All Things 2021-2022 Minnesota Timberwolves In-Season Thread

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Towns was mushing up his Kardashian related gf when the rest of the team was celebrating
 

JimmyJamesMD said:
Towns was mushing up his Kardashian related gf when the rest of the team was celebrating
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I saw that. And he wasn't as fired up on the sideline as I expected when we made our run late in the 4th.

I'm not looking into it any more than that, more so just wanted to post again in this thread because last night was so fun. It was the best Wolves game I think we've had since KG/2004. I'm sure I'm missing a big Butler year win, but that team always felt like a house of cards because at some point it was going to collapse, which it did. The way this team is structured (thanks Rosas!) it's such a likeable team, with a blend of young talent, good role players and a few smart vets. And a HC who's SO much more likeable than Thibs was last time we went to the playoffs.

The home crowd deserved last night.

On to Memphis.

Howl Wolves!!
 

Just a guess, but think that Towns didn't celebrate as much with the team because he rightly felt that he had let them all down with the way he played. Hope they continue to shoot like they did in the 2nd Half so Towns doesn't feel the need to bully his way to the basket.

That said, got a mea culpa myself.

Have said that they have to concentrate on offense 'cuz they don't have a lot of great defenders. Last night without Prince, one of their better defenders, they held the Clippers to 104 pts, and 43.6% shooting.

Not sure we can count on that going forward, but it was sure as hell nice to see.
 

BleedGopher said:
I saw that. And he wasn't as fired up on the sideline as I expected when we made our run late in the 4th.

I'm not looking into it any more than that, more so just wanted to post again in this thread because last night was so fun. It was the best Wolves game I think we've had since KG/2004. I'm sure I'm missing a big Butler year win, but that team always felt like a house of cards because at some point it was going to collapse, which it did. The way this team is structured (thanks Rosas!) it's such a likeable team, with a blend of young talent, good role players and a few smart vets. And a HC who's SO much more likeable than Thibs was last time we went to the playoffs.

The home crowd deserved last night.

On to Memphis.

Howl Wolves!!
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As much as I'm going to hate him over the next few games, Ja Morant is probably my favorite non wolves NBA player. He's magic on a basketball court. I hope the wolves can figure out a way to keep him from turning the Memphis arena into crazy town.
 

BleedGopher said:
I saw that. And he wasn't as fired up on the sideline as I expected when we made our run late in the 4th.

I'm not looking into it any more than that, more so just wanted to post again in this thread because last night was so fun. It was the best Wolves game I think we've had since KG/2004. I'm sure I'm missing a big Butler year win, but that team always felt like a house of cards because at some point it was going to collapse, which it did. The way this team is structured (thanks Rosas!) it's such a likeable team, with a blend of young talent, good role players and a few smart vets. And a HC who's SO much more likeable than Thibs was last time we went to the playoffs.

The home crowd deserved last night.

On to Memphis.

Howl Wolves!!
Click to expand...
Last night was awesome. I have laughed along with the national media making fun of the celebration but it was a well deserved celebration. And other than Beverly, prince, and towns and russell, none of those guys have been there before. One or the youngest teams in nba, IIRC. So they deserve to celebrate.

And my towns comment is a data point. Does he have the mental makeup to be a star on a championship team? He seems awful immature for a guy in his prime
 


celebrations aside, my take-away from the game:

if they didn't know already, the Clippers just gave every other team in the league a blueprint for playing the Wolves:

go after KAT, beat him up and get him upset - which takes him out of his game.

If KAT thought he was getting roughed up on Tuesday, wait till game #1 against Memphis. It will be WWE time - they might even hit him with a chair. anything to get KAT to lose his cool.

If KAT can control himself, the Wolves have a chance to win the series. If KAT loses his stuff, I say Memphis in 6.
 

I went to bed knowing the wolves would crap the bed. Happy to see they won! Maybe things are changing with T-Wolves culture.
 


Maybe the NBA doesn't need a Super Team to get viewers. Maybe it's only ABC, the national media and the "only watch the playoffs" that demand total coverage on 3-4 teams not the general public.

Average NBA viewership rose 19 percent in the 2021-22 regular season across ABC, ESPN and TNT compared to the prior year, the league said Tuesday. It was up 3 percent from the 2019-20 season.

The NBA on ABC package averaged 3.03 million viewers, a 13 percent increase, while games on ESPN averaged 1.4 million viewers, a 17 percent increase. Games on TNT also averaged 1.4 million viewers, an increase of 13 percent..

NBA TV had its most-viewed regular season since 2017-18, the league said, without specifying numbers. It added that viewership among women was up 23 percent this year, with the demographic now making up one third of the NBA's audience..

The league also made strides on social media. NBA TikTok saw 481 million video views, a 305 percent increase over last season. Instagram Reels had 3.3 billion views, up 259 percent increase year over year. The league ended the regular season with over 66 million followers on Instagram, making it the most-followed professional sports account and ninth most-followed "brand account" overall, it said..

theathletic.com

NBA viewership up 19% for 2021-22

Average NBA viewership rose 19 percent in the 2021-22 regular season across ABC, ESPN and TNT compared to the prior year, the league said Tuesday. It was also up 3 percent from the 2019-20 season.
theathletic.com theathletic.com
 



I've gone back and forth all day on the celebration. I've decided that after 18 consecutive years of garbage (yes, even the 2017-2018 47-35 season was no fun), it's ok to go over the top. These guys are human beings. If KAT wants to kiss his girl in public, why not? If PatBev wants to do a very public payback FU to the team that blew him off, why not? If 17,000 fans want to go nuts, why not?

If a woman wants to glue herself to a basketball court over diseased chickens, why?

Now the wolves have to get settled and focused on Memphis. If they get swept and embarrassed, last night will be quickly forgotten.
 

Shama chimes in:

Wolves Need ‘Missing’ KAT for Memphis​


The Timberwolves are in the playoffs for only the second time since 2004. Will their “missing” KAT be a major contributor in Saturday’s opening playoff game in Memphis against the Grizzlies?

Karl-Anthony Towns played 24 minutes last night in Minnesota’s play-in-tournament win at Target Center, qualifying the Wolves to meet the Grizzlies in a potential seven-game series. Metaphorically, the KAT was “MIA.”

Often labeled the team’s best player and a possible second or third team NBA All-Star when honor teams are announced this spring, the 6-11 veteran center was awful last evening and a non-contributor in a dramatic 109-104 win over the Clippers. He had a minus 14 rating when on the floor (by far the worst among his teammates) and he fouled out in the fourth quarter while playing only a couple of minutes in the game-determining last period.

The Clippers, instead of guarding Towns with another center, used mobile forwards to defend the Wolves’ season leading scorer. When Towns had the ball, he often was double teamed by the Clippers’ center. The strategy flustered Towns who forced shots, tried to move where there was no space and didn’t get rid of the basketball quick enough to open teammates.

Neither Towns nor head coach Chris Finch seemed to adjust. Instead of taking a position down near the basket, Towns either remained stationed near the top of the key or sometimes went to a corner where he was usually out of the offensive and rebounding action.

Before halftime Towns had four fouls. In the third quarter he played recklessly including bowling over opponents while picking up his fifth foul and going to the bench.

At 9:27 of the fourth quarter, Towns was back in the game. By 7:34 he was gone, committing his sixth and final foul while foolishly reaching over the back of a Clipper attempting to rebound the ball. He left the game without impacting it, scoring 11 points (five on free throws), grabbing five rebounds and committing a team high four turnovers.

The Clippers, although they boast a $39 million forward in Paul George, aren’t the talent equal of the Wolves. The going gets much tougher against the Grizzlies, who are the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference playoffs after earning an impressive 56-26 regular season record.

Maybe Towns and Finch can figure out Xs and Os to combat the defensive strategy the Grizzlies are likely to use after seeing the results by the Clippers. As for discombobulating, the 26-year-old Towns is an emotional player on an emotional team. Finch has experience working with excitable personalities but on the court it will ultimately be up to the big guy to figure out how a KAT can “purr” against Grizzlies.


Howl Wolves!!
 

short ornery norwegian said:
celebrations aside, my take-away from the game:

if they didn't know already, the Clippers just gave every other team in the league a blueprint for playing the Wolves:

go after KAT, beat him up and get him upset - which takes him out of his game.

If KAT thought he was getting roughed up on Tuesday, wait till game #1 against Memphis. It will be WWE time - they might even hit him with a chair. anything to get KAT to lose his cool.

If KAT can control himself, the Wolves have a chance to win the series. If KAT loses his stuff, I say Memphis in 6.
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Winning and KAT playing like ass should light a fire under him. The media is busting him up.

If he has any balls at all, he plays at a very high level in this series.

Part of the problem is that teams do not need to guard Vando at all.
 

kg21 said:
Winning and KAT playing like ass should light a fire under him. The media is busting him up.

If he has any balls at all, he plays at a very high level in this series.

Part of the problem is that teams do not need to guard Vando at all.
Click to expand...

Completely agree on Vanderbilt needig to at least try and be a threat on offense. On Towns?

Kinda, sorta disagree.

Think it was all balls and hubris that got him into trouble in the first place. He was gonna put the team on his back and will them into 7th place! No damn ref was gonna stop him either!

Hope he can see that was the worst damn approach possible. Once they saw that L.A. was basing their entire defense on double-teaming and stopping KAT, both he and Finch should have spread the offense around. They had to do it when KAT was off the court and it worked.

Probably hard for a guy who is constantly upset about not getting any respect in the first place, but if they want to get by Memphis, it's probably the way to go.
 



short ornery norwegian said:
celebrations aside, my take-away from the game:

if they didn't know already, the Clippers just gave every other team in the league a blueprint for playing the Wolves:

go after KAT, beat him up and get him upset - which takes him out of his game.

If KAT thought he was getting roughed up on Tuesday, wait till game #1 against Memphis. It will be WWE time - they might even hit him with a chair. anything to get KAT to lose his cool.

If KAT can control himself, the Wolves have a chance to win the series. If KAT loses his stuff, I say Memphis in 6.
Click to expand...
The KAT blueprint has been out there for quite some time. It’s well known that he has a hard time with large, physical teams.
 

jamiche said:
The KAT blueprint has been out there for quite some time. It’s well known that he has a hard time with large, physical teams.
Click to expand...
KAT needs to work his ass off to get position down low and when the double comes, find the open man. Shouldn't be that hard.
 

KAT is the only player left from that last Wolves playoff run, but not the only one who'll be on the court on Saturday.

 


JimmyJamesMD said:
KAT needs to work his ass off to get position down low and when the double comes, find the open man. Shouldn't be that hard.
Click to expand...
This is a little bit of pop psychology. I think the reason it is hard for him is because he knows that his reputation around the league is that he's soft. Consequently, he tries to muscle too much instead of finding the open man (he's not a selfish player). I also think that's why he's passed up more open threes this year in favor of drives to the basket.
 

jamiche said:
This is a little bit of pop psychology. I think the reason it is hard for him is because he knows that his reputation around the league is that he's soft. Consequently, he tries to muscle too much instead of finding the open man (he's not a selfish player). I also think that's why he's passed up more open threes this year in favor of drives to the basket.
Click to expand...
good post.

But I dont believe he has a good feel for his own body. So thats another problem. He was visibly upset when he committed two charges in a row, with the latter getting called. He thought he was fouled. So I think you combine with him trying to play (overly) physical and not being able to control his body, and its a recipe for disaster.
 

JimmyJamesMD said:
good post.

But I dont believe he has a good feel for his own body. So thats another problem. He was visibly upset when he committed two charges in a row, with the latter getting called. He thought he was fouled. So I think you combine with him trying to play (overly) physical and not being able to control his body, and its a recipe for disaster.
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He's also very, very immature and he craves approval. That's why this year's team has been so good for him. They shower him with praise, love and affection. He needs all of it because the rest of the league thinks he's a big baby, which he kind of is.

In terms of his body, he has absolutely amazing hand/eye coordination. However, by NBA standards (yes, NBA standards) he's not that athletic. Nobody ever calls him graceful or athletic and he's not really big enough to overpower other low post players. And when he tries to, he gets in foul trouble. He's an amazing shooter, has amazing vision and is a smart passer when he's not in macho mode. He also works damn hard.

If he ever gets out of his own head, he really could be better than Jokic and Embiid.
 

Iceland12 said:
Completely agree on Vanderbilt needig to at least try and be a threat on offense. On Towns?

Kinda, sorta disagree.

Think it was all balls and hubris that got him into trouble in the first place. He was gonna put the team on his back and will them into 7th place! No damn ref was gonna stop him either!

Hope he can see that was the worst damn approach possible. Once they saw that L.A. was basing their entire defense on double-teaming and stopping KAT, both he and Finch should have spread the offense around. They had to do it when KAT was off the court and it worked.

Probably hard for a guy who is constantly upset about not getting any respect in the first place, but if they want to get by Memphis, it's probably the way to go.
Click to expand...
Adams is uncomfortable guarding on the perimeter, so I think it will be a better matchup for KAT. He should have a fair number of unrushed threes.
 

Iceland12 said:
Maybe the NBA doesn't need a Super Team to get viewers. Maybe it's only ABC, the national media and the "only watch the playoffs" that demand total coverage on 3-4 teams not the general public.

Average NBA viewership rose 19 percent in the 2021-22 regular season across ABC, ESPN and TNT compared to the prior year, the league said Tuesday. It was up 3 percent from the 2019-20 season.

The NBA on ABC package averaged 3.03 million viewers, a 13 percent increase, while games on ESPN averaged 1.4 million viewers, a 17 percent increase. Games on TNT also averaged 1.4 million viewers, an increase of 13 percent..

NBA TV had its most-viewed regular season since 2017-18, the league said, without specifying numbers. It added that viewership among women was up 23 percent this year, with the demographic now making up one third of the NBA's audience..

The league also made strides on social media. NBA TikTok saw 481 million video views, a 305 percent increase over last season. Instagram Reels had 3.3 billion views, up 259 percent increase year over year. The league ended the regular season with over 66 million followers on Instagram, making it the most-followed professional sports account and ninth most-followed "brand account" overall, it said..

theathletic.com

NBA viewership up 19% for 2021-22

Average NBA viewership rose 19 percent in the 2021-22 regular season across ABC, ESPN and TNT compared to the prior year, the league said Tuesday. It was also up 3 percent from the 2019-20 season.
theathletic.com theathletic.com
Click to expand...
Because Ant is so likable, charismatic, talented, attractive and plays "happy," he could be the new "it" player of the NBA. A lot of it will depend on his play in the playoffs and if he can generate the exposure by the wolves somehow getting past Memphis.
 


just saw this on the Strib:

The NBA fined Timberwolves guard Patrick Beverley $30,000 on Thursday in reaction to the veteran's "inappropriate statements during a media interview and on social media, including the egregious use of profanity" following Tuesday's play-in victory over the Los Angeles Clippers.

Beverley played the past four seasons for the Clippers, and following the game he celebrated by jumping onto the scorers' table, throwing his jersey into the crowd and pumping up his teammates.

But the fine came because of his comments suggesting his former team get back to Los Angeles, with variations on the theme in colorful language.
 

Jonny K. is on the radio. He talked about that terrible draft where Wolves traded up to get Garland. Cleveland took him the pick before. Then Timberwolves instead had Phoenix draft Jarret Culver for them. We did he mention it? Because Culver is now on Memphis. Where he's playing around 10 minutes a game.

"Revenge game". :LOL:
 


The Wolves play Memphis around 2:30 this afternoon. It's on ESPN. The Wild play down in St.Louis at 2:00. It's on ABC.

Two Minnesota teams, both on national networks, at the same time. Neither of which are the Vikings.

Pretty unusual huh? :drink:
 

A lot of irrational exuberance about our wolves coming off of an outstanding play in game. My heart says wolves; my head says grizz in 6 or 7. The grizz are half a step above the wolves in talent and half a level deeper in depth. DLo has been consistently inconsistent all season and I don't see him putting 5-7 good to great games in a row together.

I'll be thrilled to be wrong.
 

I don't watch NBA anymore, but since the Pups are in, I have some interest. One thing I notice is Ja Morant has perfected how get touched, land on both feet, fall backwards and get rewarded.
 

I gotta be honest this is pretty fun when I think about all the big ten games I’ve watched that are 17-24 at halftime.
 

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