night, 0-4 from the floor? And in an earlier game, 1-9?
He plays a little defense, but not enough to offset absolutely horrible shooting.
Anyone else notice a discrepancy in the free throw attempts in this game? It shows you just how bad the Clippers are when they make 11 more free throws and win by only three.
The Wolves had 35, 17, 23 and now 16 free throw attempts over the first four games. Usually, higher attempt numbers is a reflection of a team being aggressive and getting to the rim (or a reflection of playing a really bad defensive team). Obviously they were outclassed by the Cavs, but why the drop in attempts against the Suns and the Clips? It’s not like either team is known for their defense.
IMHO, if the Wolves stay agressive and get to the charity stripe throughout the game, they have a much better chance of winning (at least enough to avoid the NBA record low of 9 wins for the season)
Analysis of the Wolves loss to the Clippers, Corey Brewer’s roller-coaster, Rambis’ mishandling of the point guard situation, and more:
http://mnhowl.wordpress.com/2009/11/03/scratching-and-clawing-for-the-loss/
These mnhowl people need to give it a rest. You can link to your website by clicking on your name. If I wanted to go to your website I would.
Brewer has always been and continues to be GARBAGE. Uncoachable/unteachable is only some words to describe him. Kind of like the garbage of Madison Dan and the constant drivel he produces here. The crap he post reminds me of a loser from the old strib boards. Tool.
I’m surprised the Faker spelled “loser” correctly in the above post. I thought for sure it would be spelled “looser”.
Back to the Hundred Acre Wood with you, Fake Swan.
I have to disagree with the assertion that Brewer does not take bad shots. He might not take contested shots, but a shot is bad if you, yourself can’t make it consistantly. A good shot for Jefferson is not likely to be a good shot for Ellington and vice versa. Brewer should consider the fact that he is not a good shooter and not act as if he is the first option on the team. He’s not likely to shoot his way out of his career-long slump.
I’m not sure if I was bothered more by the number of times Brewer decided it was his time to shine on offense, or by the shameless gunning of Pecherov, who could not conceive of doing anything with the ball other than immediately firing it toward the rim.
It’s not for nothing that Wizards fans christened Pecherov “The White Hole”.
I have an imposter ?! I’ve finally (wipes tear from eye) arrived.
Say what you want about Pecherov, he is the only guy on the team with a shooting swagger…in the sense that he is one of the only people who looks confident while shooting. Plus didn’t he shoot awesome last night ?
Hi Jerry. If you get a chance, could you ask Kahn for more details re: picking up Brewer’s option? Many Wolves fans are fairly surprised, given that defensive-minded players who have trouble shooting are usually available for the vet min every summer.
The people who are surprised or confused about the Brewer pick up value offense way too much.
Swan, I don’t know if I value offense too much. The argument for defense is that you can’t give away points, which is ture for both ends of the court. If Brewer, or anyone else, can play great defense, then yes, they have value, and I won’t care so much if they can’t shoot. The problem with Brewer is that he does shoot. In volume. And these shots end up giving away posessions.
If Brewer just was not scoring, it would simply be a matter of fit. Do the Wolves have enough scoring options at other positions that they can sacrifice scoring from the wing spot.
Living in Warrior land, I’m well aware of the fact that having guys with unrealistic ideas about their scoring potential who feel the need to take over the offensive set creates problems that go way beyond a few extra missed field goals per game.
Is it just me or do the wolves have two point guards that play best in attack mode. Didn’t the wolves play best in their comeback win using the dribble to attack the basket. Why are they running the triangle that removes the attack from the offense. Don’t you need good passers and shooters to run the triangle? Do we have any of that? Wouldn’t it be better to run an offense like the spurs or heat and try to make Flynn into shorter versions of Parker or Wade. Both were fast athletic semi-PG who could not shoot but attacked the basket and facilliated the offense. Their attacking the basket allowed them to slowly develop their shot which for each has become a strength while still being effective. PGs are wasted in the triangle. I would rather have Laimbeer put in the bad boy piston’s offense or have the running style of Rambis’ showtime lakers. Both would make much more sense with our current roster especially with the players that are supposed to be key pieces of the future.
5&10 - We obviously don’t have enough scoring options right now with Love out so I can’t accurately assess the offense part.
A different question is, do we have enough defense at the other positions to warrant complaints about Brew’s offense ? I say no.
Seriously…unless we see a magnificent O-game from Brew, why do we talk about his lack of offense unless we are all inherently pessimistic ?
His D is the best part of the entire team in any category outside of possibly Love’s rebounding or Hollins’ fist pumping like a maniac after a dunk when we are down 20.
Reeves you are correct in your assesment of triangle, you need shooters, passers and size to run triangle. Kool-aid gang were spouting the team would win 24 to 35 games. They won’t win 15 with triangle. It brings me back to NBG (Kahn) putting together this team with Kurt. Yuck!!!! Mad Dan don’t look now but that terrible player Foye is doing really well in Washington.
Swan, to be clear, in this post I am not talking about his lack of offense, which is a given. I am talking about his shot volume. He is 15th in the league in shot attempts. That is crazy, and makes what should be a more entertaining team just that much tougher to watch.
logical thinker
Let’s make a bet, if the Wolves win more than 15 games or even when they get to that amount you will never post anything on this website again. If they win 15 or less all of us “Kool-aid gang” will never come on here again. Deal?
Jama - You aren’t putting up anything in that bet. Kind of one sided eh ?
i.e. you’re speaking for others ! Speak for yourself !
From Britt Robson at SI.com:
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2009/writers/britt_robson/11/03/rookies.notes/index.html?eref=sihp
• On Monday, the same day the Timberwolves exercised their fourth-year option on his contract, Corey Brewer demonstrated the ecstasy and the agony of his skill set during a road loss to the Clippers. A 6-9 string bean with a nonstop motor, Brewer registered five steals to put himself atop the league lead with 12. He also leads the Wolves in blocks and minutes. Less officially, as he showed on Monday, Brewer is unrivaled when it comes to muffed layups and errant short jumpers, a circumstance that hasn’t stopped him from becoming a volume clanker. A career 37.8 percent shooter, Brewer’s 6-of-21 performance against the Clippers dropped his accuracy for the season to 36.1 percent, yet he has attempted only one fewer shot in four games than stud scorer Al Jefferson.
I hope Brewer keeps shooting, though he should certainly not be leading this team in shots. His stroke looks much improved; many of his shots are close but rimming out. Sure, he’s taken some bad shots; most of the team has so far. He should improve as he gains confidence and continues to get more comfortable.
It would also help if we weren’t missing a top 5 NBA rebounder to gather in some of Brewer et al’s misses.
Criticsm of the triangle is a little premature. I think we should wait until at least halftime of tomorrow night’s game to write it off forever.
It seems pretty clear that Sessions/Flynn is a dynamic PG duo-They’re splitting time, totaling about 48.5 minutes a game, averaging 20.8 PPG, 8.6 RPG, 6.1 APG. That’s pretty good. You’ve got one who’s skilled at the pick and roll but learning the triangle, and one who’s better at the triangle right now. They’re both young, they’re both relatively cheap, and they have both been adequate defensively.
Tell me why having these two guys on a roster is a bad thing, again?
It should surprise no one that the Wolves are not a good team right now. Rookies are playing like the individual players that led them to get drafted in the first place. Brewer is the team’s only defense. The 7-footers can’t get double digit rebounds if the game went on for 70 minutes. There is no reliable outside shooter…stop me if you’ve heard this same refrain the past few seasons.
But the measure of this largely new roster should not be taken until the All Star Break. By then, the team should really have no excuse for not running the new offensive scheme. By then we should know to what extent Rambis and crew are able to hone this team into a system from what can best be viewed as a bunch of dysfunctional parts.
Last night was a winnable game. LT is right on this, and it that there’s little help D being played. To compound on that we can seem to defensive rebound either. I thought Flynn should have seen a few more mins in the 3rd and 4th. Though I appreciated the reasoning behind him sitting. It nice to have a coach. I’m enjoying watching this team play. Brewer doesn’t bother me as much as most of you, I really enjoy his husstle on D.
I have to say, way more hyped on this team and direction than that old sack of same old we’ve been throwing out there for what seemed like ever. Much more FUN. Jonny Flynn is real.
Outside of Swan, how many of you would rather have Brewer in his current state than Trenton Hassell in his good years? I have to agree with 5/10 that Brew’s shot volume is bordering on ridiculous (this offense is supposedly about taking the right shot, not necessarily the open shot - last night, Brew took a few too many 18- to 20-footers that nicked the rim), but I also appreciate his D. This despite watching Tony Parker put up 40 of his 55 last November against him, and LeBron busting him for 11 in a hurry in Friday’s first quarter. I’ve had season tix for 10 years, so with that amount of sheer boredom I have taken to watching individual defenders from my perch in Row G. Brewer still gets lost a little too frequently, but his ability to disrupt is freakish. All that said, he is a better lane defender and “stealer” than man-to-man defender. Wrong body for guarding most guys he will be asked to guard. Granted, a player with the quickness of Parker is a tall task for a 6-8 guy, but he isn’t lock-down a la Bruce Bowen or even Hassell. I guess my vote would be for Brewer, but I’m about to fall off the fence into Hassell’s side.
Several observations:
1. Pech sucks he can not play D, Kaman schooled him. His best defensive effort was with his back turned the ball hit him. People will say oh he scored, great he hit a couple of jumpers from the freethrow line and a 3 whoopee.
2. Flynn has played what all of three games way to write him off. He was trying to make the passes against the Clips. He just needs to adjust to the speed of the defenders.
3. I would like to Ellington get more shots.
4 As for Brewer he has been encouraged to shoot by Rambis so I think Rambis is trying to build up his confidence. I agree 21 shots is a little much, but he has played good defense and not really forced anything too much.
5 OMG is Hollins a project. This guy has potentional but someone should be working with him on defense, he gets lost way to easy. Good hops though.
6 Jawali all that can be said right now is he is big. I will wait a month or so to see if he can get into playing shape. I don’t want him to be another Stanley Roberts.
7 AJ looked just fine in the Triangle he need to work on his passing (that been the knock on him) but he had 4 assists against the Suns. He made some jumpers and got into his offense pretty well. He has been getting doubled and tripled all 3 games. Do not trade him there are just not that many bigs that demand a double everytime they touch the ball (Howard, Duncan, Shaq) Garnett is not one of them.
Look at the shooting percentages overall. Big Al’s shooting .403 and missing chippies; Hollins and Pecherov are the only ones shooting over 50% so far. Brewer’s shots aren’t going in, but for the most part they are open looks.
Fact is, if Brewer starts turning down those shots that’s not necessarily going to save those possessions.
To clarify that last comment, sometimes the worst thing you can do is turn down an open shot, particularly with an NBA shot clock. I don’t see Brewer taking shots early in the clock, and I also don’t see him monopolizing the ball for 5 seconds before he decides to shoot. (And Wolves fans know what that looks like with Big Al.)
I’m just saying, it’s easy to say, “Only shoot 10 times and not 21 times, Corey Brewer, until you can shoot 45%” But sometimes a given game just flows that way.
If Brewer AVERAGES 21 shots a game that would be an issue, but obviously that’s not going to happen.
Brandon Jennings is taking Derrick Rose to the woodshed right now…
When I wrote that Brewer doesn’t take bad shots I meant it in exactly the way the Pipeline describes: he doesn’t jack up shots early in the clock and he doesn’t dominate the ball and ignore teammates looking for his own shot.
Brewer looks much better offensively so far this season than he has in the past, despite a few too many misses, because he is showing the confidence to take shots when they are there open (in the past he was often hesitant) and he is driving aggressively to the hoop.
It is amazing to me how quickly some people will write a guy off. Brewer is already better than Hassell was and has infinitely more upside.
Maybe we should be writing off Kevin Durant’s offense too. So far this year his percentage from the floor is considerably lower than Brewer’s.
As Canis Hoops said, Corey has a rare combination of extreme work ethic, high ball IQ, and natural instinct to find himself at exactly the right place at exactly the right time almost every single play he’s on the floor for. He’s just such a horrendeous jump shooter he can’t convert.
Mike 2 - I was referring to their D only in the Hassell/Brew question. If you reread, I only mentioned his brutal offense in passing. So, which defender do you want?
that was quite the blog on canishoopus.
one thing that irks me - not sure what game that person and the mnhowler were watching (or listening to, in my case) but the team did not have any timeouts by my count and am pretty sure that is what the announcer said on KFAN. so all this talk of ‘the team was too stupid to call a timeout’ is nonsense.
Also asked if Brewer “in his current state” is better. No doubt his upside is higher.
Yeah, Kevin Durant’s never done anything, either. Oh, wait…
I am really glad we didn’t have a chance to take James Harden. He’s been awful.
docenzo - the Brewer/Hassell comparison strictly as defenders is certainly a fair question; sorry if I misunderstood you.
But even just as a defender I would take Brewer, partly because when Hassell had his best years with the Wolves the NBA rules were different and defenders could hand check and ride a player’s hip on the perimeter. Now they are not allowed to do that.
Ever since the rules were changed, Hassell has not been as good defensively as he was, because he depended on staying up close on his man, and leaning in and riding the player he was guarding. That is why he has never gotten the minutes with Dallas or New Jersey that he got with Minnesota.
Also Brewer is more multi-faceted defensively than Hassell ever was, using his length and reach to pick off balls in the passing lanes, getting more blocks, using his speed to run people down, etc.
If Brewer had been out there with KG and Spree that year, we would have been the best defensive team in the league.
I keep telling you guys, Corey’s defense is largely washed out by the sheer lack of defensive ability from the post. We have no anchor.
Re: the Durant comment. my point was that you cna’t make very good judgments based on 3-4 games. Of course, Durant is a great scorer. but if you judged him from the the first 4 games of this season he wouldn’t look very good.
The Thunder just took the Lakers to overtime…
In the Thunder-Lakers game tonight Durant is 0-8 on threes.
But with 28 points. Second in the game only to Kobe’s 29.
doesn’t all durant do is shoot? he hardly fills up the stat sheet with anything other than scoring. what else does he offer?
By definition, any shot by Brewer except a dunk is considerd a bad shot (with the possible exception of it actually going in). If we wanted to maximize wins, he should become more Hassel-like in his shot selection.
At this point, Brewer’s shots and the triangle offense are maximizing our lottery options, while also providing mild entertainment value. That’s all good. Keep the reins on Jonny until we are assured a top 10 pick.
hm I suppose he rebounds very well for a wing.
What a difference it makes playing with good players: in boston’s win over Philly Sheldon Williams scored 11 points (5-8) and had 7 rebounds and an assist in 23 minutes.
Last year Durant averaged 7 rebounds and 3 assists. This year he’s averaging 9 rebounds.
But I mean, when you shoot as well as Durant does, how much more do you really need to do…?
Sheldon did show promise when he was here. he just played for a coach (McFail) who refused to play him…
And Kahn also had no interest in keeping him…
I must admit I was surprised when Boston snatched him up pretty early in the summer.
Wow, Dirk just WASTED the Jazz. 40 points, 11 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals, 5 blocks.
29….TWENTY NINE….points in the 4th quarter.
now there’s a player i’d love to see in a Wolves uni…too bad Cuban throws so much money at his salaries
Mike 2 - I agree with you about the rule changes. I think I would rather have Brewer’s D than Hassell’s, too, but I just don’t think Brewer is as good guarding the ball as advertised. He needs more bulk, which he’ll never have. If he fills out, he might approach 200 lbs. And about the post/help D comment by Bryan, that’s very true. But using that logic, I’m not sure about the KG/Spree/Brewer combo being any better than the KG/Spree/Hassell combo, though. It’s not like Kandi or Big Erv were help-D stalwarts. Thanks for the discussion, though.
I’m pretty confused still…why are we analyzing what has shown itself to be the same truths we knew, expected, and accepted as we go through the process of becoming a real team (over 2-3 years)?
I see nothing bad that I didn’t know. I see in Flynn exactly what I hoped. Big Al is both on his way back AND still deficient as a defender. Brewer is improving a very good on defense. Ellington appears as good as we could have hoped. Session is a good second PG. Love will be Love. Hollins is really raw. No one else is in our future. They’re all working hard. Just what did you expect?
Next year we add two impact players, one through the draft and one because of our cap space.
The year after that we add our last protected 1st rounder, another good one, and whatever comes from Rubio.
I just don’t understand why were evaluating Brewer as if he were our only hope (as opposed to the very good role player he’ll be eventually), why you think a limping, rusty AJ should be adept right now at the triangle, and why you think the sky is falling if Flynn either plays bad for a stretch or sits for a stretch.
I expect 16-28 wins, a good draft pick, and immense improvement via outside players after this year. I’m enjoying watching the piece that matter. And Rambis impresses the hell out of me.
“Brewer is improving a very good defense” is supposed to read “Brewer is improving and a very good defensive player.” Wow, does that sentence not look right otherwise.
Twinstalker, I agree with you in the main. I think Flynn is going to have the normal ups and downs of a rookie. Brewer is a good defender now, his mechanics on his shot sometimes look good so that is a work in progress. If he can be even a below average shooter he will be a valuable piece for the Wolves. AJ will recover and continue to be one of the best low post scorers in the NBA. Right now he is a below average defender and passer (although his passing improved last year)hopefully both of those can improve to at least average (very possible interior D is bad throughout the league). As for Ellington I would like to see a little more shooting from him. No one should be expecting more than 30 wins(I think 25-28 would be about right)there just is not enough stability to think that they could go on an extended winning streak.
medschoolmatt:
The game that was aired on the Internet, those announcers said the Wolves had one more time out remaining. I thought the same thing as them. But online I found this.
“We haven’t yet gotten to the point where we know what play we’re going to run with a low-clock situation and no timeouts when you’ve got to get the ball up the floor,” new Timberwolves coach Kurt Rambis said
I see how they made their mistake but they should research a bit more before ripping Rambis.
Jennings has been great, could we wind up with missing on the best pg in the draft, not Rubio, not Flynn, but Jennings could be great. I think we missed last year on Westbrook and Gordon, but oh well. Gordon looks good and Westbrook does too, better than Mayo for sure. Mayo is going to just be a shooter. Westbrook and Gordon can do it all.
I watched the OKL/Laker game last night and Westbrook, Green and Durant are studs. I was also impressed with Hardin although he’s been playing limited minutes. He drew a nice charging foul on Koby and hit a couple of nice threes. Hardin also led the team in plus/minus with a +16…Ethan Thomas also looked good and makes the Wolves look bad in trading him…..it was a shame OKL lost as they had LA down.
What are the details on Ryan Gomes’ contract ? I thought the Wolves had an option for 2010-2011 on whether to pickup his contract or not. If so, when do they make that decision ? Do people think that we should keep him around or not ?
And, is Utah going to be so mediocre that they end up with a trade-proteced Top 15 draft pick in 2010 and we don’t get their pick next year ?
Don’t worry about Utah, they will be there at the end.
The only thing Gomes brings to the table is the fact he isn’t a rookie.
The last years on Gomes’s contract are only partially guaranteed, so the Wolves can waive him and only suffer a partial cap hit. I suspect Gomes will be out the door at the deadline. He’d be a lot more valuable on a good team than he is here.
[…] On the Wolves » Blog Archive » Wolves lose third consecutive game, 93-90 at Clippers blogs2.startribune.com/blogs/wolves/2009/11/03/wolves-lose-third-consecutive-game-93-90-at-clippers – view page – cached Kurt Rambis praised his bunch for being scrappy, but that wasn’t enough to beat a Clippers team that was winless in its first four games (the only NBA team to reach 0-4 so quickly) tonight at… Read moreKurt Rambis praised his bunch for being scrappy, but that wasn’t enough to beat a Clippers team that was winless in its first four games (the only NBA team to reach 0-4 so quickly) tonight at Staples Center. Read less […]
In reference to C-Note’s post, anyone, be it Rubio, Flynn or Jennings is going to have a tough time breaking into the top tier of PGs in the future. It’s crazy to think about CP3 and DWill being established as the cream of the crop at 24 and 25, with Rondo at 23 looking like an all star. Then the 2008-10 drafts add in Rose, Westbrook, Rubio (theoretically), Flynn, Jennings, Curry, Lawson, Holiday, and Wall. And those are just the guys I’m pretty sure will be very good. Some, I’m not sure which, will be great. That’s 12 guys who will be battling over the next decade. It just seems crazy to me that there’s that much young talent at that position. The chances that the Wolves got the best PG in the draft are slim, but the same could be said for any other team with so many potential break out stars. (although with two picks the Wolves look pretty good)
Yeah I was kind of getting at that its turning into a guard oriented league as I have posted many times before and if you are going to be great, you need great guard play. That is the one thing I think the Cavs are missing, if you put a better SG or PG (Williams is decent but not for as much as he makes)Lebron would have a ring.
