All Things 2023-2024 Minnesota Timberwolves In-Season Thread

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Iceland12 said:
The Ringer has a list of 20 Bold Predictions for this year's NBA Season. Here is one of them.

15. The Timberwolves will finish with a top-three record.​

Here’s how I see the Timberwolves: Thanks to the leg injury that sidelined Karl-Anthony Towns for four months last season, this year will be what 2022-23 should’ve been. Remove everything that’s on the periphery of actual basketball—the lopsided Rudy Gobert trade, ego-based questions about whose team it is, an über-expensive payroll and a need for draft capital that puts Towns’s name in trade rumors—and it’s not hard, even in a brutal Western Conference, to like what Minnesota has cooking. The pieces are in place for it to dominate regular-season competition: All-NBA talent, so much size, depth, veteran guile, youth, shooting, inventive coaches, some of the best defenders, and explosive athletes who can take over a game.

Anthony Edwards is an ascending star. Towns has a 50-40-90 season in him. Gobert’s defense still changes offensive strategies. Jaden McDaniels can legitimately shut down the world’s top offensive players and is primed to mature with the ball in his hands. Everything about Mike Conley, including his 36 years of wisdom, was designed in a lab to make him this roster’s ideal point guard. They’re bringing Kyle Anderson, Naz Reid, and (the underrated) Nickeil Alexander-Walker off the bench.

The offense isn’t without cause for concern. It really struggled to score even when its best players were on the floor last year. Whether Edwards ran pick-and-rolls with Gobert or Towns, both partnerships were a mess when the other big shared the floor. But their new starting five played only 75 minutes in seven games. Complementary talent, spacing, and creative coaches will help carve a path for Minnesota to be more efficient this season.

Edwards will get even more reps as a playmaker and will have more opportunities to launch catch-and-shoot 3s. The Timberwolves will ultimately go as far as his development takes them. (One big-picture takeaway from this preseason that may ultimately be meaningless: The Timberwolves rank first in location effective field goal percentage, mostly because they’ve abandoned long 2-point jumpers.)

Most of my own optimism, though, springs from the other end. Gobert is still an elite, floor-raising paint protector who did more to lift Minnesota into the top 10 than anyone else on the roster last year. Opponents took 35 percent of their shots at the rim—not a great number—but Gobert’s on-off differential defending the basket was the league best.

More importantly, in 360 minutes, lineups that featured Gobert, Edwards, McDaniels, and Towns held opponents to just 102.9 points per 100 possessions—the third lowest out of 150 four-player combos that logged at least 350 minutes. When Towns and Gobert shared the court, their defensive rating was 105.6, the same as Brook Lopez and Jrue Holiday. They didn’t foul, took care of the glass, and got back in transition.

This roster may not be ideal for postseason basketball, but it’ll be a problem through the winter, against teams that aren’t comfortable handling such a singular, explosive, humongous group that can win in several different ways. The more time they have together, the better they’ll be.

www.theringer.com

Twenty Increasingly Bold Predictions for the 2023-24 NBA Season

From a relatively tame MVP pick to a downright jarring trade proposal, here are 20 predictions to get you ready for the new NBA season
www.theringer.com www.theringer.com
Click to expand...

Love this! If we stay healthy, certainly a top 4 seed in the West should be in play and a deep run in the playoffs.

Howl Wolves!!
 

At just 22, all eyes are on Anthony Edwards as two cities stand behind him​

ATLANTA — In a seldom-used parking lot connected to a long-shuttered discount mall that once boasted of having the city’s largest outdoor flea market, a stage rises.

As Anthony Edwards steps onto the giant, peach-colored dais, walking in the shoes that have his name on them, his old neighborhood’s eyes are transfixed on him. Squinting in the late September sun, he looks down at the crowd gathered around the stage, familiarity washing over him. There are teachers from his old elementary school, coaches who offered a guiding hand or a place to stay when he needed it and dozens of children from the area who look so much like he did back in the day.

There are so many eyes on him as the Timberwolves prepare to open the season at Toronto on Wednesday. In Oakland City, where he is a beacon of hope in a community that struggles daily. And in Minneapolis, where a long-suffering fan base feels like it doesn’t have to be embarrassed to root for the Wolves anymore because they have him.

He is 22 and stands as the main character in a tale of two cities. Given everything he has endured to get to this point, Edwards is not flinching as all eyes turn to him. He is not alone on that stage.

“It’s exciting man, to feel like everything is on you,” Edwards said. “Especially when I got a great group of guys like my teammates, man. Like those guys are my brothers. And they got my back at all time.”

The hype surrounding his fourth season in the league has been building for months. He averaged 31.6 points, 5.2 assists and 5.0 rebounds in the NBA playoffs against Denver. He signed a max contract this summer that could be worth more than $260 million. He is coming off of a star turn with Team USA at the World Cup and could not be faulted for eyeing the title of best American-born player in the league. Google “Anthony Edwards” and under the “People Also Ask” section is a question: “Is Anthony Edwards (Michael) Jordan’s son?”

Whether Edwards is in the Deep South or the snowy north, people are drawn to him, to the way he talks and the way he walks. A stroll through his old neighborhood reveals how important he is for residents who need to see one of their own succeed. A scavenger hunt in his new home reveals signs that a city that has long given the NBA the cold shoulder is warming so intensely to such a uniquely magnetic young star.

theathletic.com

At just 22, all eyes are on Anthony Edwards. Two cities stand behind him

The one they call Ant Man is as real as they come, giving hope to his native Oakland City and to a long-suffering fan base in Minneapolis.
theathletic.com theathletic.com

Howl Wolves!!
 

Iceland12 said:
Probably because they are paying 13-15 players rather than 26-40 players on an MLB team or the 53 on a NFL roster or the 20-23 on an NHL roster.

Do you have an total payroll numbers?
Click to expand...

I was thinking more of the individual contracts. Giannis just signed a 3-year extension for $186-million. $62-million a year. by comparison, real median annual household income in the US in 2022 was $74,580. according to the Social Security Administration, the typical lifetime gross income range for American males is from $1.13 million to $3.05 million. that's lifetime. so $60-million in one year is like Monopoly money by comparison.

In terms of individual salaries, here are the averages for each sport: (the averages vary depending on which source you consult. these were the most recent I could find.)
Basketball - $8.5-million
Baseball - $4.9 million
Hockey - $3.5 million
Football - $2.7 million

as you note, there is a correlation between average salaries and the number of players on a team. the sports with the larger rosters have smaller average salaries per player.
 

Shama: Owner Agrees Wolves Are Anthony Edwards Led Team

The Timberwolves open the regular season Wednesday night in Toronto against the Raptors and Sports Headliners recently interviewed Minnesota owner Glen Taylor about multiple topics including team leadership, expectations, and progress on selling majority control of the franchise.

Does the longtime owner agree with public perception that 22-year-old guard Anthony Edwards, about to start his fourth NBA season, is now the team leader? “The answer is yes to your question,” said the Mankato-based businessman who purchased the franchise in 1994.

Edwards, one of the most athletic and gifted players in the NBA, is on track to supplant forward-center Karl-Anthony Towns as the face of the franchise. In the last three seasons Edwards has increased his basketball wisdom while improving season scoring averages from 19.3 to 21.3 to 24.6. Presumably he will be asked to make the biggest of plays late in games to decide outcomes, while also excelling at playmaking and defense.

The maturation of Edwards was evident this summer when he played for the U.S. Men’s FIBA World’s team. He led the U.S. in scoring at 18.9 points per game and minutes (25.9) as the Americans placed fourth in the tournament. He also averaged 4.6 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.1 steals.

The lead role is expected to fall on Edwards, despite the greater experience of Towns, entering his ninth NBA season, and center Rudy Gobert, starting his 11th. Both veterans earn roughly four times the salary of Edwards at $9.2 million, per ESPN.com.

Taylor’s expectations are for his players to excel this season, including the team’s two other starters, forward Jaden McDaniels and guard Mike Conley, Jr. “We should be one of the elite teams,” Taylor said after being told The Athletic predicts the Wolves will finish in a tie for third in the Western Conference.

“We have the guys (the talent),” Taylor said. “The other thing is it just appears watching them play the five preseason games that we are different this year. That the guys are more in tune. They’re playing really competitive ball right from the very beginning.

“Where in the previous years in the preseason we were always a little sloppy. We looked like we weren’t quite ready and stuff like that. And if we can just kind of keep playing…like we played in the preseason, we’ll get off to a good start. There’s no reason we can’t keep going, and then it gets down to injuries (determining wins and losses).”

Taylor is told that as a group the team came to training camp in better shape physically and with conditioning, and more prepared mentally. It appears, too, there is motivation to perform better after last season’s disappointing 42-40 record and eighth place finish in the Western Conference that was impacted by injuries.

Taylor decided in 2021 to sell the Wolves and Lynx franchises for $1.5 billion by the end of 2023, eventually giving majority control to Marc Lore and Alex Rodriguez. Two payments have been made so far and it’s been an unusual installment plan for buying a professional sports franchise.

Lore and Rodriguez have apparently been financially challenged to raise the capital needed for majority ownership (Taylor will retain a minority interest). The final payment is due in December but apparently will be stretched out further, with Taylor’s approval. “I cannot see them getting it done at the end of December,” Taylor said.

Taylor hasn’t been in touch with Lore and Rodrguez for some time. “I am assuming the guys will get it done, but I have no knowledge. They don’t share anything with me so I can only assume they’ll get it done. I don’t know anything more than (when) we talked about a month ago or something like that.”


Howl Wolves!!
 

Taylor hasn’t been in touch with Lore and Rodrguez for some time. “I am assuming the guys will get it done, but I have no knowledge. They don’t share anything with me so I can only assume they’ll get it done. I don’t know anything more than (when) we talked about a month ago or something like that.”

Geez, Glen. every time the guy opens his mouth, he says something that makes you shake your head.

He's supposed to be selling a majority share in a pro sports franchise. a franchise that is worth close to $2-Billion. and he hasn't been in touch with the prospective buyers - and they don't share anything with him?

I freak out if I'm late paying my credit card bill. (thank you BMO bank for automatic text alerts).
But Glen is like "oh well, I guess we'll get around to selling the team one of these days...."
 


short ornery norwegian said:
Taylor hasn’t been in touch with Lore and Rodrguez for some time. “I am assuming the guys will get it done, but I have no knowledge. They don’t share anything with me so I can only assume they’ll get it done. I don’t know anything more than (when) we talked about a month ago or something like that.”

Geez, Glen. every time the guy opens his mouth, he says something that makes you shake your head.

He's supposed to be selling a majority share in a pro sports franchise. a franchise that is worth close to $2-Billion. and he hasn't been in touch with the prospective buyers - and they don't share anything with him?

I freak out if I'm late paying my credit card bill. (thank you BMO bank for automatic text alerts).
But Glen is like "oh well, I guess we'll get around to selling the team one of these days...."
Click to expand...
Glen has the real monopoly 💰
 

short ornery norwegian said:
Taylor hasn’t been in touch with Lore and Rodrguez for some time. “I am assuming the guys will get it done, but I have no knowledge. They don’t share anything with me so I can only assume they’ll get it done. I don’t know anything more than (when) we talked about a month ago or something like that.”

Geez, Glen. every time the guy opens his mouth, he says something that makes you shake your head.

He's supposed to be selling a majority share in a pro sports franchise. a franchise that is worth close to $2-Billion. and he hasn't been in touch with the prospective buyers - and they don't share anything with him?

I freak out if I'm late paying my credit card bill. (thank you BMO bank for automatic text alerts).
But Glen is like "oh well, I guess we'll get around to selling the team one of these days...."
Click to expand...

On one hand, they probably have no contractual obligation to share information with him. Either they can close or they come to him with some kind of a (bullshit) Plan B. OTOH, they are supposed to be partners these days and managing a rather large asset together. It would be reasonable to assume there would be a substantial amount of communication happening.

It has been a goofy deal from the beginning. When our scrappy, wannabe owners started, the cost of capital was 3%. Now it's 7-8%. Who knows if they will get it done.
 


Danny B had the actor from ‘As Good as it Gets’ on his show this aft. Big wolves fan.
 



Lore and A-Rod have already asked the Minneapolis City Council if they support renovating Target Center or building a new arena.

They're already coming for taxpayer money.
 

Holy Hell

Oh, and as always, the feet are slow as hell.
 

Edwards and Towns were bad tonight. As was the whole team. Yuck.
 





Game One Overreaction:

1. The team is slow.
2. Rudy still gets in the way.
3. Shake didn't live up to all of the "Shake Hype."
4. No spacing.
5. The Raps are a good team, though they won't shoot 3's like that again this year.
6. Ant still holds the ball too much.
7. We need McDaniels, more Conley (even at 36), more Naz, more JMac, some Minott.
8. Rudy needs to stay in the dunker's spot.
9. Still too much complaining to the refs.
10. This team is really slow.
 

jamiche said:
Game One Overreaction:

1. The team is slow.
2. Rudy still gets in the way.
3. Shake didn't live up to all of the "Shake Hype."
4. No spacing.
5. The Raps are a good team, though they won't shoot 3's like that again this year.
6. Ant still holds the ball too much.
7. We need McDaniels, more Conley (even at 36), more Naz, more JMac, some Minott.
8. Rudy needs to stay in the dunker's spot.
9. Still too much complaining to the refs.
10. This team is really slow.
Click to expand...
34 points on the break for Toronto. You are either slow or don't give a schit.

Which one is it?
 


Scheme. Same damn idiotic scheme as last year. Drive a guy to the basket, if he can't get a shot off or a foul call kick it out for a three. That doesn't work if you don't have 3 point shooters and an officiating group that won't call fouls. Edwards in particular couldn't get that through his head.

Problem is Finch is committed to it and won't modify it if it isn't working. They didn't get back on Defense because they focused on rebounding. A common complaint here last year was the Wolves couldn't rebound. Last night they out rebounded the Raptors 62-47. Going into the 4th Quarter the shooting totals were basically even. Then Raptors started hitting shots in the 4th while the Wolves didn't. To make it worse they still kept that idiotic "drive into 2-3 guys" Offense.

"After a promising, undefeated preseason that was filled with ball movement, connectivity and unselfish play, the Timberwolves gave in to their old demons when the real lights turned on. An offense that hummed and shredded opponents in the run-up to the opener was bogged down by over-dribbling, poor shot selection and even worse decision-making.

Anthony Edwards scored 26 points but made just 8 of 27 shots. Many of those misses came on wild drives to the basket against multiple defenders or off-balance, high-degree-of-difficulty jumpers in isolation.

Karl-Anthony Towns was just 8 of 25 from the field and missed 8 of 10 3-pointers. He also turned the ball over a team-leading four times, once on one of those ill-advised, over-the-shoulder passes he has a habit of breaking out a little too often.

The Timberwolves shot 34 percent from the field, their lowest mark since Nov. 4, 2018. But it wasn’t that the shots didn’t go in as much as the ugly manner in which they took them. Everything felt forced. Nothing came easy. The Raptors are a tough and physical defensive group that makes things difficult with their versatility and length, but the Timberwolves played right into their hands by taking the air out of the ball and flinging shots from bad angles that were well-contested..

There were plenty of good things on which to build. The Wolves’ half-court defense was exceptional for most of the game, including a string of three straight stops from Towns at the rim that helped them jump in front at the end of the third quarter. They outrebounded Toronto 62-47, a drubbing that came after they focused much of their efforts in the preseason and training camp on becoming a better rebounding team.

“We expected to do what we did in the half-court defense, but our challenge is to continue to run up and down with these teams because that’s what teams are going to try to do,” Conley said. “They’re going to try and push the tempo, and get to the paint before we get our defense set. We’ll have to keep working on it.”..

“We did a lot of things that we set out to do,” Finch said. “Decision-making on offense was the story of the game.”

No one was panicking after the game. There was some frustration in the locker room, but also perspective. Jaden McDaniels did not play while he ramps back up from his calf injury and could be ready to go by the time the Wolves host the Miami Heat on Saturday. Had they made just two more shots on a horrendous shooting night, they survive in a place they have not won since 2004. There will probably be a few nights going forward where Towns is 2 of 10 from 3 in the same game that Edwards is 4 of 20 from 2."

theathletic.com

Timberwolves give in to their human nature in season-opening loss to Raptors

No one was panicking after the game. There was some frustration in the locker room, but also perspective.
theathletic.com theathletic.com
 

I watched about 30 minutes and then I couldn't take it any more.

plus I was going hoarse from yelling 'PASS THE F'ING BALL" at the TV every 20 seconds.

bring it into the front court, someone dribbles for 10 seconds and goes iso
bring it into the front court, someone dribbles for 10 seconds and goes iso
bring it into the front court, someone dribbles for 10 seconds and goes iso
bring it into the front court, someone dribbles for 10 seconds and goes iso
bring it into the front court, someone dribbles for 10 seconds and goes iso

you get the idea.

just bleepin' dumb.
 

short ornery norwegian said:
Taylor hasn’t been in touch with Lore and Rodrguez for some time. “I am assuming the guys will get it done, but I have no knowledge. They don’t share anything with me so I can only assume they’ll get it done. I don’t know anything more than (when) we talked about a month ago or something like that.”

Geez, Glen. every time the guy opens his mouth, he says something that makes you shake your head.

He's supposed to be selling a majority share in a pro sports franchise. a franchise that is worth close to $2-Billion. and he hasn't been in touch with the prospective buyers - and they don't share anything with him?

I freak out if I'm late paying my credit card bill. (thank you BMO bank for automatic text alerts).
But Glen is like "oh well, I guess we'll get around to selling the team one of these days...."
Click to expand...
The team is probably worth far more now than what they agreed to pay for it. Glen might be rooting for it to fall through.
 

TruthSeeker said:
Lore and A-Rod have already asked the Minneapolis City Council if they support renovating Target Center or building a new arena.

They're already coming for taxpayer money.
Click to expand...
That’s the playbook for any new owner.
 

Jimmy butler resting on game 3 of the NBA season is amazing. I mean he did play 24 minutes last night, buts still game 3.
 

From the Parkinglot said:
Jimmy butler resting on game 3 of the NBA season is amazing. I mean he did play 24 minutes last night, buts still game 3.
Click to expand...
This will be 7 of the last 8 games against the wolves, he has sat. I know a couple of times were legit injuries, but this guy doesn't want to play against the wolves.
 



Finch said they'd play with more movement tonight. Like they had in the preseason. They had 6 players in double figures and had 24 assists on the 35 made shots.

MINNEAPOLIS -- — Naz Reid scored 25 points on 10-for-14 shooting in 28 minutes off the bench, sparking the Minnesota Timberwolves to a 106-90 victory in their home opener over the short-handed Miami Heat on Saturday.

The fan favorite Reid swished back-to-back 3-pointers during an 11-0 run for the Timberwolves midway through the fourth quarter and went 4 for 7 from deep. Rudy Gobert (14 points, 14 rebounds) and Karl-Anthony Towns (12 points, 10 rebounds) also played their parts in a dominant performance by the Minnesota big men as the Heat faded hard down the stretch.

Anthony Edwards finished with 19 points after a late flurry for the Timberwolves (1-1), who outscored the Heat 24-4 over a seven-plus minute stretch that lasted deep into the fourth quarter.

Tyler Herro scored 22 points on 8-for-23 shooting and Bam Adebayo added 19 points for Miami, which played without starting forwards Jimmy Butler (rest) and Kevin Love (bruised left shoulder) on the second half of a back-to-back set of games...

www.espn.com

Timberwolves 106-90 Heat (Oct 28, 2023) Game Recap - ESPN

Expert recap and game analysis of the Minnesota Timberwolves vs. Miami Heat NBA game from October 28, 2023 on ESPN.
www.espn.com www.espn.com
 
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Wolves only attempted 8 FT. the NBA record is 1 - it's happened twice. (Hawks and Grizzlies)
 

Classic twolves. Up by 21 in the third and now down by 9 in the fourth after a 42-12 run by a team that played last year. This is gonna be a long winter of sports in the twin cities with the Vikings now being a giant question mark.
 

This things gonna get blown sky high this winter. Gotta wonder what the locker room is like after these games.
 

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