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Post by tmill720 on Apr 4, 2024 13:44:22 GMT -6
We had an empty roster spot. I thought "maybe" they'd use that spot on a 10 day (which could be converted) for a 4 who could spend some time guarding Zion if it came down to it. Pick up some fouls and just try to slow him down a bit. But it probably makes more sense to know you have another center in case KAT cant come back or is ineffective. I don't think any "new" players can be signed and be eligible for the playoffs at this point... correct me if I'm wrong.
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Post by Scorched on Apr 4, 2024 14:35:47 GMT -6
I thought "maybe" they'd use that spot on a 10 day (which could be converted) for a 4 who could spend some time guarding Zion if it came down to it. Pick up some fouls and just try to slow him down a bit. But it probably makes more sense to know you have another center in case KAT cant come back or is ineffective. I don't think any "new" players can be signed and be eligible for the playoffs at this point... correct me if I'm wrong. As long as they were waived before March 1st and sign before the end of the regular season they are playoff eligible.
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Post by levine on Apr 4, 2024 15:08:57 GMT -6
We had an empty roster spot. I thought "maybe" they'd use that spot on a 10 day (which could be converted) for a 4 who could spend some time guarding Zion if it came down to it. Pick up some fouls and just try to slow him down a bit. But it probably makes more sense to know you have another center in case KAT cant come back or is ineffective. They're limping towards the finish line. They could easily not even make the Play-In. Ingram isn't expected back until until next Thursday or Friday, so he'll likely miss 3 or 4 of their final 6 games. If Zion misses any time with the finger, they could be done.
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Post by XRaySpecs on Apr 5, 2024 5:47:56 GMT -6
Significant loss by Denver last night. Wolves now a full game up both Denver and OKC for first seed. It's functionally 2 games as we have tiebreaker over both.
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Post by kingsxman on Apr 5, 2024 6:40:26 GMT -6
I thought "maybe" they'd use that spot on a 10 day (which could be converted) for a 4 who could spend some time guarding Zion if it came down to it. Pick up some fouls and just try to slow him down a bit. But it probably makes more sense to know you have another center in case KAT cant come back or is ineffective. They're limping towards the finish line. They could easily not even make the Play-In.Ingram isn't expected back until until next Thursday or Friday, so he'll likely miss 3 or 4 of their final 6 games. If Zion misses any time with the finger, they could be done. I didnt realize they were doing so poorly lately. I just looked and "yikes", they are in 7 and only a game back from 9. Looks like it'll probably be Lakers/Warriors/Pels/Kings for the play in. I only hope that we can keep 1 or 2 so we can play a team that just had to WIN thier way into the playoffs. Even though the Pels are struggling, they still worry me. If they get Ingram back and can get on a roll...they are dangerous. They and the Lakers both scare me. I think tonight will tell a lot about how we are going to match up with the Lakers. While we're not full strength, we're pretty damn good right now. I think a strong showing and a Win tonight would put the Lakers on notice that if they face us they will have a tough row to hoe and put the doubt in them that they can beat us. Of course it'll be 8 on 5 if we play the Lakers so they always will have that. But at least we'd get a good spot on the TV schedule.
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Post by kingsxman on Apr 5, 2024 6:57:31 GMT -6
Anyone listen to Dane and Britt yesterday? Curious if you agree with Britt or with Dane on how KAT comes back.
Britts take: The wolves are rolling right now without KAT and are playing the kind of basketball that Finch envisioned. Flowing offense with Finch being able to start who he wants and not have to worry about offending stars feelings. The ball is moving and when KAT comes back they should try to slowly incorporate him in. Britt thinks KAT will want to start right away and be a major part again, meaning less minutes for Kyle at the 4 and more for Kyle at the 3. Overall Britt is worried about KAT fitting back in and how it will affect the team play....even though he realizes that we need him to be our best.
Danes take: Finch wont worry about offending anyone and will do what it takes to make sure KAT fits in, which could include not playing him if needed. KAT will need to be a main part and should be. He needs to get up to speed quicker and the Wolves should not bring him along as slow as what Britt wants. Has less concerns that KAT will take minutes from Kyle, who is playing very well right now and just believes that this teams ceiling will be decided by KAT.
Hopefully I described their positions mostly correctly. Its clear they have different views. I tend to lean more towards what Britt is saying. I know that KAT has done a tremendous job this year changing his role once again and being more than willing to play second banana to Ant. I am worried however that its going to be hard for KAT to fit into the free flowing offense and I really question his ability to make quick decisions with the basketball. I think Ant will be less willing to pass as there is less chance it comes back to him.
All that said, IF KAT can do 2 things I dont think anyone can stop us: shoot more 3's and make quick decisions with the ball. If KAT can accept his role as more of a floor spacer than he's been in the past and be willing to quickly move the ball, I really believe we can be the best team in the league right now.
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Post by XRaySpecs on Apr 5, 2024 7:23:23 GMT -6
Anyone listen to Dane and Britt yesterday? Curious if you agree with Britt or with Dane on how KAT comes back. Britts take: The wolves are rolling right now without KAT and are playing the kind of basketball that Finch envisioned. Flowing offense with Finch being able to start who he wants and not have to worry about offending stars feelings. The ball is moving and when KAT comes back they should try to slowly incorporate him in. Britt thinks KAT will want to start right away and be a major part again, meaning less minutes for Kyle at the 4 and more for Kyle at the 3. Overall Britt is worried about KAT fitting back in and how it will affect the team play....even though he realizes that we need him to be our best. Danes take: Finch wont worry about offending anyone and will do what it takes to make sure KAT fits in, which could include not playing him if needed. KAT will need to be a main part and should be. He needs to get up to speed quicker and the Wolves should not bring him along as slow as what Britt wants. Has less concerns that KAT will take minutes from Kyle, who is playing very well right now and just believes that this teams ceiling will be decided by KAT. Hopefully I described their positions mostly correctly. Its clear they have different views. I tend to lean more towards what Britt is saying. I know that KAT has done a tremendous job this year changing his role once again and being more than willing to play second banana to Ant. I am worried however that its going to be hard for KAT to fit into the free flowing offense and I really question his ability to make quick decisions with the basketball. I think Ant will be less willing to pass as there is less chance it comes back to him. All that said, IF KAT can do 2 things I dont think anyone can stop us: shoot more 3's and make quick decisions with the ball. If KAT can accept his role as more of a floor spacer than he's been in the past and be willing to quickly move the ball, I really believe we can be the best team in the league right now. In a nutshell, Dane thinks we can't win a title without KAT so we ride or die with him (integrating him smartly). I used to think the same, but I'm not sure anymore. KAT is "better" than Naz and having both certainly is more talent, but what's better for the team? KAT's game doesn't fit as well with the team concept so while we may have more talent with him, it's not been proven that the team is actually better. The question is the same as it's been. Can KAT integrate to make the sum greater than the parts? I think the odds of that seem longer and longer all the time.
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Post by tmirvin on Apr 5, 2024 8:42:45 GMT -6
Kat has been on the bench during games for most of his absence, he sees how well the offense is working and hopefully will try to fit in moreso than he has in the past.
But, the free flowing offense doesn't matter much the last few minutes of a tight playoff game. If the wolves win a title, they are doing so by winning most games by 10 or more points. They're going to have to execute down the stretch. Kat is good at drawing fouls and hitting clutch shots. Also, he a solid rebounder. His value will come at end of games. If ant's rolling, he won't be need much. If the other team is doubling ant, kat can make them pay (hopefully). I say, bring him along as each game indicates. If he doesn't have any setbacks, wouldn't he be fully healthy when the Finals roll around? They're about 2 months away.
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Post by XRaySpecs on Apr 5, 2024 9:05:12 GMT -6
Warriors have won 6 straight in the 10th spot. Lakers have been playing well. I could see Lakers moving to 8 allowing them to avoid 9/10 match up with Ws and creating path for both to make playoffs.
It would just be our luck for the Wolves to earn the 1 seed and then have to face W's team that's won like 10 of 12 games.
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Post by quinn on Apr 5, 2024 10:56:55 GMT -6
Anyone listen to Dane and Britt yesterday? Curious if you agree with Britt or with Dane on how KAT comes back. Britts take: The wolves are rolling right now without KAT and are playing the kind of basketball that Finch envisioned. Flowing offense with Finch being able to start who he wants and not have to worry about offending stars feelings. The ball is moving and when KAT comes back they should try to slowly incorporate him in. Britt thinks KAT will want to start right away and be a major part again, meaning less minutes for Kyle at the 4 and more for Kyle at the 3. Overall Britt is worried about KAT fitting back in and how it will affect the team play....even though he realizes that we need him to be our best. Danes take: Finch wont worry about offending anyone and will do what it takes to make sure KAT fits in, which could include not playing him if needed. KAT will need to be a main part and should be. He needs to get up to speed quicker and the Wolves should not bring him along as slow as what Britt wants. Has less concerns that KAT will take minutes from Kyle, who is playing very well right now and just believes that this teams ceiling will be decided by KAT. Hopefully I described their positions mostly correctly. Its clear they have different views. I tend to lean more towards what Britt is saying. I know that KAT has done a tremendous job this year changing his role once again and being more than willing to play second banana to Ant. I am worried however that its going to be hard for KAT to fit into the free flowing offense and I really question his ability to make quick decisions with the basketball. I think Ant will be less willing to pass as there is less chance it comes back to him. All that said, IF KAT can do 2 things I dont think anyone can stop us: shoot more 3's and make quick decisions with the ball. If KAT can accept his role as more of a floor spacer than he's been in the past and be willing to quickly move the ball, I really believe we can be the best team in the league right now. In a nutshell, Dane thinks we can't win a title without KAT so we ride or die with him (integrating him smartly). I used to think the same, but I'm not sure anymore. KAT is "better" than Naz and having both certainly is more talent, but what's better for the team? KAT's game doesn't fit as well with the team concept so while we may have more talent with him, it's not been proven that the team is actually better. The question is the same as it's been. Can KAT integrate to make the sum greater than the parts? I think the odds of that seem longer and longer all the time. I just truthfully don't think KAT is a good fit. I think that if it wasn't someone who's been here for almost 10 years, we would really not even hesitate to say he's not a good fit and should be moved. But it is, and I do think there's a personal dilemma about what to do with him. This team has shown they're more than capable, if not better, without KAT. But the optics of moving KAT are really bad for how good of a soldier he's been. I still think that you're not going to get a BETTER player than KAT if you trade him, which would align more with Dane's thinking, but I think you could get better fitting players so you don't mess up what's going so well right now, which would align with Britt's thinking. It's totally a cop out answer but they're both right. I do think both arguments have merit. What I think needs to happen is that KAT needs to come off the bench right away and he needs to prove he's going to play the right way. This is the perfect opportunity for Finch to "bench" KAT for not playing the right way. He can do it under the guise of minutes restrictions. The offense looks SO good right now. And the defense has continued to be elite. It's a much better fitting team. If KAT comes in and disrupts what's going so well, that's solely on him. He's such a versatile offensive player, which means he can be malleable to fit what we need, especially in the playoffs! This is a golden opportunity for Finch to test KAT to see how he's going to play when it matters most. I have my doubts about how KAT fits and will fit when he returns.
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Post by jojo on Apr 5, 2024 12:19:20 GMT -6
I would agree that this year we would probably need a big contribution from KAT to actually win the title. But not necessarily to get to the finals. I really want him to come back and play well not only for this year but to build trade value. I wouldn’t expect a lot of salary space to be cleared if they move him since they need to take back salary. But maybe TC can work his magic to replace some of KAT’s offense in the trade.
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Post by kingsxman on Apr 5, 2024 12:43:21 GMT -6
I would agree that this year we would probably need a big contribution from KAT to actually win the title. But not necessarily to get to the finals. I really want him to come back and play well not only for this year but to build trade value. I wouldn’t expect a lot of salary space to be cleared if they move him since they need to take back salary. But maybe TC can work his magic to replace some of KAT’s offense in the trade.I've said it before, but a guy like Markkanen would potentially be a good fit but he's only making short of 19 million next year and is a UFA after that. That allows you to either use Naz as the starting 4 or bring Markkanen off the bench in a scoring role. I dont think KAT would mind Chicago and he's be with Lavine again. (At least until they trade Lavine) DeJounte Murry is another guy. 25 million next year which is at least closer to KAT. I think he and Connelly could share the floor for quite a few minutes.
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Post by levine on Apr 5, 2024 13:26:19 GMT -6
I would agree that this year we would probably need a big contribution from KAT to actually win the title. But not necessarily to get to the finals. I really want him to come back and play well not only for this year but to build trade value. I wouldn’t expect a lot of salary space to be cleared if they move him since they need to take back salary. But maybe TC can work his magic to replace some of KAT’s offense in the trade.I've said it before, but a guy like Markkanen would potentially be a good fit but he's only making short of 19 million next year and is a UFA after that. That allows you to either use Naz as the starting 4 or bring Markkanen off the bench in a scoring role. I dont think KAT would mind Chicago and he's be with Lavine again. (At least until they trade Lavine) DeJounte Murry is another guy. 25 million next year which is at least closer to KAT. I think he and Connelly could share the floor for quite a few minutes. Markkanen is in Utah. Murray would make a lot of sense, as he's making roughly half of what KAT does and he could play next to Ant, Conley, Morris or JMac - especially since Finch has been having a ton of success lately with 2 PG lineups. We'd need to take back a lot of filler to make it work.
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Post by tmirvin on Apr 5, 2024 13:35:03 GMT -6
I've said it before, but a guy like Markkanen would potentially be a good fit but he's only making short of 19 million next year and is a UFA after that. That allows you to either use Naz as the starting 4 or bring Markkanen off the bench in a scoring role. I dont think KAT would mind Chicago and he's be with Lavine again. (At least until they trade Lavine) DeJounte Murry is another guy. 25 million next year which is at least closer to KAT. I think he and Connelly could share the floor for quite a few minutes. Markkanen is in Utah. Murray would make a lot of sense, as he's making roughly half of what KAT does and he could play next to Ant, Conley, Morris or JMac - especially since Finch has been having a ton of success lately with 2 PG lineups. We'd need to take back a lot of filler to make it work. My only concern with Murray is him in the locker room. I haven't heard anything specific but I've seen him ruffle feathers during Seattle summer pro am league. If that's not a concern, then he'd be a great addition although his defense has seemed to have faded a bit, but that might be because he's in atlanta. Wasn't Boston a hot rumor? Jrue holiday would be a great get too.
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Post by kingsxman on Apr 5, 2024 13:38:17 GMT -6
I've said it before, but a guy like Markkanen would potentially be a good fit but he's only making short of 19 million next year and is a UFA after that. That allows you to either use Naz as the starting 4 or bring Markkanen off the bench in a scoring role. I dont think KAT would mind Chicago and he's be with Lavine again. (At least until they trade Lavine) DeJounte Murry is another guy. 25 million next year which is at least closer to KAT. I think he and Connelly could share the floor for quite a few minutes. Markkanen is in Utah. Murray would make a lot of sense, as he's making roughly half of what KAT does and he could play next to Ant, Conley, Morris or JMac - especially since Finch has been having a ton of success lately with 2 PG lineups. We'd need to take back a lot of filler to make it work. Damnit, i think I did the same thing one other time and you told me he was in Utah. Heres why I keep thinking that. It says chicaco in the text of the article. (even though the URL says Utah) www.spotrac.com/nba/utah-jazz/lauri-markkanen-23602/
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Post by Nick K on Apr 5, 2024 13:54:30 GMT -6
I don't see us winning a championship without Kat. If Ant or Rudy go down for any reason we're totally screwed without Kat.
Anybody know how much the cap is projected to go up next year? I'd be shocked if the front office didn't have all this figured out already. I want to keep everybody together as much as possible and keep our best players.
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Post by levine on Apr 5, 2024 13:55:01 GMT -6
Markkanen is in Utah. Murray would make a lot of sense, as he's making roughly half of what KAT does and he could play next to Ant, Conley, Morris or JMac - especially since Finch has been having a ton of success lately with 2 PG lineups. We'd need to take back a lot of filler to make it work. Damnit, i think I did the same thing one other time and you told me he was in Utah. Heres why I keep thinking that. It says chicaco in the text of the article. (even though the URL says Utah) www.spotrac.com/nba/utah-jazz/lauri-markkanen-23602/Right. Because he signed his current contract with Chicago.
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Post by levine on Apr 5, 2024 13:55:47 GMT -6
I don't see us winning a championship without Kat. If Ant or Rudy go down for any reason we're totally screwed without Kat. If Ant or Rudy go down we're totally screwed with or without KAT.
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Post by levine on Apr 5, 2024 14:01:35 GMT -6
Markkanen is in Utah. Murray would make a lot of sense, as he's making roughly half of what KAT does and he could play next to Ant, Conley, Morris or JMac - especially since Finch has been having a ton of success lately with 2 PG lineups. We'd need to take back a lot of filler to make it work. My only concern with Murray is him in the locker room. I haven't heard anything specific but I've seen him ruffle feathers during Seattle summer pro am league. If that's not a concern, then he'd be a great addition although his defense has seemed to have faded a bit, but that might be because he's in atlanta. Wasn't Boston a hot rumor? Jrue holiday would be a great get too. Even he can't cover for Trae... They've been so much better since Young got hurt and Murray has been the PG. 22-29 (43%) with Trae. 14-11 (56%) without.
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Post by XRaySpecs on Apr 5, 2024 14:32:00 GMT -6
Jake always does a nice job with these.
My question is why can't the Wolves run the same actions with KAT? KAT has become more of a driver, why not let him initiate those drives in this same action so that he's got an advantage?
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Post by kingsxman on Apr 5, 2024 19:01:32 GMT -6
Jake always does a nice job with these. My question is why can't the Wolves run the same actions with KAT? KAT has become more of a driver, why not let him initiate those drives in this same action so that he's got an advantage? Probably because he cant make the read fast enough. Thats my guess. KAT generally is not a quick decision make. Thats part of the issue. Plus, he'd probably get the offensive foul 1/2 the time because he'd barrel into someone.
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Post by levine on Apr 5, 2024 19:35:54 GMT -6
Yeah. KAT, while incredibly talented, is a surveyor. He needs to hold the ball and consider his options. He’s also not great at moving off the ball. He doesn’t see the play before it happens.
Naz is a much more intuitive player. He makes great cuts off the ball and he immediately knows if he’s going to shoot, drive or pass the second he gets it.
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Post by jojo on Apr 7, 2024 17:22:23 GMT -6
Alan Horton tweeted pics of KAT shooting corner threes today. His shot looks so effortless, just wish he would lean into it. Hoping the injury is a good excuse to simplify his game.
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Post by XRaySpecs on Apr 8, 2024 9:03:35 GMT -6
Alan Horton tweeted pics of KAT shooting corner threes today. His shot looks so effortless, just wish he would lean into it. Hoping the injury is a good excuse to simplify his game. Chris Hine has a video of him shooting and light movement on his Twitter feed. I know it won't happen, but it would be great if KAT volunteered to come off the bench as he comes back. He's got the perfect cover to start slow and with how Naz is playing, it would be a team first way to approach this especially with where we are in the season.
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Post by kingsxman on Apr 8, 2024 11:36:03 GMT -6
Alan Horton tweeted pics of KAT shooting corner threes today. His shot looks so effortless, just wish he would lean into it. Hoping the injury is a good excuse to simplify his game. Chris Hine has a video of him shooting and light movement on his Twitter feed. I know it won't happen, but it would be great if KAT volunteered to come off the bench as he comes back. He's got the perfect cover to start slow and with how Naz is playing, it would be a team first way to approach this especially with where we are in the season. I would like to think that Finch may say it has to happen that way, but I doubt he will force it. I'm guessing KAT starts as soon as he's ready to play...even though that isnt how it should be handled.
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