Love Hurts
by Stop-n-Pop on Nov 7, 2009 8:45 AM CST
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OK, it's starting to add up. Losing Kevin Love and his .208 WP48, 4.1 FTA/game, league-leading 15.1 oreb%, top-10 dreb%, and #2 overall reb% hurts. The team is already in the performance hole with the loss of Mike Miller's minutes at the off-guard, but losing Love's 30+ mpg to Oleksiy Pecherov and Ryan Hollins is costing this team the production it should have when the White Hole and Antigravity replace the minutes formerly used up by Craig Smith and Shelden Williams/Jason Collins. Yes, the two 7-footers are putting decent numbers, but they would even better if they were moved down a notch on the depth chart.
Last night the Wolves were a -9 on the offensive glass. It was even uglier when you calculated the percentage of available misses grabbed by the X-mas tree color clad visitors. The Bucks grabbed an astounding 36.2% of available misses on the offensive end of the court compared to the Wolves' 19%. If you can grab 1/3 of your misses, and you have a big beastie like Andrew Bogut in the paint, chances are a decent number of those misses are headed right into the bucket.
In just 6 short games the Wolves are getting destroyed at the 4/5 in the rebounding department, averaging -7.4 reb/game between the two positions. Last year, the team was a net 1.6 positive at the power forward and center. Granted, you can't view these numbers in a vacuum and the loss of Mike Miller is going to cause opposing bigs to get their grubby mitts on a few extra balls per game, but the overall point I'm making here is that losing one of the NBA's top 2-3 rebounders hurts in a bad way and the Wolves are starting to see the effect of this much production lost over even a short period of 6 games. We're already approaching the time where we can start talking about how Love's departure has cost the team 1 win. Of course, what they are losing in rebounding they could be making up in defense and we'll have to wait and see how the balance plays out. There are a lot of factors that play into something like this and I don't want to make a blanket statement, but I'll say it again: losing a top-flight rebounder when trying to rehab a center on the fly next to two new frontcourt players is going to have an impact, possibly a big one...relatively speaking.
Speaking of stats, Knickerblogger and 82Games are now updated for the current season. The early returns are that the White Hole is playing pretty well and that Jefferson is a pretty average (at best) player right now. Corey Brewer isn't rebounding his position nearly as well as Mike Miller did, Ryan Gomes has picked up some of the rebounding slack, and Jonny Flynn is a good scorer but a, thus far, lousy facilitator.
Speaking of Mr. Flynn and the anticipated PGBR (Point Guard Battle Royale), he scored 12 of his 20 points in the final 9:40 of the game, well after the game was decided. This isn't a complaint. Rather, it's a hope that the Wolves quickly figure out that Mr. Flynn can get pretty much wherever he wants to go with the ball in the 1/2 court and that he might be the team's best scoring option when the offense isn't clicking. In other words, when they start a quarter on a -8 run and nothing seems to be working, Flynn might be a more attractive offensive option than what Big Al is currently bringing to the mix. Flynn's PPR is a terrible -4.5 at the moment. Hopefully he'll begin to figure out the facilitation thing but for the time being he's a scorer, and a fairly decent one for having just 6 games under his belt. What I'm getting at here is that if Flynn is going to be a scorer, part of his development will be to figure out when to take it to the rim on 4 or 5 straight possessions when the game is still on the line, not when it's already decided. BTW: Here's hoping and praying that 4th Quarter Flynn never makes its way of the Wolves' PR Department's lexicon.
A few bullet points to wrap things up:
- Al Jefferson was absolutely manhandled by Andrew Bogut.
- Luke Ridnour won the PGBR.
- Andrew Bogut went to the bench with 2 fouls with just under 5 minutes to go in the 1st quarter. The Wolves were up by 7 at the time and they couldn't take advantage of having the big guy on the bench. This is where the game was really lost. The Wolves could have put the Bucks away in the later part of the 1st and the opening part of the 2nd. Instead, we were treated to some of the ugliest ball of the year: bad shooting, turnovers, terrible decisions, and so on and so forth.
- Speaking of awfulness, this game probably had worse reffing than the Celtics tilt. My favorite stretch was when Big Al swiped at a ball in Bogut's hands, missed, and hit him in the face. This happened right in front of the Bucks' bench and Scott Skiles went nuts and got a technical. A minute later Big Al made a nice drive to the hoop, was hacked by Bogut (which would have been his 3rd foul in the 1st half), and was not given a whistle...in other words, it was the 3rd or 4th makeup call of the night in a managed game that 100% absolutely did not need to be managed. The refs didn't cost the Wolves the game but they did make a hefty contribution to the unentertaining nature of the contest. I'm putting my vote in for the makeup call being the worst thing in the NBA.
- After a 4-16 effort from the floor, Brandon Jennings saw his FG% dip from .429 to .395. As was mentioned in yesterday's preview post, Jennings takes around a quarter of his shots from beyond the arc. Yesterday 4 of his 16 shots were from beyond the arc and he is down to .409 from .440. He is going to be an exciting player but the shot just isn't there and I think it's pretty obvious that he simply had a hot 3 game streak to start his career. That being said, his facilitation game is clearly ahead of Flynn right now. This may have a lot to do with the different systems being run by the Wolves and the Bucks (Jennings looked great running plays that Flynn would run were he on the Bucks).
- Comment of the night:
This game is kind of spooky...
Like watching us play ourselves.
by mutleyil on Nov 6, 2009 8:01 PM CST reply actions 0 recs
Indeed.
Yesterday I put up a post about Rick Kamla's questionable comment about Yi Jianlian and my disbelief that he could continue to do interviews on outlets like KFAN and not be questioned about his remarks. In the interest of a greater context, I would like to point out that there is a much, much, much bigger black eye in the NBA right now and his name is Donald Sterling.
Nov. 3 (Bloomberg) -- Donald Sterling, owner of the National Basketball Association’s Los Angeles Clippers, agreed to pay $2.73 million to settle a U.S. government lawsuit in which he was accused of housing discrimination.
The payment is the largest ever obtained by the government in a discrimination case involving apartment rentals, the Justice Department said today in a statement.
"Housing is a basic human need, and yet decades after passage of the Fair Housing Act far too many still encounter barriers like discrimination," Assistant Attorney General Thomas E. Perez said in the statement. "The magnitude of this settlement should send a message to all landlords that we will vigorously pursue violations of the Fair Housing Act."
The government sued Sterling in August 2006, saying he discriminates against black and Hispanic prospective tenants in buildings he owns in Los Angeles’s Koreatown area. Sterling owns about 119 apartment buildings in Los Angeles County, according to the Justice Department’s statement.
Sterling is a slumlord who likes to pay for sex:
Donald Sterling, the miserly tycoon who owns the Los Angeles Clippers, testified last year that he regularly paid a Beverly Hills woman for sex, describing her as a $500-a-trick "freak" with whom he coupled "all over my building, in my bathroom, upstairs, in the corner, in the elevator." Sterling's graphic testimony--which came during a two-day pretrial deposition in connection with a lawsuit he filed against the woman, Alexandra Castro--will surely nettle basketball commissioner David Stern, who normally has to explain away the behavior of 20-something athletes, not married 70-year-old club owners worth nearly a billion.
It kind of puts the dress code in an entirely new context, doesn't it?
There's more. The ultimate must-read article in the Sterling collection is this ESPN ditty, which contains the following gems:
"For years he has run semianonymous ads (crude design jobs he reportedly locks up himself) seeking 'hostesses' for Clippers events and his private parties. ... According to testimony Jaksy gave under oath, Sterling touched her in ways that made her uncomfortable and asked her to visit friends of his for sex. Sterling also repeatedly ordered her to find massage therapists to service him sexually, telling her, 'I want someone who will, you know, let me put it in or who [will] suck on it.'"
And:
"When Sterling first bought the Ardmore, he remarked on its odor to Davenport. 'That's because of all the blacks in this building, they smell, they're not clean,' he said, according to Davenport's testimony. 'And it's because of all of the Mexicans that just sit around and smoke and drink all day.' He added: 'So we have to get them out of here.' ...[Kandynce] Jones had repeatedly walked to the apartment manager's office to plead for assistance, according to sworn testimony given by her daughter Ebony Jones in the Housing Rights Center case. Kandynce Jones' refrigerator dripped, her dishwasher was broken, and her apartment was always cold. Now it had flooded. Davenport reported what she saw to Sterling, and according to her testimony, he asked: 'Is she one of those black people that stink?' When Davenport told Sterling that Jones wanted to be reimbursed for the water damage and compensated for her ruined property, he replied: 'I am not going to do that. Just evict the bitch.'"
Deadspin has more. As long as this man owns an NBA team, anything that comes out of David Stern's mouth about player conduct should be taken with an appropriately large grain of salt. BTW: It's kind of amazing that such a big stink was made about Rush Limbaugh owning an NFL team when guys like Sterling are around.
BTW: Here are the Four Factors of last night's game:
| Pace | Eff | eFG | FT/FG | OREB% | TOr | |
| Milwaukee | 91.0 | 95.6 | 45.7% | 14.6 | 36.2 | 20.9 |
| Minnesota | 79.1 | 41.9% | 13.5 | 19.0 | 23.1 |
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Ugly game, but still encouraged
Last night was an ugly game, but in looking at the 82games.com stats, we’re an improved defensive team that is struggling with offensive efficiency. Just as much as Love’s rebounding has been missed, his free throw rate has been missed just as much. Let’s hope the FTA gap closes upon his return. To me three things need to happen to get us on track: 1) Jefferson gets back to his career 50%ish shooting, 2) Love returns, and 3) We flip flop Flynn and Corey’s shot distribution, like last night.
The fish rots from the head
I’ve been living near Los Angeles for years and laugh when people predict good things from the Clippers. They sometimes have talented players, but the dysfunction is so deep that the only reason to play well is for a contract or to get out. Why bust your butt for an organization you despise? They’ve got some good pieces this year, but again, will underperform and I’d be shocked if they make the playoffs. I feel sorry for Blake Griffin, a great talent who will suffer for years until he can get out.
Last two games have been ugly on the turnover front.
Hopefully these games were the exception, not the rule for the season.
You were a daydreamer, a sass-mouth, and, not infrequently, a bit of a gigglepuss. Somehow I doubt twenty years of amphetamines and failure have done anything to improve that.
by Kevin Loves McHale's Navy on Nov 7, 2009 11:34 AM CST reply actions
I'm not sold at all on Jefferson and Love
I’d trade them both in a heartbeat for Chris Bosh.
I’ve also been thinking about the implications of a sign-and-trade for Rudy Gay that also gets us Hasheem Thabeet.
NO
no no no no a thousand times no. Thabeet is NOT going to be any more of an NBA player than you think Brewer is. As a matter of fact, based on your previous thoughts on Corey, I don’t think he’ll be that good.
Timberwolves - NBA champs 2013!
(used with permission - Wolf in MO)
Corey's already proving to be pretty good
Tied for third in the league in steals, first among guards in blocks, and second on our team in assists. Ok, his offense needs work. But his defense is stellar, and we’re statistically better with him on the floor than off.
But the question about Gay and Thabeet is more about, well, what can we fleece the Grizz out of. They’ve already shown they’ll give away talent for next to nothing. Rudy Gay is unlikely to stay anyway, and now they’re in complete turmoil because Iverson has walked out and it doesn’t look like he’s coming back.
Is Thabeet going to be any good? I don’t know. But if we can get him cheap, we might as well take that shot right? Having Thabeet is better than having nothing.
The only issue I have with Gay
is that he wants $12M per. The Griz reportedly offered him $10M and he turned it down… I wouldn’t pay him any more than 10.
Flynn's distribution
Yes, Flynn’s assist numbers have been dismal thus far. But that’s not as shocking as how badly Sessions has dropped off. His assist ratios for his first three seasons: 43.5%, 34.6%, 16.9%.
I think a lot of it must be due to the system and the players at the other four positions. One of the questions about Flynn coming out was whether he could distribute as well as he looks for his own shot. But Sessions had an established record of passing. 3rd year pros don’t just randomly start putting out half their career average.
Sessions looked stifled
His biggest strength is slashing to the hoop, and given the lack of depth, you’d think Rambis wouldn’t mind him creating more. Is he just trying to play too much within the system? Is Rambis benching him any time he freelances?
I can’t remember him once trying to take it to the hoop with any kind of intent last night. What a waste.
One of my first questions...
…about the Wolves’ new offense was that it has been used on teams that have had average point guards and the Wolves just spent 2 picks and a bunch of free agent money on a position that was filled by guys like Derek Fisher and BJ Armstrong on the only other teams that have tried this sort of thing.
Rambis gave him 2 games with starters minutes a few games back and he then praised Sessions for his knowledge of the offense. I really don’t know what is up with his minutes.
Forever splitting the Cheechakos from the Sourdoughs
www.canishoopus.com
I think
That it’s worth bearing in mind that Rambis is learning as much about what he can and can’t do with his offense and the talent that he has as the players are. What I mean specifically, in this case, is that a lot has just been said about the investment made in Flynn, Rubio, and Sessions and whether those players are good fits for an offense that traditionally doesn’t require an outstanding point guard. Even more has been said recently about the time it take for even ‘veteran’ players to grasp the triangle. I have two responses:
First, Rambis is experimenting with more than lineups. No one, to my knowledge, has ever tried the triangle with gifted PGs. Let me use an analogy. If the triangle is like a commuter train, the question becomes what is when does a commuter train cease to be commuter train (or phrased differently, how much can you change about that commuter train before it ceases to fulfill its function, or in this analogy ceases to be a good fit between personnel and system)? If you can conceive of a mag-lev commuter train when everyone only thinks of traditional wheels and rails, is it still a commuter train? Just because we have never seen a triangle with a gifted PG(s), does that mean we will never see one? In a year of player development growth it makes complete sense to me that Rambis will play around with his own offensive and defensive strategies and ideas to see what works and what doesn’t and why. Saying that this is the way it’s got to be and that’s it strikes me as a very Wittman-esque approach.
Secondly, re: veterans having difficulty learning the triangle. This is BS. This is crap writers throw out there to cover for players and coaches and to give a good story for a deadline. The honest truth is that, like most things in life, some people are good students, some people are bad students, some people are motivated and put the work in and some people are Shaddy McCants. ‘Most veterans’ often strikes me as being synonymous with ‘most retreads’ because, short of the key players on those Bulls and Lakers teams, the players who can’t grasp it are the roster fillers who float around the league from team to team, (for example, a guy like our own Derrick Martin). I don’t buy that it’s necessarily hard or impossible to learn. I think that it’s different, and different is often used as a crutch for not putting in the effort required to be successful.
I guess I’ll end my usual long post (sorry guys-don’t ever intend them to be this way, but it always seems to end up that way) by observing that when analyzing the triangle and the personnel required to run it we have precious little sample size. I know the rebuttal is all the seasons of Jordan and Kobe, right? But consider that each year more ‘traditional’ offenses accumulate-at a minimum-15 times more sample size data. Fifteen times! Multiply it out over the seasons and the triangle becomes a novelty in the broader spectrum of the NBA. I would offer that what we are witnessing (and should be expecting to witness) with the Wolves at the present moment is active experimentation in the name of innovation. We’re trying to do thing that haven’t been done before, and sometimes it’s going to look great but more often than not it’s going to go very very badly. Keep pining for that out of this world wing and mobile defensive and passing gifted big man, but also stop and appreciate for a moment what the collapses against the Bucks and 3 1/2 quarters of excellence against the Celtics teach us about the game of basketball and the triangle. Maybe I’m being overly optimistic, or maybe it’s just getting late and my thinking is getting fuzzy, but I really do think that Rambis is experimenting, testing, and learning about more than just his players right now.
Alright, I’m finished. Going to watch Austin City Limits. Would love to hear any feedback.
"Come on Eddie, let's get serious."
I think Rambis is using the triangle as much as a teaching tool as he is a playbook
It’s a good way to get players out of their comfort zones, instill discipline, force teamwork, and get players used to making judgment calls on their own.
Rambis has said that, as Jonny learns more and more of the triangle, he plans to scale it BACK and let Jonny do his own thing more often.
So I think this is Rambis’ way of developing a team first mentality and getting Jonny used to taking direction. It’ll work itself out, I wouldn’t worry.
The same exact thing can be said about Flynn.
I like what Rambis has done in terms of effort, pace, and forcing turnovers, but I think at some point we do have to seriously start questioning whether this offensive system is a good fit for the roster Kahn has assembled now, and for the one he has in mind for the future.
This may be the flaw in Kahn’s decision to wait so long to hire a coach.
We aren’t seeing much in the way of ball screen plays, so it seems we really aren’t playing to Ramon’s strengths. I hope the return of Klove fixes that.. if Rambis still isn’t letting them run pick and roll plays once he’s back, I’m going to start to wonder what’s up, because those two would make a great pick and pop duo.
When I get sad, I stop being sad and be awesome instead. True story.
The Triangle
Rambis isn’t allowing Flynn to pick-and-roll at all, because that is what he is most comfortable running. To me, that says we’re trying to instill a particular mindset to our players at this very early point of the season. Rambis is teaching guys to play within the system before allowing them to freelance and play to their own comfort levels. If they win, great, but I don’t think it is priority #1 at this point. That doesn’t bother me in the slightest.
As to the triangle not fitting the current personnel, well, so what? I don’t think anyone really expects the team is going to have anywhere near a winning record. At this point, it’s spacing, moving the ball, and finding the open shooter. Everyone is on a learning curve and for some, it’s going to be a much steeper curve than others. I don’t even mind that Jefferson isn’t getting it done. He’s recovering from major surgery and obviously isn’t anywhere near 100%. What does concern me is that he doesn’t seem to be buying into the defensive philosophy. Until we see he’s making an effort to be a defensive stopper, he’s a liability, as far as I am concerned.
We all know Flynn can attack the basket. He’s crazy strong, has a good handle, and can get it done at the basket. I think as the season progresses, we’ll see him learn to be a better facilitator within the offense. Once he shows Rambis that he’s getting it, the reins will be loosened.
The Triangle
I understand not allowing players to take the easy road. Explore, learn and employ all the aspects of an offense so those capabilities are there later, but if the system then doesn’t fit the personnel what’s the point?
So what? Don’t you think it’s a little troubling that our best player, newest draft pick and best FA signing don’t have traditionally strong roles in the triangle.
Awesome!
As to the triangle not fitting the current personnel, well, so what? I don’t think anyone really expects the team is going to have anywhere near a winning rec
Great! So we can just lose at home by 15 to one of the worst teams in the NBA, and have both coaches and players admit that they were out-hustled and the other team “wanted it more” We’ve averaged 27 wins the last 4 years, what’s another 3/4 years of futility?
At what point do we demand results from this awful franchise? Or (and I know this will be controversial) wins?
by Son of Gerald Green on Nov 8, 2009 8:23 AM CST reply actions
My name is Ericinmadison, and I endorse this post
actually, we knew we weren’t winning this year. Still, I somehow missed the memo that its cool for fans to not want their team to win.
I will say, though, that the more I think about it, the more troubled I am by the offense they are running. The two most talented players on the floor are a post-up big (Jefferson) and a penetrating point guard (Flynn). But they are trying to run an offense that really doesn’t take advantage of either, and isn’t designed to. I can’t really understand the point of that.
by Eric in Madison on Nov 8, 2009 10:14 AM CST up reply actions
Here's my question
There has to be a role for a penetrating guard/player in the triangle, right? How else does Kobe/did Jordan amass all those FTAs? So does the player have to be a shooting guard or small forward, or can it be a point guard?
And as Bynum and Gasol are proving in LA right now, a player who is very good at posting up can put up good (20/10) numbers in the triangle, right?
Lastly, in regards to Wolves fans wanting a winning team. To me it comes down to this—either you agree with Bill Simmons or you don’t. What do I mean by that? Either you think the team was close to mediocrity last year and think pursuing mediocrity and first round exits = winning (technically the Wolves were winners all those years they finished 42-40 or whatever). Or you disagree with Simmons and believe that while pieces existed last year, in order to get to even the WCF this team needs to be retooled, rethought, and reloaded from the ground up—even if doing so means taking a step back for a year.
I want wins. I want this team to win. I want to stick it to the Blazers and Celtics of the world. I want us to prove that Presti isn’t some genius but just a guy who’s accumulated the new Clippers (lots of talent, can’t win). I want people around the league to look at us the same way they look at the Rockets (in terms of talent acquisition and coaching) or Jazz (in terms of playing hard and never giving up). But I am also focused squarely on the future and the bigger picture this year, and so I am taking a page from Cheney and ‘not recalling’ the losses this year as best I can. I believe that this isn’t “another 3/4 years of futility” in the making. DK + Rambis aren’t McHale + bag of donuts coach. There is no more country club. This team is establishing their track record right now, but I, for one, support their development this season and am willing to wait and see how it plays out.
"Come on Eddie, let's get serious."
absolutely agree
A lack of patience and foresight is what got the Wolves in this putrid stew to begin with. Do you really want to start running the offense around “pound the ball into Al?” Have you been watching the past two seasons? Why not call McHale back and give him his old job while were at it. I bet he’s got a great Rubio for Hansborough trade idea cooking.
Seriously, accept that we don’t have the talent to be a good team, and be glad that we finally have a GM who realizes it. Eeking out 5-10 more wins at the expense of player development and implementing a plan (for once in the history of this franchise) makes no sense.
I'd be more inclined to embrace this position
If I were comfortable that what was happening was appropriate player and team development. Because I’m not convinced that is what’s happening, I’ll maintain a level of pessimism that I think is appropriate.
by Eric in Madison on Nov 8, 2009 2:06 PM CST up reply actions
Neutral, with positive inclinations...
seems like the correct mentality for approaching this season
You’re not going to have much fun watching this year if you are already calling it a failure, and it’s way too early to fully embrace the change or start criticizing it regardless.
It’s a certainty that we are going to lose a ton of games this year. And it is a certainty that it is going to take more than one offseason to build a roster that fits the system. We shouldn’t embrace failure, but let’s get real…failure was inevitable. It doesn’t necessarily mean we are no the wrong track. Relax, give it a little time. At least we are trying something new.
I dig it, EinM
I know from your prior posts that you’re a bit more skeptical-a seeing is believing type, and I’ve always appreciated that. Helps balance things/discussions out and offer a different perspective. I guess my hope is that you (and now I’m generalizing all fans of similar persuasions) are willing to keep an open mind throughout this season and not just write them off after 10 games (not that you’re doing that).
"Come on Eddie, let's get serious."
Sure
My view is: I like Kahn’s energy and work rate. I have no objection to his moves thus far—though I probably would not have picked up Brewer’s option. That’s pretty small beer, though. But, and it’s a big but, what ultimately will determine his legacy is what he does with the assets he has accumulated. Achieving flexibility doesn’t mean much if you don’t use it to get better.
I’ve been a fan of this team since the early 90s; I’m not giving up now, and I certainly have hopes. I don’t expect much in the way of wins this year, but I will next year, and I don’t think that’s unreasonable. How long have we been watching bad basketball? Was that Bucks game an example of improvement? OK, that might be unfair. But it was pretty awful.
And that leads me back to the way they are playing. While I don’t expect many wins this year, it seems reasonable to expect them to try to win. Not that they shouldn’t try to deveiop, but its obvious to everyone and their mother that the wing players on this team are severely lacking and, with the POSSIBLE exception of Brewer as a defensive specialist, won’t be part of the next good Wolves team. And yet, they are running an offense that requires the wings to make many decisions and take too damn many shots. Is it unreasonable to ask: if you draft a penetrating point guard, why on god’s earth won’t you let him penetrate? Is it better for him to feed Damien freaking Wilkins on the wing and then disappear? is that developing? Is running an offense in which Corey Brewer is 2nd on the team in FGAs really where they ought to be in the service of development?
Those are some of my questions.
by Eric in Madison on Nov 8, 2009 6:29 PM CST up reply actions
So what :)
In order to change the culture of a team, you have to break them down, then rebuild in the image you desire. I don’t think last year’s roster had a chance of ever going anywhere. By stripping down to a young core and bringing in a coaching staff of winners, we’re completely retooling, reinventing who the Wolves are as a franchise. Kahn wants to build a perennial winner and that is going to take time.
There’s a few ways of going about building a team: Tailor the system to the players you have; bring in players who fit the system you want; train players to run the system you want; some combination of the above. Kahn has said he wants to build the best player development system in the league.
The NBA is a player’s league, not a coaches league, with very few exceptions (Jazz, Spurs, Lakers). Unless the coach has 100% backing of his owner and GM, the nature of the team is dictated by the players. Guys like Sloan and Pop are winners for a reason. I think Rambis is a situation where he can build that kind of team.
I know people want the Wolves to win now. I do too, but the team’s just not there yet, and aren’t really even close, so I’m trying to take a long view of these things. As guys develop their understanding of the offense, things will improve.
And yeah, biggity, I can absolutely see a PG being the penetrating guard in Rambis’ triangle. I don’t see why it has to be a 2 or 3.
Well, it seems to me that a lot of Bryant's
penetrating/foul drawing in the triangle comes at the end of the clock when its broken down and he’s creating himself. Flynn ain’t no Bryant. The objection I have is that Flynn really isn’t asked to act, merely to initiate by bringing the ball up and passing to the wing, then he usually disappears to the oppo corner and we are then asking Brewer/Willins/Pecherov et. al. to make plays from the wing. That doesn’t seem like the best use of the talent.
Anyway, I’m just crabby today. Obviously, I knew this team would take its lumps this year, I’m just feeling like we maybe aren’t as close to a winning future as I want to be.
by Eric in Madison on Nov 8, 2009 1:42 PM CST up reply actions
Absence makes the heart grow fonder
The more he is out, the more Love’s value becomes apparent.
I’m glad you mentioned Limbaugh at the end of the Sterling comments, I was thinking about this as I was reading. The sad thing to me though is that while several NFL players came out and criticized Limbaugh when the story surfaced, to the best of my knowledge no players in the NBA have publicly criticized Sterling. You would think a current or past player would have commented in the last few days.
I can't believe Rush's..
….ownership group didn’t stick with him. Granted, Rush played the dick role and blamed it on lib’ruls but you don’t get to that far in a bid without people knowing about him being attached for a while. I’m also surprised that there hasn’t been more outrage from the players union about Sterling.
Forever splitting the Cheechakos from the Sourdoughs
www.canishoopus.com
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