S.O.S. (A Min/LAL wrap)

Even Rick Adelman has to be vexed at this point.

I mean, we're talking about a head coach who should have seen it all by this point. He battled Showtime coaching the Blazers. He lost his best player repeatedly coaching the Kings (and still managed to give Shaq's LAL all it could handle) then lost his two best players repeatedly coaching the Rockets. And still managed to battle Kobe's Lakers to the bitter end.

But this might be beyond even him

On the Wolves' injured list are: Kevin Love, Brandon Roy, Chase Budinger, Andrei Kirilenko, Malcolm Lee, and now Nikola Pekovic (and that's not even counting Josh Howard). 4 of Minny's top 5 players. (or 5 of 6, depending on how good a healthy Roy theoretically would be) In the 'Sota training room is what would otherwise be a damn good, fully functional starting 5 unit. Unbelievable.

The HMUSS Timbertanic hit the iceberg a year ago when Rubio was lost to a torn ACL, and has been taking on water losses faster than a cat in an oversized chair ever since.

Bulkhead 6 officially went under tonight, when Nikola Pekovic stumbled off the floor with back spasms and never returned. Man overboard. Ugh.

In his absence, the Wolves put up an effort worthy of the archives of the Jedi Order, but with no Yoda-led clone army to swoop in and save the day. Ricky Rubio...who's made it clear that he's constitutionally incapable of giving up....put on a dazzling performance and nearly again notched a triple-double (13-8-13), but the Wolves simply don't have enough healthy bodies to compete with the Lakers....even this year's dumbed-down version.

(It also doesn't help when you're forced to put Ridnour and Barea on Kobe)

So the Wolves walk away from Staples Center tonight with plenty of pretty highlights, but no win and no Pekovic.

...

Like, seriously. Can we just forfeit the season now in exchange for a top 2 pick....?

• I will say this though: as cosmically bad as this season has turned out to be, there has yet to be a truly recipe-worthy non-performance. You can thank No-Quit Rubio for that. As was said in the game thread, it's really quite amazing he's doing this with basically no starters to work with.
• >If tonight was supposed to be a Williams-for-Pau audition, then I hope the Wolves have a plan B.
• Missing: Dante Cunningham's shooting touch. 9-9 seems like a lifetime ago.
• It's amazing how D'Antoni's system can turn any journeyman with a three point shot into a high impact player.
• The Wolves have no one to guard a Kobe Bryant. Which, as we can now see, is a critically fatal problem when your opponent is Kobe Bryant.
• Barea loves torching the Lakers. Even more so now that Andrew Bynum's teenage excuse for a thug life is out on the east coast.
• There is no reason to not be playing Chris Johnson. Absolutely none, whatsoever. The guy is twice the productivity and 10x the athleticism of Greg Stiemsma, and at half the fouls. Steamer managed to pick up 3 fouls in 5 minutes tonight, get 2 of his 3 shots blocked, and collect only a single rebound. Johnson meanwhile was a dunk machine, a defender, and even showed of a couple slick passes. I don't care if he's not one of 'your guys', Adelman. The season is lost, and Johnson's better than Steamer anyway.

We'll end this with Spanish Unicorn video highlights. So at least we get something out if it.

PLAY CHRIS JOHNSON.

HE SAW WHAT CLARK DID.

FYI, Paul Shirey apparently got to see a pre-screening of Man of Steel and has already dubbed it the best movie of the year. Like anyone who's seen a Superman film within the last...oh....15 years, I'm skeptical. But he says it's a Chris Nolan story with a Watchman/300/Sucker Punch level of action. Which does sound pretty kick-ass.