One more Tank season then Try to get K.A.T

[Spud2nique]

4 minutes ago, JayBirdHawk said:

(I read one rumor about Jimmy messing with KAT's girl but....)

Oooohhhh...juicy! Was it like Karl showing Vanessa the Malone 5? 

[Sothron]

2 hours ago, kg01 said:

 

For the record, I'm just pokin' the bear since I know that's your team.

I do think they are in desperation mode.  Any team who's best player/pseudo-leader requests a trade 4 days before camp starts is in desperation mode regardless of the fact that they'll have a solid(ish) team.

Also, apparently, NBARadio is set to feature the Twolves on Wednesday.  That's where they're on-site at camp and pretty much interview all the coaches and top players.  Think this is a comfortable time for them?

They aren't in desperation mode. They still have KAT. As long as you have a legit superstar players on your team you have something to build around. Wiggins is a solid player. Teague and Gibson are solid. The bench has some depth. That's all without Butler. They would get something back in a Butler trade.

My concern as a TWolf fan isn't Butler but Thibs. The last reports that I've read are that Thibs is digging his feet in the sand determined to keep them all together and work this out through the season to resign Butler at the end of the year. That's my concern. It is like the Hawks blowing Horford and Millsap by not trading them and letting them walk instead of getting something back for them.

[Sothron]

1 hour ago, TheNorthCydeRises said:

T-Wolves also had a losing record ( 13 - 17 ) vs the "lowly" Eastern Conference.   They were 34 - 18 vs the West.

Sorry, but a team with . . .

#1 pick - KAT

#1 pick - Wiggins

#1 pick - Rose ( albeit a shell of himself )

 . . . gets no excuses to not be able to ball without one of their key guys out.  Especially when most of their bench guys are seasoned veterans.

Had that been the Hawks, the fan base would've been all over those guys for underachieving.

 

The fact you'd even list Rose and question why they didn't do better against the East speaks for itself.

[Spud2nique]

3 minutes ago, Sothron said:

Wiggins is a solid player.

Up for debate. ? Jax said he has no ?...based on his play throughout his career so far I’d agree.

[Sothron]

21 minutes ago, Spud2nique said:

Up for debate. ? Jax said he has no ?...based on his play throughout his career so far I’d agree.

He has been solid in his career so far. His defense picked up last year. He now has to live up to that deal. I don't know if he'll ever be a true superstar player but he can definitely grow into a star player.

[kg01]

27 minutes ago, Sothron said:

They aren't in desperation mode. They still have KAT. As long as you have a legit superstar players on your team you have something to build around. Wiggins is a solid player. Teague and Gibson are solid. The bench has some depth. That's all without Butler. They would get something back in a Butler trade.

My concern as a TWolf fan isn't Butler but Thibs. The last reports that I've read are that Thibs is digging his feet in the sand determined to keep them all together and work this out through the season to resign Butler at the end of the year. That's my concern. It is like the Hawks blowing Horford and Millsap by not trading them and letting them walk instead of getting something back for them.

I mean, that all sounds good but they floundered without Jimi last year.  Prior to that, none of their bell cows (Towns included) appeared capable of leading a team to playoffs in the rugged West.

And let's be honest about Towns, he's always been talented but he and Devin Booker were in a similar boat of young guys that get numbers but have questionable impact on winning.  Towns had hustle issues w.r.t. guarding even as late as into the playoffs last year so we can't just assume he'll be a plus player on that end.  Calling him a superstar is not all that dissimilar from calling Booker one (which I believe is laughable)  Could Towns put it all together?  Sure but we can't ignore Jimi's impact on him showing glimpses of that last season.

If he reverts back to a guy that gives effort on O and kinda shows up sometimes on D, they're no lock to make the playoffs.  Especially when, as you accurately suggest, Thibs is an issue coaching-wise.  I have no idea why he's teflon in that regard.  A pretty strong case can be made this supposed 'genius' level defensive scheming has been rendered out-of-date by today's offenses.  His over-bearing style has a Scott Skiles-level grating quality I imagine.

There are real issues in MIN independent of their best player asking out.

[Sothron]

14 minutes ago, kg01 said:

I mean, that all sounds good but they floundered without Jimi last year.  Prior to that, none of their bell cows (Towns included) appeared capable of leading a team to playoffs in the rugged West.

And let's be honest about Towns, he's always been talented but he and Devin Booker were in a similar boat of young guys that get numbers but have questionable impact on winning.  Towns had hustle issues w.r.t. guarding even as late as into the playoffs last year so we can't just assume he'll be a plus player on that end.  Calling him a superstar is not all that dissimilar from calling Booker one (which I believe is laughable)  Could Towns put it all together?  Sure but we can't ignore Jimi's impact on him showing glimpses of that last season.

If he reverts back to a guy that gives effort on O and kinda shows up sometimes on D, they're no lock to make the playoffs.  Especially when, as you accurately suggest, Thibs is an issue coaching-wise.  I have no idea why he's teflon in that regard.  A pretty strong case can be made this supposed 'genius' level defensive scheming has been rendered out-of-date by today's offenses.  His over-bearing style has a Scott Skiles-level grating quality I imagine.

There are real issues in MIN independent of their best player asking out.

I kinda stopped posting at the realgm wolves board for some time now going back ot last year when I got into it with a few guys about Thibs. I think Thibs schemes were perfect, literally perfect, before the current meta of 3's all day long offenses. But that was then...and this is now. He needs to put guys in better ways to succeed.

His offensive play calling was and still is just mediocre. Not bad but not good. The literal definition of average. That's not bad but you need the defense to be top notch game changing quality to justify it. And...that's not what we've seen so far. People knock KAT and Wiggins by looking at highlights on youtube but if you watch them play game in and game out they do give effort. It is just wasted effort. KAT especially because KAT wants to block every shot near him.

 

[kg01]

10 minutes ago, Sothron said:

I kinda stopped posting at the realgm wolves board for some time now going back ot last year when I got into it with a few guys about Thibs. I think Thibs schemes were perfect, literally perfect, before the current meta of 3's all day long offenses. But that was then...and this is now. He needs to put guys in better ways to succeed.

His offensive play calling was and still is just mediocre. Not bad but not good. The literal definition of average. That's not bad but you need the defense to be top notch game changing quality to justify it. And...that's not what we've seen so far. People knock KAT and Wiggins by looking at highlights on youtube but if you watch them play game in and game out they do give effort. It is just wasted effort. KAT especially because KAT wants to block every shot near him.

 

That's actually well stated.  When I say they don't give effort, I am indeed referring really to consistent, meaningful effort.  I guess that speaks more to bbiq than effort?  Either way, both need to show improvement in that area in order for MIN to do well.

And, say it ain't so, surely you weren't getting into it with some rando on a message board.  That's not the Baghdad-soth we know and love. 

[kg01]

Man, wtf is wrong with Thibs ...

Quote

Thibodeau has zero interest in taking a step back with Minnesota, even, according to sources, if it means he ultimately parts ways with the team.

http://www.sportingnews.com/us/nba/news/jimmy-butler-trade-rumors-timberwolves-news-contract-knicks-clippers-nets-lakers/mi5eu2s5b7n71ui643ikr5nes

https://www.yahoo.com/sports/rumor-tom-thibodeau-rather-leave-173105238.html

Dude might cut his head off to spite his face.  Nobody's saying they'll take "rebuilding pieces" back in a trade.

[TheNorthCydeRises]

2 hours ago, JayBirdHawk said:

Jimmy wants to be the Face of a Franchise and be paid $190 million over 5 years.  I don't see the Hawks switching course bringing in a 30 year old Jimmy and making him the FOTF in lieu of Collins and Trae.

He's had difficulty with the young players on his last two teams. Might be a him problem.

(I read one rumor about Jimmy messing with KAT's girl but....)

 

What is our "course"?  Playing a bunch of young guys who will take years to become good?   Why not add some good vets to the young group, and see if one of them can learn from the vet and become a star.

Right now, 80% of our eggs are in the "Trae Young becoming an All-Star" basket.   If that doesn't happen by year 3, this franchise may not even be a .500 level team in 7 years, because that means that we're either banking on someone else to be the All-Star, or we've hit the reset button again.

With the way our team is structured, I'd have no problem paying an All-Star caliber player max dollars in these next 2 - 5 years.  That player can elevate the team to playoff status, while we hope that one of the kids gets to All-Star level as well.  Butler at 5 / 190 might be ridiculous, but it's not detrimental to the salary structure of the team.  In fact, you'd have room to add another max guy, if they wanted to play with Jimmy and Trae.

[TheNorthCydeRises]

2 hours ago, Spud2nique said:

Oooohhhh...juicy! Was it like Karl showing Vanessa the Malone 5? 

It was this woman.

https://www.instagram.com/kawa_xo/?hl=en

[Spud2nique]

1 minute ago, TheNorthCydeRises said:

It was this woman.

https://www.instagram.com/kawa_xo/?hl=en

Wow ? 

[TheNorthCydeRises]

1 hour ago, Sothron said:

The fact you'd even list Rose and question why they didn't do better against the East speaks for itself.

Well, now about Teague, Crawford, and Gibson?

how . . . not "now"

[JayBirdHawk]

24 minutes ago, kg01 said:

Man, wtf is wrong with Thibs ...

http://www.sportingnews.com/us/nba/news/jimmy-butler-trade-rumors-timberwolves-news-contract-knicks-clippers-nets-lakers/mi5eu2s5b7n71ui643ikr5nes

https://www.yahoo.com/sports/rumor-tom-thibodeau-rather-leave-173105238.html

Dude might cut his head off to spite his face.  Nobody's saying they'll take "rebuilding pieces" back in a trade.

Giggle giggle!!!

[KB21]

17 minutes ago, TheNorthCydeRises said:

What is our "course"?  Playing a bunch of young guys who will take years to become good?   Why not add some good vets to the young group, and see if one of them can learn from the vet and become a star.

Right now, 80% of our eggs are in the "Trae Young becoming an All-Star" basket.   If that doesn't happen by year 3, this franchise may not even be a .500 level team in 7 years, because that means that we're either banking on someone else to be the All-Star, or we've hit the reset button again.

With the way our team is structured, I'd have no problem paying an All-Star caliber player max dollars in these next 2 - 5 years.  That player can elevate the team to playoff status, while we hope that one of the kids gets to All-Star level as well.  Butler at 5 / 190 might be ridiculous, but it's not detrimental to the salary structure of the team.  In fact, you'd have room to add another max guy, if they wanted to play with Jimmy and Trae.

Shhhh.  They don't want to hear this.  They want to continue their belief in the magical unicorn that the Hawks will be able to get by being the worst team in the history of the league.  

The fact is, it is very unlikely that the Hawks will be able to draft a player that is as good as Jimmy Butler is, much less get someone that is better than him.  

[Sothron]

43 minutes ago, kg01 said:

That's actually well stated.  When I say they don't give effort, I am indeed referring really to consistent, meaningful effort.  I guess that speaks more to bbiq than effort?  Either way, both need to show improvement in that area in order for MIN to do well.

And, say it ain't so, surely you weren't getting into it with some rando on a message board.  That's not the Baghdad-soth we know and love. 

Our board isn't the only one with guys that fall on their swords with their teams. Or have some kind of blind fanatically loyalty to a coach that means any criticisms puts you in the "hater" category and "agenda" and whatever else. I just don't have patience for that stuff any more.

[JayBirdHawk]

19 minutes ago, TheNorthCydeRises said:

What is our "course"?  Playing a bunch of young guys who will take years to become good?   Why not add some good vets to the young group, and see if one of them can learn from the vet and become a star.

Right now, 80% of our eggs are in the "Trae Young becoming an All-Star" basket.   If that doesn't happen by year 3, this franchise may not even be a .500 level team in 7 years, because that means that we're either banking on someone else to be the All-Star, or we've hit the reset button again.

With the way our team is structured, I'd have no problem paying an All-Star caliber player max dollars in these next 2 - 5 years.  That player can elevate the team to playoff status, while we hope that one of the kids gets to All-Star level as well.  Butler at 5 / 190 might be ridiculous, but it's not detrimental to the salary structure of the team.  In fact, you'd have room to add another max guy, if they wanted to play with Jimmy and Trae.

The course has been set with not resigning Milsap, Bud leaving, jettisoning Dennis etc.

 

This is Butler's detriment to a young team.

Quote

Butler is upset with “contractual matters,” according to The Athletic. Hence, his trade request.

“I’m not buying much of anything being put out there,” the opposing GM told Amico Hoops. “Butler’s reps are probably the source for most of this stuff, so we’re probably only hearing the very best of Butler being reported. But the guy has been two places, hasn’t really won (anything) and is causing issues. He has an inflated view of his own importance if you ask me. I wouldn’t want him on my team.

“He didn’t want to play in Chicago, he doesn’t want to play in Minnesota,” the opposing GM said. “Does he actually even want to play? Or does he just have people kiss his ass and receive a big paycheck?

“Look, there is no doubt Jimmy is extremely talented. He can help you win games. He gets after it on defense. But he’s not proven to be a team player. It’s one thing to put up numbers. How about having your teammates’ back and being a leader? He doesn’t do those things. I doubt he ever will.

The opposing GM wasn’t finished.

“He’s been a huge hassle for everyone I’ve talked to with both (the Bulls and Timberwolves),” the GM said. “I don’t care where they trade him. He’s still going to be there. Changing uniforms isn’t going to change Jimmy Butler. He needs to change himself. I wouldn’t take that risk. For Jimmy, it’s always all about Jimmy. Forget that, man.”

 

[Sothron]

18 minutes ago, TheNorthCydeRises said:

Well, now about Teague, Crawford, and Gibson?

how . . . not "now"

I'm not following the question and/or statement. What about them? They are solid pieces. The TWolves are talent wise fine as a non GSW team that's stuck in the West.

[kg01]

1 hour ago, JayBirdHawk said:

Giggle giggle!!!

Geez, burd.  Soooo immature.

[JayBirdHawk]

9 minutes ago, kg01 said:

Geez, burd.  Soooo immature.

Ha.

You and @Spud2nique give up the new country? Brad's lonely.