Category: Minnesota Timberwolves

Rumor: Timberwolves Floating Ideas to Upgrade Backup Center Position

The Timberwolves will be considering many options to add depth to their frontcourt this offseason, and 1500′s Darren Wolfson has said that Eddy Curry is a name that is being — and I emphasize – floated around as a possible target. Now, before we overreact, the definition of “floated” has not changed to the point of becoming a synonym for “imminent”. It’s an idea, and one that seems pretty typical of the Kahn-Adelman era as a low-cost and low-risk/high reward option. Sometimes those gambles have worked out (Kirilenko) and other times they haven’t (Brandon Roy), and this appears to be another that could potentially be added to that category.

Curry SS

 

Curry would also come cheap based on the contract he signed with the Mavericks at the beginning of the season that was for the league minimum and also non-guaranteed. With the Timberwolves snug against the cap going forward, these are the types of contracts they’ll be looking to add.

However, Curry, who has played very little in the past years, showed several signs of rust with the Mavericks. In just two games, he somehow managed to post a PER of -0.1 in addition to averaging  a comical 10.1 fouls  per 36 minutes and just 5.8 rebounds per 36 minutes. As terrible as he was, his .500 FG% would’ve been his best since the ’07-’08 season, but that’s based off of only a two game sample in which he took just eight attempts.

Likely the only reason the 30-year old Curry still gets any mention is because he’s seven feet tall, and size like that will almost always ensure that you’ll continue to pique a team’s interest long after you’re even a worthwhile garbage time player. After all, the Spurs, Heat, and Mavs have all taken a chance on Curry in the past couple of years using the same low-risk/high-reward mentality.

At his peak, Curry was a solid contributor, but those days are long gone. It’s clear that the Timberwolves are turning over pretty much every possible stone to upgrade the backup center position, and apparently Curry’s name has been thrown out there, although that idea could very well be dead by now. Yet, it seems that help in that area will go by a different name and not Curry’s.

The Rubio and Shved Rising Stars Game Review

It’s safe to say that, while the Rising Stars Game is a meaningless exhibition, last night’s wound up being quite enjoyable for Timberwolves fans as the team’s backcourt of Ricky Rubio and Alexey Shved was showcased very well in primetime for Team Chuck against Team Shaq.
Both players were not only factors in Team Chuck’s163-135 win, but also made the win even more enjoyable to watch.

Even an All-Star Weekend hater like myself had to admit Rubio’s and Shved’s performance was well worth my time. In fact, even the national types took note, with former player and current CBS analyst Greg Anthony opining on Twitter about the performance and potential of the team’s backcourt:

 

If you’ve followed me on Twitter and ever seen anyone make even a passing mention to me about the Sacramento Kings’ Isaiah Thomas, who I’ve been a huge fan of since his days at the University of Washington, then you know how much I loved seeing him throw up this alley-oop to Shved.

With the game nearly in hand, and the entire defense literally just standing and watching (Ugh. H8 U, All-Star Weekend), Shved just missed a wide open windmill dunk. Still fun, and watching eventual game MVP Kenneth Faried finish with a windmill of his right after was still pretty neat:

Shved finished with 12 points, 1 rebound, and 4 assists on 5/8 shooting.

Saving the main event, Ricky Rubio, for last, last night’s exhibition was really the perfect platform for Rubio to show off his passing talents on a national stage. Seriously, Rubio’s game was Taylor-made for this kind of thing. Of Rubio’s ten assists, a couple were quite notable, beginning with this alley-oop to Manimal right here.

As if that weren’t enough, Rubio left perhaps an even better pass for later as he drove towards the baseline, guarded closely by Golden State’s Harrison Barnes of team Shaq, and flipped an incredible no-look (Actually, he was looking at the crowd behind the basket!), perfectly-timed pass between Barnes and Team Shaq’s Damian Lillard that found the Wizards’ Bradley Beal on a cut for the slam. Here, just watch here and here.

Rubio may have been the only Team Chuck member not to score in double figures, but let’s be honest, we’re not here to see him shoot. We want to see his remarkable court vision, and watch him hit passing lanes no one else knows exist. And no one is complaining about Rubio’s 5 points (2/4 shooting), 10 assist and one steal performance this morning. Nobody.

Yeah, it may not even have been in the big game (/snickers), but last night was pretty thrilling from a Timberwolves fan’s perspective. Seeing Rubio and Shved play well, and get recognized for their performances was great to see. Kevin Love may not have been able to make the All-Star team this season, but the Timberwolves were still well-represented last night.

More gouged than clipped: Minnesota Timberwolves lose to Los Angeles Clippers 90-77

This game sucked.

Two…Less Than Negatives?

Tom: I’m feeling less than negative about Luke Ridnour. Sure, he’ll never dominate a game that the Timberwolves actually win, but at least he scored! Plus he dished out five assists which isn’t really normal for him when he scores a bunch of points. PLUS HE HIT 50% OF HIS 3-POINTERS. Game ball, for sure.

Derek: Hey, Tom. Is that game ball partially deflated? Andrei Kirilenko had another well-rounded game with 12 points on 5-12 shooting, 5 rebounds, 4 steals, and 2 assists. Seriously, if it weren’t for Kirilenko I’d be crying myself to sleep like it was year two-thousand and Rambis all over again.

Two Negatives: 

Tom: I don’t even know where to begin. The missed shots were atrocious. Blake Griffin had four and a half dunks (I counted). The 4-19 shooting from 3-point range. The 35.7% overall field goal percentage. Just an ugly, awful night all around.

Here’s the thing: I have to leave Derek a negative to write about and I don’t even feel bad having mentioned those four. This will still be easy for him.

Derek: Oh, you forgot the 65% on those pesky, uncontested free throws. You’re right about this still being easy for me, and since we don’t have Jonah tonight I can mention a few myself.  They got beat inside, 50-30. They forced 18 turnovers, but committed 14 turnovers that negated much of the positives of the former. And they gave the Clippers to play their human victory cigar, Ryan “My Height Gives Me An NBA Job Every Year” Hollins, if even for a minute.

Two Observations:

Tom: I’m not really worried about Nikola Pekovic’s bad night. Long, athletic centers have always bothered him somewhat, and DeAndre Jordan might be the pinnacle of long and athletic in the NBA. But given how close the Timberwolves were in the third quarter before the Clippers started really going to work and putting the game away, it’s not really a very fun thought experiment to wonder what would have happened if Pek had had one of the games we’ve been more accustomed to seeing from him as of late.

Derek: Ok, now that we got all of this out of the way, let’s put some perspective on this thing. This team is ridiculously shorthanded, and now even the guys who aren’t hurt are dealing with illness. Combine that with a team like the Clippers and this is what you get, even though they were missing Chris Paul.

Notes: Ricky Rubio was frustrated post game. On dealing with injuries: ”We have two ways to do it. One (is) complaining. … I don’t think that’s the way. The way, it’s (to) be a man.” Aside from Pekovic leaving the game early, Alexey Shved suffered an ankle sprain, collapsed in the hallway, but was apparently able to leave the arena on their own power…Before the game Lazar Hayward and Andrei Kirilenko were listed “probable” due to illness…Apparently help is on the way in the form of of big man Mickael Gelbale, who will wear number fifteen, but will hopefully not aggravate Derek to no end like the last Wolf to wear that number did.

Hoping for a Tipping Point

It’s tempting to go down the road of a panic trade post, or some other irrational knee-jerk reaction after tonight’s game, but I’m going to fight that urge since we’re not even halfway through the season and, well, I’m not panicking. Maybe exasperated or discouraged. It’s not just that the Timberwolves lost tonight at home. It’s the  three wins in their last seven games, the four five game losing streak, and seeing yet another injury pile up.

After all, we’re just 36 games into the season and the Wolves had just wrapped up a five game in seven stretch while being shorthanded, and also were playing the Clippers, who have played some of the best basketball I’ve seen this season. I mean, the Timberwolves just need time to get healthy, right?

Hopefully.

I’m not one to make excuses, but this team is banged up. You really can’t call it an excuse because it’s so apparent how banged up they are. Every team deals with injuries — they’re a part of the game — but this team seems especially unfortunate. On top of Ricky Rubio trying to re-adapt to playing with his surgically repaired knee we have Malcom Lee, Brandon Roy, Kevin Love, Chase Budinger out for extended periods of time. This goes without mentioning Josh Howard being out for the season or the nagging injuries that have hit Nikola Pekovic, JJ Barea, and now Alexey Shved.

Yeah, yeah, it’s a long season, but this is getting  ridiculous. Much like Malcolm Gladwell talked about in The Tipping Point  with crime, Hush Puppies, and viruses– there has to be one for this insane injury rash, right? Or at least I hope there is one and  that his idea even applies to this situation.

When healthy, this team is a playoff team, and that’s why you can’t just “make a trade” in hopes of solving all of the team’s problems. As unfortunate as the team’s injuries have been this season the solution won’t provide any sort of instant gratification, and that is patience. No, really. This team is missing it’s best player and its second-best player is still trying to regain it’s step.

We’ve still seen them fight through the injuries and play .500 ball with pretty much everyone but Love and Rubio. Love will be back. Budinger will be back. Rubio is getting his legs under him and hopefully we’ll start to see the team we thought would have been. I don’t think anyone penciled this team in for last in the Northwest, but injuries have a way of killing playoff dreams.

Since it’s not too late, I guess we just…wait. We wait and hope that the injuries curb themselves in time for them to still steal a low seed. Even if they don’t stop we still know that we have a very good team that is mostly intact for another season, but it’s not the time to concede the season either. If anything, I suppose the purpose of this post is just vent out some of these frustrations or discouraged feelings.

 

Derrick Williams: Are We Seeing Things?

Derrick Williams has shown more than just sheer athleticism this season. Keep reading. (Garrett W. Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images)

For once, I’m able to write something about everyone’s favorite trade chip — Derrick Williams — and have it not be a long-winded post about why and where he should be traded to. In fact, despite some of his struggles at the rim and rebounding, he’s making it more difficult for the Timberwolves to trade him. Or easier, depending on if you think he’s made his value increase. Mostly, I’m referring to his defense and his shooting from distance, which he has improved both. You can see it on the court, and the numbers back it up.

The biggest issue I had with Derrick playing the three, defense aside,  was that he didn’t have the range to play the position. Even Rick Adelman wasn’t crazy about just giving him minutes there because he had never played the position. My case and point last year was in his .412 FG% and .268% from three. And this season didn’t start out looking any more promising for him, but look below:

Derrick Williams Three Point Shooting by Month: 

November: .333% (12 games)

December: .412% (11 games) 

January: .500% (4 games) 

Admittedly January is a small sample that won’t hold at that high of a mark, but he’s still showing a gradual improvement while taking as many threes per game as he did last season (2.0). This is huge on a team that has a dire need for shooters, and even if Derrick’s .400 average on the season slips another couple of points this season, that’s above average, and greatly helps the Timberwolves. How much does it help them? Well, after last night they’re now 5-1 all-time when Derrick hits three or more threes in a game.

Maybe this shouldn’t be so surprising because he was effective from distance at Arizona once he got the reps he needed. Put his month-to-month splits from last season against this year’s and you’ll see that he’s in a nice rhythm that he didn’t have before:

Derrick Williams Month-by-Month Splits ’11-’12: 

December: .250 (3 games)

January: .267 (18 games)

February: .444 (15 games)

March: .269 (17 games)

April: .167 (13 games)

The comeback of Rubio has probably helped Derrick get better looks at more opportune moments, but he’s still had to step up and hit those shots, which he’s been able to do (Unlike last year with Rubio). Even this year’s sample looks more steady and trustworthy than last year’s did where his month of February just screamed “outlier”. Despite his inability to finish at the rim at times this season, even things like his eFG% and TS% have improved considerably, and could continue to climb as he improves as a finisher.

Remember, I never said he could never play the small forward spot, but that he couldn’t play it now. And if he keeps shooting like this, he could play it well one day.

Even defensively, we’re seeing Williams improve. There have been a couple of instances where I’ve watched Williams and been very impressed by what I’ve seen as far as his growth as a defender. Consider the following:

- As a power forward, Williams has posted a respectable PER of 14.4, but he’s held opposing PF’s to a much worse 9.4 PER. PER is far from a be all and end all, but paired with the eye test, it backs up what we’ve seen from Derrick as a defender this season.

Compare this to last season when he had a 12.2 at the position and opponents posted a 16.6 on him, and yeah, he’s made strides.

- With Williams on the court they surrender 101.5 points per 100 possessions, and 104.4 points per 100 possessions, meaning the team has performed better defensively with him on the court this season. Offensively, they’re actually more effective with him watching the game in it, however.

As I said above, Williams needs to improve as a finisher still, and his defense, while improved, can still get better, but he’s done some nice things of late worthy of recognition. If he ever can get his rebounding up to around his college level, he’ll be even more valuable as a player. The thing to remember with young big men is always patience, and we don’t typically see them peak until around their mid-20′s and Derrick is still just 21.

 

 

Typical Florida: Timberwolves-Magic Preview

Where: Target Center

When: 7pm

See It: FSN

Hear It: WCCO AM 830

I have a bone to pick with you, Florida. No, it’s not about your sunny skies, white sandy beaches or the bikini clad ladies that grace them. Heck, even your state taxes are pretty neat. Instead, we need to talk about something things that have been bugging all of us; not just me.

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Sleep, Finally: Timberwolves at Nets Preview

The Nets should’ve just swung a deal with Jay-Z to make him mascot instead of what they wound up doing.

Where: Barclays Center

When: 6:30pm

Hear/See It: NBA TV; FSN; WCCO 830AM

Ok, now that I got my Beastie Boys reference in, I can openly talk about basketball. One thing that’s safe to say is that things can’t possibly get any worse than they did last night in Toronto, right? Twenty-four is about all of the turnovers you can commit in a forty-eight minute game, and you’re not going to lose your backup point guard to a concussion every night.

Tonight is a fresh start against a team playing in a new building in a new city. Sounds like a good place to be anew, right?

The Nets will be without starting small forward Gerald Wallace, so Keith Bogans will slide over in his place, and forward Josh Childress will be out, too. Likewise, the Wolves may be without JJ Barea, so expect to see more of Alexey Shved and maybe even a little Will Conroy.

Speaking of point guards, after Kyle Lowry went legend on the Timberwolves last night, it will be interesting to see how they contain Deron Williams. In the Nets’ first game he put up 19 and 9, so he obviously has to be reckoned with. He’s no stranger to being a Wolf killer, averaging 18 points and 11 assists per game against the Timberwolves throughout his career. In fact, he put up his career high of 21 assists against the Wolves. This is the matchup that sticks out to me.

Talking to my Nets people, the team apparently was showing some defensive issues in their first game. Meaning, that this could be a golden opportunity for guys like Brandon Roy and Chase Budinger to get their games on track.

I swear to Shammgod if any team I cheer for gets out-rebounded by Brook Lopez led frontcourt…I don’t even know. Sure, Kris Humphries can rebound. So can Nikola Pekovic, though. How about tonight we box out, crash the boards and get some easy looks in transition; sound good? I mean, have we enough pride not to get beat on the glass by Kim Kardashian’s ex-husband and Brook Lopez?!

Anyway, tonight’s projected starters are listed below:

Deron Williams – G – Luke Ridnour

Joe Johnson – G – Brandon Roy

Keith Bogans – F – Derrick Williams

Kris Humphries – F – Andrei Kirilenko

Brook Lopez – C – Nikola Pekovic

(Also, do we want to lose to a team that has this as their mascot? I laughed for five straight minutes after I first saw it. And it has a comic book! Click the hyperlink to see it, but whatever you do, do not Google “Brooklyn Knight” yourself(That search is NSFW; not the one I linked to).

’12-’13 Timberwolves Season Preview

The scope of the Minnesota Timberwolves is vastly different from the final seconds of last season to now. Still without Kevin Love and Ricky Rubio due to injuries, the Wolves are veering head-on into the regular season with a new identity and a sense of purpose. This is a direct result of the NBA being such a wonderful league. No, really! Mainstay powers like Miami, Boston and Los Angeles will always retain the attention and recognition they deserve — there’s no changing that — but the annual turnover of the small-to-mid market teams gives homes like Minnesota a chance. It only happens every few years before they fall again to higher powers because it’s next-to impossible to sustain such success in a frozen tundra with little-to-no basketball history against the beautiful beaches of L.A. and the glamorous lights glittering off rooftops of the City That Never Sleeps. But, hey, at least we’ve reached our shot, right?

This year dawns the first shot in Minnesota’s history since the 2004 season to actually make something of themselves, rather than come in perceived as a laughingstock or a doormat to easy victories. Equipped with an all new supporting cast and a potentially deadly “Big 3″ of our own, the Wolves are being sized up with all sorts of new expectations. Can they make the playoffs? Can they make the top-half of the West’s playoff picture? Can they evolve their own Big 3 to rival the Miami’s, OKC’s and L.A.’s of the league?  Continue reading →

Where there’s a will, there’s a way

The Kevin Love news is obviously heartbreaking. Do you remember where YOU were when K-Love went down? Both Tom and Derek already elaborated on what happens next, how the Wolves can fill the void of losing a superstar. Based on Tweets just yesterday, it’s practically impossible to “replace” him. There’s no replacing Love’s production and leadership but there are ways to fight on and alleviate the pain.

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Kevin Love Out 6-8 Weeks With Broken Hand: Make Loud Noises!

Source: http://musingsofapessimist.wordpress.com/2011/08/09/riot-proof/
If a picture says a thousand words, this is pretty much how I felt when I first heard the Kevin Love news. But I’m good now. I swear.

Whelp. This put a damper on an otherwise pretty good day. Apparently Love broke his hand during his morning workout Wednesday. My initial reaction was a four-letter word, but after a deep breath I think I’m a little better. But this is still really crappy news!

Ugh. Why can’t we ever have nice things.

Anyway, I’m resisting the urge to feel too bad for myself. I mean, I’m sure the developers didn’t know that they were building the Target Center on an Indian burial ground. Ok, I’ll knock it off. Really, this means we won’t see Love and Rubio until just before Christmas, and there will be a lot of basketball to be played after that.

In the mean time, the Wolves have multiple players to platoon at the power forward including Derrick Williams (Tom will have more on this later), Dante Cunningham, and Andrei Kirilenko. This also means that wing players like Brandon Roy and Chase Budinger will have to pick up the scoring slack and stretch the floor like Love did. And of course, Nikola Pekovic will could really earn his extension if he can shoulder some of the load.

Anyway, we’ll learn a lot about the meddle of this team and how deep they really are these next 6-8 weeks. I’m curious to see how they will handle being down their top two players. At least there’s a chance they could be ok with their apparent depth.