Just saw a stat that Wiggins had 2 games in his Timberwolves career where he had 10+ rebounds. He has 6 games in this years playoffs where he has 10+.
Good for Wiggins! He had the ability to play defense, but being around champions rubbed off on him & he become a much more complete, competitive player. And now he’s an NBA champion (too).
Crazy that he got dumped to the worst team in the league and a couple years later he’s holding the championship trophy.
Just saw a stat that Wiggins had 2 games in his Timberwolves career where he had 10+ rebounds. He has 6 games in this years playoffs where he has 10+.
Good for Wiggins! He had the ability to play defense, but being around champions rubbed off on him & he become a much more complete, competitive player. And now he’s an NBA champion (too).
Crazy that he got dumped to the worst team in the league and a couple years later he’s holding the championship trophy.
Only technically (at the time) the worst, Steph & Klay (once healthy) were good for another run or two. But Wiggins embraced his role as GS #1 shutdown defender (essentially Ryan McDonoughs role with the Lightning) and owned it…while being a 3rd or 4th wheel offensively. And it’s clearly all the Warriors needed from him!
This story is crazy and bizarre...
Keep your stick on the ice...
I'm 50% factual and 50% sarcastic. When you get to know me, you will know which is which.
The Timberwolves are sending Malik Beasley, Patrick Beverley, Walker Kessler, Jarred Vanderbilt and multiple first-round picks for Gobert, sources tell ESPN.— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) July 1, 2022
Is that smart? I know little about bball. Curious if they just made the equivalent of the Herschel Walker trade.
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The Timberwolves are sending Malik Beasley, Patrick Beverley, Walker Kessler, Jarred Vanderbilt and multiple first-round picks for Gobert, sources tell ESPN.— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) July 1, 2022
Is that smart? I know little about bball. Curious if they just made the equivalent of the Herschel Walker trade.
They traded 8 players/picks in a sport that requires about 10 players….for one guy. LOL
The Timberwolves are sending Malik Beasley, Patrick Beverley, Walker Kessler, Jarred Vanderbilt and multiple first-round picks for Gobert, sources tell ESPN.— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) July 1, 2022
Is that smart? I know little about bball. Curious if they just made the equivalent of the Herschel Walker trade.
Herschel Walker, my (and probably 1000's of other Minnesotans) thoughts exactly. I still remember the Sports Illustrated cover after Herschel's first game "Herschel Lives"… maybe worst SI jinx ever.
I think one difference is that in BB after about pick 7 is a crap shoot (maybe even before) and maybe the wolves think they will be good enough that picks will be in high 20s.
However, we Minnesota sports fans know not to have unbridled optimism.
Wolves take a big swing today, make a big trade. Hey, at least they're joining the Wild & Vikings in actually trying to create a contender.. unlike the Twins under Rob, Chip & Ernie...
The Timberwolves are sending Malik Beasley, Patrick Beverley, Walker Kessler, Jarred Vanderbilt and multiple first-round picks for Gobert, sources tell ESPN.— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) July 1, 2022
Is that smart? I know little about bball. Curious if they just made the equivalent of the Herschel Walker trade.
They traded 8 players/picks in a sport that requires about 10 players….for one guy. LOL
10? More like 8…maybe. All the players they traded are replaceable although I do like Beasley. The picks will most likely be in the 20’s which isn’t worth near as much as in the NFL. Plus Gobert fits exactly what they need. If they could replace DLo with a comparable but more consistent player their starters would be set. This trade just guts their depth but free agency just started so they can fix that. In the NBA, the teams that trade a bunch of players for one player usually win the trade. Also good to see that they recognized that the team as it was constructed last year was not gonna have playoff success.
Gobert with ANT and KAT is a pretty formidable lineup. They definitely are not interested in standing pat as a "hey we made the playoffs!" type squad. We will see if it works but I applaud the move.
Gobert with ANT and KAT is a pretty formidable lineup. They definitely are not interested in standing pat as a “hey we made the playoffs!” type squad. We will see if it works but I applaud the move.
Exactly, this is a Bold move, it may work out (big time) it may crash & burn, but with ARog & Lore now driving the decisiveness, they’re NOT the Pohlad brothers, they want to win & now & they should while KAT & Ant are in top form.
Now they signed some guy named Bryn Forbes. Not wasting time moving into the next guy.
I love that the Wolves took a big swing to get a bonafide NBA star in here to play alongside Ant, KAT, and DLo.
I'm not sure that I love that the guy they added was a center who is limited offensively and has been more or less exposed in the playoffs the last couple years. Gobert is an absolute stud defensively in the paint (Defensive POY 3 times, one away from tying the NBA record). The problem is... the game is played less and less in the paint. Dallas was able to oust Utah this past season in the playoffs by outscoring them from mid range and 3pt range.
They traded PatBev, who was a HUGE leader for this team last season (for as much as I hate some of his stupid/dirty cheap shots, it's hard to argue against the impact he made on the team) and was absolutely a shutdown defender at the guard spot, and Jared Vanderbilt, a very good defensive swing man, in an effort to allow KAT to become a better overall player. I'm not super concerned about losing Beasley (he was a bigger contract than he was worth most of the time, though I liked him as an offensive threat off the bench). Bolmaro and Kessler are wildcards. If Kessler turns into Gobert Lite, it's going to look bad. He was a premium shotblocker in college and a very good rebounder - the two things Gobert excels at. Bolmaro was a highly touted prospect from Europe but didn't get much time in the NBA last season. He's only 21 so we'll have to see if he turns into anything. The picks are what they are. As others have said, picks in the 20s in the NBA are crapshoots. They can either be home runs or be out of the league in 3 years.
It's pretty obvious the Wolves didn't want to move McDaniels (which is smart, IMO) so they likely included Vanderbilt, Bolmaro, and Kessler in his place.
They are banking on Gobert's presence in the lineup to unlock KAT's true potential. Hopefully Gobert's presence means KAT will take less stupid fouls trying to close out on a block or go over the back for rebounds (Gobert is among the best rebounders in the game as well). If Gobert's presence helps KAT become a better defensive player and allows him more chances offensively then it's probably a win.
I just worry about how they plan to guard guys like Curry/Klay, Devin Booker, Ja Morant, Donovan Mitchell, and Luka Doncic when it comes to playoff time. Especially because now PatBev will likely be guarding Anthony Edwards if Utah and Minnesota meet in the playoffs and IDK if I trust DLo to carry the offensive load in the playoffs if PatBev neutralizes Ant.
I'm not convinced they don't try to trade DLo for somebody else but if they do trade DLo it likely means they're losing another piece or two because they can't trade another first round pick in the decade of 2020 (NBA rules prohibit teams from trading 1st round picks in consecutive seasons, which is why the Wolves traded 2023, 2025, 2027, and top-5 protected 2029, and "pick swapped" in 2026, so Utah will get Minnesota's, Minnesota will get Utah's).
A starting 5 of DLo, Ant, McDaniels, KAT, and Gobert sure looks formidable on paper.
The additions of Bryn Forbes on a 1-year minimum is kind of a steal as a replacement for Beasley - he's a career 42% three point shooter, and he and Kyle Anderson should help bolster the losses of Beasley and Vanderbilt. They still have McLaughlin and their 2nd 2022 first round pick Wendell Moore, and they brought back Taurean Prince and IIRC Naz Reid is still under contract too. Hopefully they can find a high energy defensive guard in the mold of PatBev this offseason too.
Isn't Gobert 30? And while Gobert is a defensive beast, the Wolves were terrible in D last season. Beaverly and Vanderbilt are sound defensively and Kessler was expected to be so imho seems like a net loss on defensive depth. If they fall on their face losing those first rounders is going to hurt. I don't see how this makes them better at the moment.
Isn’t Gobert 30? And while Gobert is a defensive beast, the Wolves were terrible in D last season. Beaverly and Vanderbilt are sound defensively and Kessler was expected to be so imho seems like a net loss on defensive depth. If they fall on their face losing those first rounders is going to hurt. I don’t see how this makes them better at the moment.
He is 30. Realistically he probably has 3-4 more years left being a very good defensive forward/center. This is very much a win-now move. They are putting all their eggs in the Ant/KAT basket (and rightfully so IMO, they are the two best players the franchise has had since KG, and IMO Ant will end up being the best player the Wolves have ever had if he sticks here long-term--yes even better than KG).
Beverly and Vanderbilt were both very good defensive players, but neither one was a "starter" for the Wolves (they both played 25ish minutes/game, which is not a small amount but it's not like Ant/KAT/DLo minutes either). If Gobert can stick with his average minutes/game that he's had the last 3-5 years (roughly 31 minutes/game) and Kyle Hamilton can do a fair impression of Vanderbilt on the defensive end, then it's probably a decent trade (I will reiterate, I'm very concerned about how they plan to defend the top guards in the western conference, particularly in the playoffs).
Kessler is a question mark so I'm not sure I'd throw him in the same class as PatBev and Vanderbilt as far as defensive impact lost. He was drafted to be a good rim protector and was a great one in college. But there is a gigantic difference between the NBA and college. Which is why it's such a crapshoot drafting outside the top 8-10 in the NBA draft. It's easier to look like a phenom in college if you are a borderline NBA player and none of your opponents will even sniff the league. The reason Kessler fell down to 22 despite his impressive college stats is because there are significant questions about his ability to do what he did in college at the NBA level where everyone is faster, stronger, and more athletic than 99.9% of the competition he's faced to this point. There's at least an equal chance he averages 7 minutes a game or less for Utah as there is he'll average 18+ minutes/game this season. If he can be a poor man's Gobert early in his career - or better, then it's absolutely an L trade for the Wolves almost regardless of what happens with the draft picks (unless the team makes a couple deep playoff runs obviously).
The Wolves spent big money to hire Tim Connelly away from the Nuggets and build a team that can consistently compete. This is a huge move for their brand new president of basketball operations. Hopefully he hits a home run with it.
I love that the Wolves took a big swing to get a bonafide NBA star in here to play alongside Ant, KAT, and DLo.
I’m not sure that I love that the guy they added was a center who is limited offensively and has been more or less exposed in the playoffs the last couple years. Gobert is an absolute stud defensively in the paint (Defensive POY 3 times, one away from tying the NBA record). The problem is… the game is played less and less in the paint. Dallas was able to oust Utah this past season in the playoffs by outscoring them from mid range and 3pt range.
They traded PatBev, who was a HUGE leader for this team last season (for as much as I hate some of his stupid/dirty cheap shots, it’s hard to argue against the impact he made on the team) and was absolutely a shutdown defender at the guard spot, and Jared Vanderbilt, a very good defensive swing man, in an effort to allow KAT to become a better overall player. I’m not super concerned about losing Beasley (he was a bigger contract than he was worth most of the time, though I liked him as an offensive threat off the bench). Bolmaro and Kessler are wildcards. If Kessler turns into Gobert Lite, it’s going to look bad. He was a premium shotblocker in college and a very good rebounder – the two things Gobert excels at. Bolmaro was a highly touted prospect from Europe but didn’t get much time in the NBA last season. He’s only 21 so we’ll have to see if he turns into anything. The picks are what they are. As others have said, picks in the 20s in the NBA are crapshoots. They can either be home runs or be out of the league in 3 years.
It’s pretty obvious the Wolves didn’t want to move McDaniels (which is smart, IMO) so they likely included Vanderbilt, Bolmaro, and Kessler in his place.
They are banking on Gobert’s presence in the lineup to unlock KAT’s true potential. Hopefully Gobert’s presence means KAT will take less stupid fouls trying to close out on a block or go over the back for rebounds (Gobert is among the best rebounders in the game as well). If Gobert’s presence helps KAT become a better defensive player and allows him more chances offensively then it’s probably a win.
I just worry about how they plan to guard guys like Curry/Klay, Devin Booker, Ja Morant, Donovan Mitchell, and Luka Doncic when it comes to playoff time. Especially because now PatBev will likely be guarding Anthony Edwards if Utah and Minnesota meet in the playoffs and IDK if I trust DLo to carry the offensive load in the playoffs if PatBev neutralizes Ant.
I’m not convinced they don’t try to trade DLo for somebody else but if they do trade DLo it likely means they’re losing another piece or two because they can’t trade another first round pick in the decade of 2020 (NBA rules prohibit teams from trading 1st round picks in consecutive seasons, which is why the Wolves traded 2023, 2025, 2027, and top-5 protected 2029, and “pick swapped” in 2026, so Utah will get Minnesota’s, Minnesota will get Utah’s).
A starting 5 of DLo, Ant, McDaniels, KAT, and Gobert sure looks formidable on paper.
The additions of Bryn Forbes on a 1-year minimum is kind of a steal as a replacement for Beasley – he’s a career 42% three point shooter, and he and Kyle Anderson should help bolster the losses of Beasley and Vanderbilt. They still have McLaughlin and their 2nd 2022 first round pick Wendell Moore, and they brought back Taurean Prince and IIRC Naz Reid is still under contract too. Hopefully they can find a high energy defensive guard in the mold of PatBev this offseason too.
"Especially because now PatBev will likely be guarding Anthony Edwards if Utah and Minnesota meet in the playoffs and IDK if I trust DLo to carry the offensive load in the playoffs if PatBev neutralizes Ant."
One counter point on this PatBev concern, I think this represents a full rebuild for Utah, So in terms of PatBev haunting the Wolves in the playoffs I think he would need to be traded to another contender that then plays the Wolves, which is fairly unlikely. Also Pat tuns 34 later this month so he may only have a few good years left in him anyway.
Overall I agree with you, Love the big swing, but it is definitely a big risk/high cost. Totally could blow up for the wolves if the two bigs lineup cant match up against a small ball team. But in general I think NBA picks are a bit overrated. This isn't the NFL where you have dozens of positions to fill and you need a constant pipeline of cheap talent to fill holes to stay under the cap. Highest expectations for wolves team since KG, sign me up! :good2:
I think we are seeing that PatBev was not as well liked as many thought he was. I think his big mouth and attitude only works for so long with teammates especially when he goes on ESPN and talks smack about better players than him who have been more successful.
Gobert is definitely there to help KAT. This frees KAT up to play more to his strengths and (hopefully) whine less about getting a bunch of fouls for being aggressive.
As for offense, I am not too worried about all of that. Despite the fact that the nerds are trying to ruin basketball the way they ruined baseball the NBA has already started to adapt to the "shoot 700000 3s a game" strategy because most teams aren't Golden State who can somehow do that and win. Boston made the finals by taking advantage of defenses assuming they spread the floor just to shoot from long distance by lobbing the ball over the D for easy layups and jams inside. My guess is Gobert will be used a bit this way as well (ANT will feast on that) which will also help KAT get even more open for those jumpers he loves. Plus we will have a good rebounder if KAT decides he wants to be Steph Curry for a game.
Again this could totally blow up in their face, but I will take this all day over the constant mediocrity of the Twins. The Wolves know if they want a shot in the West they needed a better squad (as was the team would always be 6-8 at best) so they swang for the fences. I applaud that.
Bill Russell dies at 88
Wolves forward Taurean Prince was arrested in Miami over the weekend on a fugitive out-of-state warrant for drug and weapon charges in Texas.
Prince was initially cited in Texas after being pulled over for expired tabs. After being pulled over, police found two handguns, a THC vape pen, and a canister of marijuana. Police could not get a warrant for him until results of the vape pen examination determined it was a THC pen.
https://twitter.com/AdamDuxter/status/1563222584442793984?s=20&t=qtrYQxgnhrB0XwTOtnVcTQ
Oof even if the mural isn't the inspiration...
https://twitter.com/Netglow/status/1579653795109560321?s=20&t=5DAYSL8dLozE6OUR1epGoQ
@slap-shot I don't think that is one of their uniforms, unless it is a one game special event.
@slap-shot I don't think that is one of their uniforms, unless it is a one game special event.
It's their City uniform.
Well, we're on the eve of a T'Wovles season that comes with actual expectations. Let's see how that pans out for this MN team...
Why is tonight Wolves home game have a 9pm start time?
Aloha!
Why is tonight Wolves home game have a 9pm start time?
It's on ESPN as the 2nd part of their double header
I'm 50% factual and 50% sarcastic. When you get to know me, you will know which is which.
Last night the Timberpuppies come out of time out with only 4 players on the court, what they think they are playing hockey and killing off a penalty?
Aloha!
Rough start for a team that was supposed to contend for the conference.
Rough start for a team that was supposed to contend for the conference.
DLo has been nothing short of atrocious this season so far (and he forgot to go on the court after checking in last night). Edwards has gotten off to a slow start as well.
The team's splits when DLo is on the court vs. when JMac is on the court are astonishing. This data is a week old now but highlights the disparity. It is almost fireable at this point that DLo is getting more minutes than JMac (and almost 2:1, at that).
https://twitter.com/Killboard1/status/1587803725900521472?s=20&t=2lAoiSMxEASUGx4nQBCzQA
If I'm Finch, I put DLo as the 6th man and roll a starting 5 of JMac, Ant, McDaniels, KAT, and Gobert. Then rotate DLo in for JMac/Ant and Nowell for McDaniels/Kat/Gobert when they want to go with a smaller lineup.
Epic!
“When your best friend is the son of God, you get tired of losing every argument.”
― Christopher Moore, Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal
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Rough start for a team that was supposed to contend for the conference.
DLo has been nothing short of atrocious this season so far (and he forgot to go on the court after checking in last night). Edwards has gotten off to a slow start as well.
The team's splits when DLo is on the court vs. when JMac is on the court are astonishing. This data is a week old now but highlights the disparity. It is almost fireable at this point that DLo is getting more minutes than JMac (and almost 2:1, at that).
https://twitter.com/Killboard1/status/1587803725900521472?s=20&t=2lAoiSMxEASUGx4nQBCzQA
If I'm Finch, I put DLo as the 6th man and roll a starting 5 of JMac, Ant, McDaniels, KAT, and Gobert. Then rotate DLo in for JMac/Ant and Nowell for McDaniels/Kat/Gobert when they want to go with a smaller lineup.
and then start trying to trade KAT to get back some of those picks you gave up to get Gobert.
Great game on TNT Doncic drills a sick 3 to force OT against Labron
Doncic v Lebron going to second OT
Luka Doncic is so fun to watch. He's incredibly talented.
Isn’t Gobert 30? And while Gobert is a defensive beast, the Wolves were terrible in D last season. Beaverly and Vanderbilt are sound defensively and Kessler was expected to be so imho seems like a net loss on defensive depth. If they fall on their face losing those first rounders is going to hurt. I don’t see how this makes them better at the moment.
Kessler...
If he can be a poor man's Gobert early in his career - or better, then it's absolutely an L trade for the Wolves almost regardless of what happens with the draft picks (unless the team makes a couple deep playoff runs obviously).
Kessler had 20pts and 21 rebounds today as Utah outscored the Wolves 39-30 in the 4th quarter in their 126-125 win. Kessler is averaging 7.2/6.8 in 19.5 minutes this season but over the last couple weeks has seen his playing time increase and has been mostly outstanding for Utah.
Looking worse and worse every day on that trade.
Timberpuppies
Shut the team down close Target center make it a tailgating parking lot free parking
Aloha!
The most fire from the T wolves all year
I'm 50% factual and 50% sarcastic. When you get to know me, you will know which is which.
Good luck with that Mavs.
https://twitter.com/ShamsCharania/status/1622324668047794177
I'm 50% factual and 50% sarcastic. When you get to know me, you will know which is which.
Westbrook…?….why?
Utah is getting him because he's on an expiring contract so they can use that $$ in FA next season. Wolves needed to trade Russell in order to keep the ability to sign Anthony Edwards to a max deal after next season (something about how if his contract expired instead of being traded they would lose the ability to go over the luxury tax threshold to retain Edwards). Wolves get a viable starting PG who has had success playing with Gobert and has 2 years left (remainder of this season and all of next year) plus a rotational/depth guy and some draft capital back.
Smart deal for the Wolves all around.
Smart deal for the Wolves all around.
I assume talent wise the Wolves got the short end of the stick. Though it frees up cap space for the remainder of this year and going into next?
Keep your stick on the ice...
Smart deal for the Wolves all around.
I assume talent wise the Wolves got the short end of the stick. Though it frees up cap space for the remainder of this year and going into next?
Russell is a better overall player (and younger) than Conley for sure. But Conley may end up being a better fit for the team with Rudy in the lineup, as he is actually a good PG for the pick and roll. That remains to be seen, obviously. He and Gobert did have good chemistry when they played together in Utah, and Conley is much better in the assist/turnover ratio as a point guard than DLo is, which should theoretically help the offense. However, he is not nearly as good a shooter which will mean the Wolves will have to rely more on Ant/Jaden/Jaylen/Kyle Anderson for perimeter scoring.
But yes this was definitely a move to free up money to extend Anthony Edwards after the season.
Essentially if DLo became a free agent, his "max salary slot" (max contract) disappears as an option for the Wolves to use on Anthony Edwards. By getting Conley on the books at $24ish million (signed through 2023-2024) it preserves that slot for another year, which is when Ant's max contract would go into effect.
This trade effectively allows the Wolves the ability to become one of only a couple of teams in the league to have 4 max (or near max) contracts (the usual limit is 3). Basically the NBA allows teams to go over the salary cap to retain their own players. So if a team knows a guy on a max contract isn't going to re-sign with them, it makes sense to trade them and retain that max slot.
KAT's SuperMax contract goes into effect the same year an extension for Anthony Edwards and Jaden McDaniels would go into effect. Anthony Edwards will almost certainly sign a max contract (roughly 35million/year) and Jaden will probably get a near-max offer of 4 years/100-110 million. By 2024-2025 they'll have KAT on a SuperMax, Ant on a max, Gobert on a max, and McDaniels on a near-max contract.
This tweet does a better job explaining it than I can and includes a fancy graph:
https://twitter.com/DaneMooreNBA/status/1623483383388024833?s=20&t=gvbiks3wW_aYKcFIY7tP-g
One other name that is potentially going to be bandied about as the trade deadline nears is Naz Reid. He has been exceptional of late and has reportedly drawn a lot of interest from teams. Naz is a FA at season's end and with Rudy Gobert and KAT as big men, plus Luka Garza (shockingly) looking like a legitimate NBA big man and Josh Minott looking like he might be ready to become a full time NBA rostered player soon, the trade value for Naz Reid may be too good to pass up.
If the Wolves can get a 1st round pick for Reid I'd expect them to take that deal.
T-Wolves with the lock down defense in crunch time. ANT goes for 32. Wolves now have a better record than Golden State. Maybe someday GS will be good enough to keep up with Wolves. ?
T-Wolves with the lock down defense in crunch time. ANT goes for 32. Wolves now have a better record than Golden State. Maybe someday GS will be good enough to keep up with Wolves. ?
That was a master class in defense by McDaniels and Anthony Edwards against two elite scorers.
The Wolves after a crap start now look more promising than the Wild. ?
The Wolves after a crap start now look more promising than the Wild. ?
And KAT is supposed to be close to returning.