Official Game Thread: Hawks at Timberwolves

[lethalweapon3]

“Aye, B-Good, after the game, how ‘bout we swap jerseys? Shorts, too!”

 

“You’re a SNITCH!” Clap. Clap. Clap-clap-clap. “You’re a SNITCH!”

The stands were empty on Monday afternoon. But don’t think the ghosts of State Farm Arena past weren’t haunting the soul of one D’Angelo Russell. The man is frustrated, and I’m a bit worried he could be hearing voices. And claps.

There’s little wonder why Russell, the Snitch, resorted to playing The Snatch Game with Hawks forward De’Andre Hunter at the close of the Timberwolves’ 108-97 loss in Atlanta on Monday. On a Minnesota club sorely missing Karl-Anthony Towns, Ricky Rubio and others, the team’s current top scorer is trying to show toughness and leadership. It just remains to be seen whether he knows exactly how.

This wasn’t supposed to be his lot in life, not six seasons into a career that began as the NBA flagship Lakers’ #2 overall pick back in 2015. But then the kid discovered Snapchat, played around too much, and blew up roommate Swaggy P’s engagement with Iggy Azalea prematurely. Now, D’Angelo looks on with disgust, as the mantle of Point Guard of the Future to Play with Superstars in L.A. got passed on to Lonzo Ball and now to, of all people, Dennis Schröder.

He made it worth his while in Brooklyn, earning an All-Star nod, although he couldn’t escape the wrath of the squawking Hawks faithful who jeered him into a 6-for-23 outing and a near-disastrous loss in March 2019. Today, it’s Kyrie standing in his place, as part of the newly formed Biggie 3. Golden State couldn’t wait to pair him up with Steph Curry while Klay Thompson healed up. Then, once Steph joined Klay on the shelf, the Warriors couldn’t wait to put out a flyer for Andrew Wiggins, who enjoys the occasional Curry dish still today.

Playing with his buddy, Karl-Anthony Towns, in Minnesota was supposed to be fun. Alas, gloom has followed Russell here, too. Towns is fighting through a bout with COVID-19, a malady that has claimed a parent and multiple family members, while the duo plays for a head coach that has struggled to elude the shadow of his late father in the Twin Cities.

2020’s lottery luck brought them the #1 overall pick in Anthony Edwards, but coach Ryan Saunders and the Timberwolves have yet to show how the Ant-Man and Russell can mesh (minus-22.2 points per 100 possessions as a two-man combo, MIN’s second-lowest w/ 150+ minutes, as per bball-ref) without getting in each other’s way. With a single Jimmy Butler-inspired playoff appearance to show for the past 16 years (a series dominated, coincidentally, by Houston’s Clint Capela), and now one win to show for the past eleven games after a promising 2-0 start, the 2020-21 season already feels headed to that familiar sunken place for Wolves fans.

Steady 20-plus-PPG scoring, with five-plus assists per game to boot, used to be enough to have major value and earn staying power in this league (Russell’s plus/minus of -11.8 per game is far-and-away the lowest of 24 NBA’ers meeting this threshold). Big multi-year extended contracts, like the one Timberwolves’ second-year GM Gersson Rosas inherited from Golden State by dumping Wiggins and possibly this year’s top-3-protected first-rounder for D’Angelo, used to be immobile, too.

In 2021, Russell foresees himself, despite his soon-to-be $30 million annual deal, still getting passed around the league like a hot pierogi. He gets to watch other top scorers dictate precisely where they want to go, or, if they choose to stay, who they want coming to play with them. When they warn you repeatedly “Don’t Press Send!” on a stupid social media post, and you smash down the button anyway, your destiny as a professional is officially out of your hands.

D’Angelo knows he must offer something else of positive value to change his career narrative. He’s not quite sure where that ray of sunshine is, which is why he’s out here grabbing at anything he can. That was much to the dismay of Hunter, who had to cling onto the final meaningless possession on Monday with D’Angelo draped on one arm, then jump-ball with a sore knee (like Cam Reddish, he’s still questionable to play today) while Russell’s shoes never bothered to lift from the floor, the guard whining about the quality of an unnecessary toss with the referee.

The Hawks fans didn’t forget D’Angelo’s Snapchat misdeed, and he in turn couldn’t grow up enough to forget their taunts. He missed out on playing Atlanta at all last season, and he thought he’d offer up a touch of payback worth remembering, before the Hawks play their rematch tonight (8 PM Eastern, Fox Sports Southeast and 92.9 FM in ATL, Fox Sports North in MSP), even though us fan-trolls are all now catcalling from the comforts of our Barcaloungers.

If anything, Russell’s chicanery on Monday is already far less memorable than KAT giving our lowly Hawks shade, and then lots of buckets, following his late-night gaming escapade Gameboy Ben Simmons from that same month of 2018. For as infrequently as he faces the Hawks (nine games, fewest of any team he hasn’t already played for; 20.8 PPG w/ 43.8 FG%), D’Angelo would do well to make like Frozen and Let It Go.

Trae Young is shooting the ball worst of anyone in the NBA’s current 20-and-5 Club (39.0 FG%, the only one lower than Russell’s 44.0%). But he’s maintained a franchise-face presence in Atlanta, a team that at least looks to have a play-in trajectory on paper, and I suspect that’s what really grinds D’Lo’s gears. That Young is getting to the line with ease and, aside from Wednesday, sinking them even easier, sticks in the craw of Russell (68.9 FT% on 3.5 attempts/game) almost as much. Trae’s Hawks do have 99 problems, but a Snitch, well, you know.

In the decisive final seconds of regulation, as the shorthanded Hawks charged back from 17 points down in the second half to even things up with Detroit on Wednesday evening, Atlanta’s head coach Lloyd Pierce had Trae in the game. On defense.

Young gave us his latest submittal as a DPOY nominee by staving off a hard-charging Jerami Grant under the rim, his help giving the recovering defender John Collins just enough time to erase the Piston star’s would-be game-winning layup attempt. The Hawks would go on to prevail, 123-115 in OT, and even their record to 7-7.

In the decisive final seconds of regulation, after his team threatened to blow a 20-point home lead to the remnants of the Magic, and mere minutes after the Hawks’ victory, Russell was on the bench, a coaching decision made by Lil’ Flip just in case a swift defensive stop was needed. One was needed.

Up by two with under five seconds to go, Jarred Vanderbilt clanked a pair of would-be game-clinching free throws, and Orlando’s Cole Anthony grabbed the long board and sprinted down the floor, delivering for his struggling Magic on a corner heave over Malik Beasley that had Greg Anthony looking like the proudest papa on NBATV’s Crunch Time. Instead of escaping with a sorely needed win, Minnesota fell to 3-10, still looking up at everyone in the Western Conference standings.

Fortunately for Minnesota’s spirits, Rosas had just recently missed out on the opportunity to pass up on Cole Anthony. Almost one year ago, Atlanta’s PBO Travis Schlenk had handed him Brooklyn’s draft pick, the multi-team swap bringing the Hawks Capela (∞ points, ∞ boards vs. DET) while landing the T’wolves Beasley and, eventually, a reservation two spots behind Orlando in 2020’s Draft. (oooh, and speaking of suspected snitches, how about Evan Turner, as @NBASupes helpfully reminds us?)

Rosas could have doubled up on top-20 first-rounders, much like Atlanta did in 2018 when they used Minny’s pick (wherever on Earth you are, blessings to you, Adreian Payne) to select Kevin Huerter (career-highs of 15.4 PPG, 50.7 2FG%, 84.6 FT%). With the #19 pick, perhaps the Wolves could have tried their luck with prospects like Precious Achiuwa, Saddiq Bey, or Tyrese Maxey.

But Rosas wanted to bring back Ricky Rubio to the North Star State, a surefire fan draw in a season with no fans in the seats. Right now, Saunders and the T’wolves are up a creek, and neither Rubio (6.3 PPG, 38.1 FG% pre-quarantine) nor compadres Juan Hernangomez (health ‘n safety, likely out again today) and Towns, have been around lately to help Russell paddle.

Minnesota’s maleficent malaise over the decades has involved a cycle of making the tough decisions to part with high-value talent, but not getting much more of value in return. From KG, to Al Jefferson, from K-Love, to Butler, and now Wiggins. Even though the Wolves are reluctant to pull the triggers, they make big, bold, blockbuster trades. They just can’t seem to win them.

In Rosas’ turn at the wheel, it is beginning to appear as though that time is arriving again soon, with Russell and Atlanta-native Beasley in his sights as the league’s trade deadline nears. Just the slightest of winning runs puts their 2021 first-rounder in jeopardy (they gave up their own second-rounder, too, in the Wiggins deal), and at some point in the back end of this season, a healthy Towns and Rubio and a growing Edwards makes that risk very real.

In the meantime, Rosas needs just what transpired this week. He needs Russell to ball out (31 points, 4 steals and 7 assists @ ATL, team-high 19 points, 6 assists and 2 blocks vs. ORL) enough to pump up his trade value, but not so much that he risks Minnesota losing out on a top-tier lottery pick. Same with Beasley, who threatens to join a 20-and-5 club of his own, too (career-highs of 19.2 PPG, 4.9 RPG).

Ultimately, for Russell to improve the likelihood he winds up this summer with a bench-scoring-starved legitimate playoff contender, and not Sacramento, the hijinks are going to have to stop. No coach or GM, aside from maybe LeBron, is going to risk silliness sinking their championship voyages.

D’Angelo is going to have to understand, every step he takes, every boneheaded play and/or video post he makes, some GM out there is secretly recording his every move. Should the Hawks fans he wants to Troll So Hard be the ones to break the news to him? Nah, we ought to keep it to ourselves, there's no need to risk stitches. Don’t press send, y’all!

 

RIP, Hammerin’ Hank! Let’s Go Hawks!

~lw3

[JayBirdHawk]

 

Do the 'questionables' play tonight or do we hold them out until Sunday vs Bucks?

[lethalweapon3]

Atlanta can even their all-time record versus the Wolves in Minnesota to 15-15 with a win today.

Zion and the Pelicans are on the T'wolves slate for tomorrow at the Target Center, so we'll see what Saunders does as far as lineups and minutes distribution on this front end of their back-to-back.

Giannis and the Bucks are off until Sunday's game against the Hawks, since the wheezing Wizards are still too short-staffed to play tonight. Unlike Minnesota, I doubt LP has the room to conserve anybody's energies ahead of Sunday, especially if Cam and D-Hunt are again no-gos tonight.

 

~lw3

[klharper]

54 minutes ago, JayBirdHawk said:

 

Do the 'questionables' play tonight or do we hold them out until Sunday vs Bucks?

My guess/hope is that Hunter plays [capped at 30], Gallo gets a few minutes [10ish], and Reddish rests?

 

Whatever it is... I hope at least one of them plays so we don't have to bear another Solo start  

[JayBirdHawk]

Go time.

 

 

[Dnice]

Whoa, Aaron told Ted Turner, pretty much if you can get Wilkins, go get him...

 

Edited January 23, 2021 by Dnice

[bleachkit]

50 minutes ago, JayBirdHawk said:

Go time.

 

 

We are basically a Bogi away from having our squad. 

[Bonkers]

RIP Hammerin' Hank Aaron

[terrell]

Kevin Huerter staying in the starting lineup:

[RedDawg#8]

6 minutes ago, terrell said:

Kevin Huerter staying in the starting lineup:

This is huge, and the right call honestly. Cam is too up and down right now. Kev has in fact earned his starting spot back.

Cam has to be more consistent because he is a difference maker for us when he is. SG is such a revolving door for us. Let's see how long Kev can keep the job.

[terrell]

Jaylen Brown just fell into rookie Peyton Pritchards knee....Looked pretty bad.....Damn injuries............

Praying the Hawks can stay healthy from here on out.....

[NBASupes]

Clint Capela is playing elite ball

[Buzzard]

13 minutes ago, RedDawg#8 said:

This is huge, and the right call honestly. Cam is too up and down right now. Kev has in fact earned his starting spot back.

Cam has to be more consistent because he is a difference maker for us when he is. SG is such a revolving door for us. Let's see how long Kev can keep the job.

I agree 100%. Huerter deserves the starting job. Reddish is shooting like the 1st half of last season. Hopefully coming off the bench will loosen things up for Reddish.

[bleachkit]

Why are Trae home run lobs getting intercepted this year?

[Carmine]

lol defenses sagging off Trae now

[terrell]

Solo 1st off the bench?

[RedDawg#8]

Dang LP, if you insist on Hill playing PF could you at least put him next to Clint and not JC? Why go super small if you dont have to.

[terrell]

Gallo!

[Carmine]

GALLO!

[NBASupes]

Edwards really tryna yam on Big Clint