Okay folks, I just finished a Three Pointer (entitled "Point Drought"), clicked on to my "node hierarchy" and promptly lost all the copy. If you have any impressions of the past two losses, feel free to put them down. I'll add comments when I wake up in the morning.
The computer system extends its apologies.
Update: First of all, thanks to the loyal bunch of you who have thoughtfully filled the breach with comments early this morning. In answer to some of your disbelief, yes, I really am that computer illiterate--it's amazing that this tubes things works as often as it does.
Anyway, here is an abridged version of what I wrote and somehow erased last night. I'll post them a point at a time so something is up as soon as possible, and try to make the third point be responses to comments already posted. Thanks again.
1, Missing McCants
It's already been a strange February for Shaddy. I was one of the very few media folks to notice (or at least report on) the temper tantrum he threw during the Houston game; and apparently one of the few who didn't notice that ESPN highlighted the friction between Wittman and McCants during its telecast of the Celtic game. Whether you think either of those things was underplayed or overhyped--and I'm honestly just trying to play straight man here--it didn't look good for Shaddy's long term status with the ballclub.
But since he sprained his ankle late in the second quarter versus Toronto, McCants has demonstrated his enormous value to the ballclub. Last night against the Nets it was especially obvious why you need at least two scoring threats to win most NBA games. Notice I didn't say two scorers. Bassy Telfair led the Wolves in scoring last night, tying his second best point production (24) and field-goal attempts and makes (8-17 FG) of the season. But the Nets never seriously regarded him as a threat; not enough to prevent them from doubling down on Jefferson with Jason Kidd whenever Big Al had the ball in the low block. Often a third person, a big man, would likewise come at Jefferson from the side. He finished 5-18 FG, with 11 rebounds, after torching New Jersey for 40 points and 19 boards the previous time the two teams hooked up.
Whatever you think of him--and my bar graph on the guy rises and falls like an amusement park ride--McCants get his own shot better than anyone on the squad, leads the team not only in three-pointers made but three point percentage (40.9%), and, after falling in love with the long bomb earlier in the season, mixes that trey threat in with deft drives to the hoop. He is the only Timberwolves player who can burn an opponent for a bushel of points in a big hurry should they decide to play Ring Around the Rosey on Jefferson and dare Minnesota to beat them elsewhere.
Consider the other possibilities.
Randy Foye was supposed to be the #2, or even #1A guy beside Jefferson this season, but that's clearly a long ways off. Foye's line last night was typical of his 2008: 2-7 FG (although he did hit 2-3 from outside), 2 assists and 3 turnovers. And Foye's lack of lateral movement and quickness on defense is worrisome. Is he really that far off from NBA game shape, both physically and mentally, or is that knee still balky?
Ryan Gomes is the #3 scorer on the ballclub behind Jeff and Shaddy. But Gomes works best moving without, rather than with, the ball. He needs smart, unselfish teammates in order to be truly effective. It was revealing, however, that when Gomes snapped out of his slight slump by canning his last three shots in the 4th quarter last night (taking 1-6 FG to 4-9), the Wolves not only scored more than 21 points for the first time in six quarters since McCants went down, they jumped up to 32 points. Simply put, if Gomes is your second scoring threat, you are going to struggle to get 90--a figure the Wolves haven't hit in their current 4-game losing streak.
Antoine Walker is probably second to Gomes in court intelligence, and second to McCants in three-pointers made, which is why Wittman had him out there plenty last night, especially to combat New Jersey's fairly effective zone in the second half. But age and/or rust have clogged 'Toine's wheels and it was a changing-of-the-guard moment in the third period last night when he faked the trey, twinkle-toed down the lane and tried to offer up his floater only to have rook Sean Williams smack it away. A short term solution at best for second scoring option and even then not a particularly reliable one.
Gerald Green periodically gets the sob story treatment in the dailies about how he wants to play more and is such a great athlete. What those stories never seem to mention is that Green is now 47-143 FG for the season, which is less than 33%. And putting the ball in the basket is supposed to be his forte.
I presume I don't have to make the cases for why Marko Jaric and Corey Brewer--who both bring some tough defense and nice intangibles to the court--aren't your #2 scorer.
2. Small Is Not Beautiful
As someone who has harshed on the Wolves' small lineup, I give Coach Wittman and the front office (and, as a previous commenter noted, the selflessness of Jefferson for agreeing to play out of position without complaint) credit for making it work better than I imagined it could against a variety of opponents.
But last night wasn't one of those times. The Nets were able to run out the seven-foot Nenad Krstic alongside 6-10 Josh Boone, then bring 6-9 leaper Sean Williams, 6-10 Stromile Swift, 6-10 Malik Allen and 6-9 Bostjan Nachbar off the bench. Their ability to own the boards kept them in the game during the first half (when the rebounding edge was 33-19) and then made the difference in the game-deciding third quarter. Consider that aside from two jumpers by the seven-footer Krstic, all of New Jersey's 28 points came on free throws, layups and slam dunks. Combined with the ability to surround and frustrate Jefferson with a variety of bigs and littles, New Jersey won the points in the paint 40-26 (the gap was 32-14 early in the fourth period), and the Wolves lost despite getting more free throws (28 attempts to NJ's 22) and despite ringing up 43% from outside the arc (6-14 3pt FG).
3. "Viewer Mail"
First of all, thanks for hanging with me through the gremlin snafus.
A few of you are carping on Jason Kidd, named game MVP by the Strib and the lead personage in most of the game accounts I've seen elsewhere. That's why I love my independent-minded readership (even when they train their contrarian focus on me). I think the Kidd-Shaq comparisons are apt, in that both bring something to the table that, while fading fast, is pretty unique and potent when it can still be uncorked. For Kidd it is the jack of all trades aspect, the abilty to rebound, dish and defend in a manner that enhances the ability of his teammates on the court. And I think the trey he hit in the 4th quarter last night was a back-breaker (on a nice feed from Vince Carter, another target of yours and mine). Jim Petersen kept talking about how dangerous the Nets would be as a distantly seeded playoff team, but I don't buy it. They have no answer for Dwight Howard, KG, or Sheed. And it is truly Vinsanity imagining Carter trying to guard Rip Hamilton or Ray Allen. I whole-heartedly agree with Stop and Pop that Sean Williams is a great prospect--he has impressed me more than any rook I've seen this season--and that is Krstic can get a little more mobility, that will be an intriguing front line to go with the sporadic Big Three.
Wim and Andy G want to know if I think there is a death watch (occupationally speaking, of course) on Wittman. No, I don't. Not only that, but I think Wittman wins a power struggle with Shaddy if it ever comes down to a one-or-the-other showdown. I yo-yo in my regard for Wittman nearly as much as I do McCants. It is to his credit that he has fostered a very tight ballclub in terms of players pulling for each other and mostly getting along--Jefferson, as tops on the pecking order, also deserves kudos for this. I can second-guess as well as the next sideline observer, and think he should play a legit center much more frequently beside Jefferson, and that he should give McCants much more rope in terms of playing time to either hang himself or make like Tarzan and swing to a fat new contract. This would be at the expense of Marko, through no fault of his own. Jaric has been a good soldier this season, but starting and getting 30-35 minutes a night is not a good fix for this club in the short run or the long term. As much as I enjoy what he and Brewer are bringing to the table on defense, has anyone else noticed that the Raptors and the Nets have put up back-to-back 30-assist games on Minnesota (Toronto had 31, actually)?
Finally, I'll throw out this topic for conversation: Who does Corey Brewer guard tonight? The matchups on smallball would dictate Brewer on Vlad Radmanovic, with Jaric on Kobe and Gomes on Odom, but that removes our second (or first) best on-ball defender against the Lakers' two potent swingmen.
I stumbled across your fine articles two months ago when one of those "national" guys mentioned you in his column and I read you when I get a chance. I usually do not read the posts after, because prior experience has shown that they usually are sensless drivel. That being said, all of you who have posted to this are an enjoyable change from the other posts. I'm stuck here in Missouri and hardly ever get to see a wolves game and try to follow them through various media outlets.
I just want to say thanks for the articles and the great posts. Hopefully the wolves will get better... and lets be glad we aren't Miami...
When your record is as bad as ours is, calling for Witt to be replaced only sets us up for a longer trip on the coaching carousel. I'd just rather not play that game right now.
I'd like to see how this team performs minus a few elements first - specifically, Rashad and Gerald Green. A sideline outburst by Rashad, and Green going public with a trade demand? These are things that happen to a losing team without a forceful leader. And either the negative attitude spreads, or the player gets shut out by his teammates. It's time to concede that neither player is going to become the consistent scorer we need right now. Both McCants and Green have had to endure some pretty ridiculous expectations considering they were both middle 1st-round picks in '05. And they're both still such young guys, but I don't see why the Wolves absolutely need to give them PT.
Oh, and I just read Kidd-to-Dallas. Where's Jim Jackson and Jamal Mashburn when you need them? I honestly didn't think Cuban would give up Harris, but I think Kidd's ability to make players better (and his rebounding!) will result in a late surge for Dallas. Of all the trades that just went down, this will definitely have the most immediate impact.
I wasn't calling for Wittman's head as much as just wondering if Britt had any insight about a potential Wittman vs. McCants showdown that required one of them leaving. I agree that this team is way too raw and inexperienced to justify canning the coach, so long as they play hard and improve at a reasonable rate. However, Shaddy has shown a lot of quick development in his offensive game and will almost surely be a valuable asset to somebody's roster for years to come. His attitude isn't as good as we'd like, but it's also probably not as bad as people think. (KG seemed to like Rashad quite a bit--I'd say that takes away the possibility that Shaddy doesn't work hard).
Witt seems like a hardass who wants to scream and hollar during the games, something better suited for high school ball--if even then. I'd prefer that he save those antics for the practice sessions, and let his guys play loose when the cameras are rolling.
I'm not convinced the best context in which to view the coaching situation is through the Shaddy v. Wittman episode. Let's face it, Wittman would certainly keep his job if McHale/Taylor had to make a choice between him and McCants. However, if you take away the front office aspect and look at things at a macro level, neither of them have (or will) add real value to the ballclub (if any, Shaddy adds a little more than Coach Wittman, however both are negligable). Addition by subtraction would include both of them in my mind. I do realize that the club's talent level is far from the cream of the crop in the West, but the record doesn't lie. Wittman needs to go, and Shaddy is a relatively cheap piece of the puzzle at just over $2.6 million next year and $3.6 the following season. That, and Shaddy's trade value is quite a bit greater than Witt's. If I had to pick, The Mayor would take over the 'interim' title for the rest of the season and we'd bust balls trying to lure a heavy-hitter for 08/09 and beyond.
Topic: Foye's incredibly awesome lateral quickness.
I think Foye's just really out of shape as opposed to having a problem with his knee. I think this for two reasons.
1. It would really really suck if Foye was having more problems with his knee. Damn it that would suck.
2. I believe that with Foye's knee his rehab was pretty much doing nothing. No running, no jumping,etc. They may have let him play around in the pool but otherwise not too much. So, I hope it is the case that because of spending such a long time doing nothing that he's just not in basketball shape.
Fingers crossed.
I also don't want to believe that
3. Foye is not giving the effort on defense.
I'd put Brew on Kobe, for the experience. It's tough to imagine any better growth opportunity for our future "stopper" than 35 minutes spent hounding an all-time great scorer in the thick of his prime. Our chances of beating LA on 0 nights rest are not good, and I'm not sure they go down any by having Brewer guard Bryant.
Here's to hoping Telfair shows the same confidence in his J tonight as he did in NJ. I still think his technique leaves a lot to be desired, but if he stroked jumpers with the same confidence as Brewer does, I'd feel more comfortable about the likelihood of improvement. He's got a tough defender on him tonight, in Fisher.
I agree on this one; though off course you I think you have to keep an eye on his body language. You have to make sure his confidence doesn't suffer (on the other hand, if you change him to someone more guardable, it might also hurt his confidence).
So maybe start him on kobe but let them (jaric and brewer that is) switch a little between vlad and kobe. You're probably not really gonna throw Kobe off balance with that but ya never know + .. it's easier to shift the timing a little without it standing out hence making sure Brewer doesn't think he's not coping...
Just for once against a high-scoring outfit like the Lakers I'd like to see them run out
1- Bassy
2- Brewer
3- Green
4- Gomes
5- Big Al
Foye (or Shaddy if healthy) is the 1st guard off the bench, with Toine and Marko taking turns subbing for the rest of the bunch. Run, run, run, run, and run some more. It's one thing to small ball, score less than 100, and win. It's quite another to play small ball against a ginormous Laker lineup that also has the 6th fastest pace and 3rd most effective offense in the league. You may as well go down swinging on one end of the court. I suppose the Lakers are similar to Phoenix in these categories and the Wolves have had success at home vs Phoenix, but the Lakers get their points in such a different way than the Suns, a'la the triangle.
I do want to see one thing from the Wolves. After last night's New Jersey alley-oop-a-thon, let's see some of those going our way. Push the ball and attack the rim. I have no idea if this fast-paced approach will work (probably not), but at least it would be nice to see something different being tried.
I suppose it's "1 night of rest"--they're not playing a double-header...
Britt, broseph,
when you're done transcribing your latest three-pointer from your typewriter to the "word box," just do a select-all copy. Then it's there should things go Oingo Boing.
Britt-
About Wittman/McCants--at the risk of way overhyping it into a C-Webb/Don Nelson storyline, it seems like one of them will have to go in the not-so-distant future. With what you know, would you say there's ANY chance it's Wittman who takes the hike?
There were a few notable things about the Nets game:
1- Jason Kidd is untradable. He can ask all he wants, but he's a shell of his former self; a poor shooting, rapidly declining, mid-30's point with a ginormous salary. He wants to go to a contender? Good luck with that. If he does get traded, the Wolves are one of the few teams that could facilitate a move with an elite squad...cough...Ratliff...cough.
2- Vince Carter is unwatchable. Does this guy even try anymore? Even the 360 dunk seemed like it was mailed in. Between Kidd, Carter, and Jefferson, they should rename the squad the New Jersey Cadavers.
3- Nenad Kristic and Sean Williams are going to give this team a 4/5 combo to reckon with in the future.
4- What the hell happened to Marcus Williams? The guy was gangbusters at UConn and many people thought he could be a DWill type point at the pro level. The guy is getting zero burn. He shoots about as well as Bassy, but still...
5- There were maybe 500 people in the building at the beginning of the game. I know it snowed in Jersey last night, but that was ridiculous. On League Pass they showed a promotion that the Nets did to get people to come on down from the upper deck a'la the Price is Right. Some people stayed put. I'm not too sure I'd want to get too close to the action in a game that was 45-44 with 5:35 left in the 3rd.
All-Day Snowstorm + Nets v Woofies = Nobody in the stands
I was in the upper deck and was very excited to move down to courtside and see the woofs come back and get a win. Unfortunately...
ps- I enjoy your column, it is much more insightful than reading the same story rehashed in the strib and pioneer press- it helps me stay in the loop and fuels the ridiculous folly that is being a woofs fan!
Whoa, that was an ugly game.
Why didn't Wittman try a front-line of Rhino, Gomes, Jefferson? Seems like we could have gotten away with it against a big slow team like NJ.
Kidd's shot was awful last night--but if he does end up with Dallas or Cleveland, it will spark the same type of intrigue that the Shaq trade has with Phoenix. You have to admit, Shaq in his final Miami days looked a lot more washed up than Kidd, and pairing J-Kidd with LeBron or Dirk would at least peak your interest to see if he's got something left when properly motivated by competitive teammates.
Wolves' O looks pretty rough without Shaddy's perimeter threat. Even with some rare Bassy output, we still don't reach 90. Still nothing to get excited about from Foye.
Biggest obstacle for Kidd to Cleveland = Larry Hughes. One of the worst contracts in the league and Cleveland has absolutely nothing to offer anyone in return.
Kidd is making $20 mil this year and $21 the next. That's damn near unmovable. First of all, New Jersey is going to want something good in return for giving up their best player. This simply isn't a possibility because in order for a Kidd deal to happen, some crappy team with salary to dump (like Minnesota) will have to get involved and they're going to have to be the ones taking on additional salary...which would make *them* the team that should get things like draft picks and young players.
Is there a buyout possibility, like with Webber in Philly or possibly Cassell with LA? I don't know how those work, but if Kidd's doing what KG was for MN last year--(keeping us good enough to miss top draft picks)--maybe it's something they'd consider? Or is the 20 mil way too much for that? In past years, I think NJ reasonably thought they could jog to the playoffs and their version of the Big 3 would give them a real shot at winning the East. I'd say that chance is gone with Boston/Detroit/Orlando now presenting more formidable competition. NJ has got to blow that thing up soon, I would think.
Unless Kidd wants to take a major league paycut (to the tune of around $18 mil/year), he's not going to take a buy out. If Cassell took a buyout in LA, he'd re-sign in Boston for around $1.5 mil/i.e. Eddie House's salary. Kidd has just under $30 million on the table for a year and a half of pay. I don't know about you, but a ring ain't worth that much, especially when he'll probably play a year or 2 after this contract expires. If New Jersey could work out a buyout, they'd essentially be paying their best player to walk away.
The Nets are in the 7th playoff spot in the East with their center coming back from injury (his injury really hurt them last year). Carter seems to have an effort problem and Jefferson can still be effective. They're 1 1/2 games out of the 6th playoff spot and 5 out of 5th. I think New Jersey would have to be crazy to move Kidd when they're already in the playoffs and just starting to play better. Carter is the player they should be trying to move.
Yeah, I figured $20 mil was way too much for buyout potential.
I couldn't quite tell your position on NJ--do you think they're an actual contender as is, or if the right trade happened with VC? Unless they pull a Gasol-type robbery, I don't see them in Boston or Detroit's league, come playoff-time. If KG's injury nags him the rest of the way, I suppose that could change--doubtful, though.
They're just like Minny was a few years back: good enough to get in the playoffs as a road team but not good enough to match up against the top teams in their conference. Like the Wolves, they've waited too long to move their biggest asset , they've signed some bad contracts, and they're not going to get as much as they should in return. They're in NBA purgatory and the GM isn't going to blow it up unless he can get something good in return and he may as well ride it out and take a shot in the playoffs. The Nets played the Cavs 4-2 in the conference semi-finals without Nenad. They now have Nenad, Williams, and Swift. They can still put a lot of pressure on teams in a series with their 3 big swing players having backup in the middle that is above and beyond Jason Collins. If they can get in against a Toronto, Orlando, or Washington, I think they could pull out a 1st round victory and as much as I think his game is deteriorating, Kidd is still a dangerous player as is a motivated Carter and Jefferson.
Also, outside of Detroit, even Eastern teams like Boston and the Magic rely on playoff-untested players like Rondo, Howard, and whatever point Orlando has to throw out. Unless they can get a 1st rounder and a nice young player in return, I just don't think it makes any sense for the Nets to give up on the playoff run that they're going to have the opportunity to have if things stay status quo.
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=3244102
Looks like this round of speculation is over...now the West Playoffs will include trios of:
Kobe-Gasol-Bynum
Nash-Stoudamire-Shaq
Parker-Ginobili-Duncan
Kidd-Howard-Nowitzki
Should be exciting. Can't you just see the media drooling over the new Lakers/Suns/Mavs groups, only to have the Spurs bore everybody en route to Title #5? Personally, I'm hoping for LA-Boston--(probably like David Stern and all major media outlets). Kobe vs. KG would make for an unbelievable matchup.
Stop-n-Pop = worst NBA commenter of all time:
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=3244102
"Jason Kidd has quietly -- and not so quietly -- hoped for a trade to the Dallas Mavericks all season.
Those hopes are about to realized, according to NBA front-office sources.
Sources told ESPN.com that the Mavericks and Nets on Wednesday reached an agreement in principle on a Kidd deal after talks had seemingly stalled last week, moving the teams to brink of completing the NBA's third blockbuster deal of the month."
...to save *some* face :) I did say that the Nets would have to get a young player and some draft picks and they made out like frickin' bandits. $11 mil in expiring contracts, a few draft picks, a great young point, while clearing $20 mil off the books. Good lord, what a steal...New Jersey will still make the playoffs and they'll have cap space in the off-season. This is a crazy-ass trade for the Mavs. Highway robbery.
The Nets now have Diop, Williams, Krstic, Boone, Swift, and Nachbar in the front court. Diop is making $2.1 mil this year. Do you wait for the offseason to make a mid-level offer or do you attempt to move an expiring contract or 2 for a guy that the Nets now have in duplicate? Bring on DeSagana!!! Give him a test run before the draft. If he and Big Al hit it off, then that's one less thing to worry about when deciding between a 1, 3, and 5 with the top pick. This team needs a big, defensive minded center. Diop fits the bill.
Devon George with the biggest block of his career:
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=3244818
I agree that if there is a Kidd trade, he will look like a completely different player, and will earn his keep. Jason Kidd makes his teammates better - players should be paying him a tax for getting them whopping contracts. This is the man that magnified K-Mart's nastiness and masked Kittles inability to play basketball, and still went to the Finals getting the most out of the Todd MacCulloughs of the world.
And not to make excuses for Kidd, but I can at least understand...I mean, management just signed an aging dunker to a massive contract, and you only are playing with one other starter-caliber player (RJ). If the Nets lose Kidd, not only are they guaranteed to tank the rest of the year, but they're also looking at 4 YEARS of Vince Carter whining.
Britt's computer is probably encountering the same uninspired production that the Wolves are the last two games. Bassy had one of those one in a blue moon nights with 24 points, Big Al got gang tackled again as the only threat to a Nets win. 'Toine is making it difficult for himself as being trade worthy. It's good to have NBA League Pass so as to catch up with competitive basketball.
As someone who didn't catch either of the last two games, I guess I have nothing to add. Except, of course, for Britt - I highly recommend creating a Google account and using their Docs and Spreadsheets application. It saves automatically as you're working, and you can access your work from wherever you have access to the internet. I keep a backup of my resume and other important writings there, just in case my hard drive actually bites the dust someday.
No offense, but in this day and age, how does an article get lost like that? Most software that a person type in automatically saves continually. I don't mean to bag on you, but I'm bummed I don't get to read your stuff, so I guess you should take any criticism as a compliment?
Isn't this the second time this has happened recently? Maybe you should look for a new workflow that has some extra saves.
With that said, I didn't see the games and all my information comes from this blog and small collections of numbers at ESPN and NBA.com so I am really of no use except to be generally disapproving.
Go Wolves!
Slight off topic: Do you mean you don't first type a copy in a text writer?
I couldn't see any of those two losses so I can't really add anything BUT I would like to hear your view on Wittman, Britt. Do you think we should get someone else to work on the sideline?
It seems to me he has made plenty mistakes. When is a good time to fire a coach.
As said in a few 3pointers back, they probably will give Witt at least till the end of the season. I just got the feeling we keep losing close because of a lack of smart plays in the end. Which should be mostly Witt's job.