The Pretenders

(Photo by David Sherman/NBAE via Getty Images)

Both Hakeem Olajuwon and Moses Malone were embarrassed by Boston last night. As the broadcast of the Celtics trouncing our Woebegoners began, Chief Vindicator (and Lynx assistant coach) Jim Petersen immediately took pains to compare Al Jefferson to the two Hall of Fame centers, saying that Jefferson's footwork was the best he's seen since the Dream; the way Big Al tapped in his first basket reminded him of Moses Malone. In comparing Garnett and Al, I think I actually heard him say Jefferson was going to be in the Hall of Fame one day. I can't be sure I heard that statement correctly however; by that time I was in my kitchen vigorously working my martini shaker. I had a feeling I was going to need a sip or two to watch this "contest". As the game continued, I was correct. So much for comparisons.

It would be easy and I think even a tad classless to rip the Wolves, after all, given that they followed up their first win in November against Philly with such an awful, moribund, amateur, lifeless and confuzzled performance, the team must be beating themselves up. I mean, they dedicated an entire Don Overbeck commerical, hired Verne Troyer's stunt double to pose as a leprechaun, and were able to sucker an announced 19,000 plus into the Target Center, only to watch KG and the Celts waive to our club in their rear view mirror. Talk about your buzzkills! Yep, it would be easy and classless, so I'll do it.

What exactly is it about the Wolves current brain trust that they can't see the damage they are inflicting on their own franchise? Is it the hubris of wealth, the promimently Republican leadership, midwestern stubborness, a combination of the three, or something else? When all is said and done, one day Glen Taylor will probably sell this team at a profit, even with the mounting losses he must be taking on right now. He can continue to sit in the front row at TC, smile, and tell anyone who will listen that while he's not happy with their season start, he has faith that things will turn out. It's the same words our owner's been saying now for years. And, you know, he's right, it WILL turn out...for Glen Taylor. Like a lot of other upper bracket capitalists in this economy, even in failure he'll get paid. At least Taylor is not asking for a bailout...yet.

By the time they get around to actually being successful, the only people left following the Wolves will be a bunch of bloggers (gamely, but incorrectly insisting Kevin Love is a fantastic player), purists who simply appreciate professional basketball at any cost, and the dance team. If you can't get a deal on a ticket, why would a casual fan show up? Last night, you can see when a team is assembled the right way--defense, then offense--how excellence is achieved. Sure, we all expected the Wolves not to make the playoffs this year, but they're regressing--not progressing. This team--night in, night out--can't guard anybody. Even when they traded for an above average low post player to replace Garnett, they're still a predominately jump shooting team who can't get decent shots when pressured. And, when the shooting percentage is .313...in Mafia terms, forget about it. Against quality teams, they can't generate enough defense to keep them in the game until they find some semblence of offense to steal a win.

If anyone thinks once again tanking this year to acquire a Ricky Rubio or Brandon Jennings in next year's draft is going to solve the problem, well, I have a couple of full price Wolves lower level tickets I'd like to sell you. Who says even if the Wolves COULD draft those players, they would? There's GOT to be another player that McHale will think is better that he'll draft--despite the "Council of Elders" approach they've got working now. At the core of this failure is the inability to assess talent and hire the right coach to implement a vision--any vision.

The one thing this club did right last night was not wait until the fourth quarter to lose the game. For those folks simply wanting to see KG once again in person, they could have left at the start of the fourth quarter, beaten any traffic home, or had a late dinner/nightcap at any one of several fine Warehouse District establishments. That's real consideration, in my book. How exactly is it that a team of veterans on the back end of a two game stint has more energy in the second half than the young'uns with a day off in-between their game? The mind boggles.

According to reports, the OKC Thunder have fired PJ Carlesimo, after their 1-12 start. Given their new location novelty, that team could sit on their hands, do nothing, and still have a great attendance year. Yet, they care enough about the club to see--after only a season or two--that PJ wasn't going to get it done. Even the Clippers are making moves, for Jim Pete's sake. Yet the Wolves--faced with the increasingly obvious evidence that this group is on a court to nowhere--are refusing to budge. They'd much rather spin at this point, and compare Jefferson to Hall of Fame centers, instead of building an environment where he could one day achieve that plateau.

That's the mark of pretenders, not contenders.

An Affair to Dismember

...With apologies to Deborah Kerr, a fine actress who died this week.

According to Patrick Reusse, the Wolves are starting their media blitz to re-connect with their fan base this week, the official kick-off to "See What They Can Do". When you add that to the their familiar Midwestern themes of chemistry and loyalty, neither the sum or the parts seem particularly attractive. When you're losing big or blowing leads as they have been doing in the pre-season, how does that build any zazz at all? I'm not sure a Chamber of Commerce luncheon will overcome years of incompetence, trading your hall-of-famer, and encouraging all of us to reach deep down and discover our inner cynic. It's time to be bold and fresh.

For example...if you're going to sell youth, how about using Nat King Cole's song, "Too Young"?

"they tried to tell us we're too young"....update the song, put it against a video montage of the Wolves young guns dunking and defending, and at least you have a little something with energy and spirit. You have elements that can attract an older crowd and a younger, hip-hop community if you, for example, split screen old Nat with a new, up and coming artist. Since KG is throwing shots at you anyway, why not begin with him saying at the Boston press conference 'I don't do young"? Edgy and imaginative, a marketing middle finger back at the Ticket.

That's the problem with the front office--no zazz, no energy, no cool. Who'd want to rekindle an affair with THAT bunch?

If you're going to lose games big--as the first pre-season indications look like--Taylor.org is going to have to work that much harder to prove that progress is being made. Otherwise, you had better do what the loyal fan base (what's left of it) has been begging you to do for years: cut the country club to shreds and start over.

Truth or Originality?

"No, I don't quite understand why McHale still has a job. And I think he failed to take advantage of one of the greatest players in NBA history. Now do you want to tell me how this is even remotely qualifies as an original, interesting take on August 2, 2007?

What is interesting to me is that the guy I've been bashing has had three pretty good drafts in a row. That those drafts and the trade he just made point toward a philosophy of play he has always preached, one directly at odds with the two most influential figures in the Wolves' past success--KG and Flip Saunders." - Britt Robson, August 2, 2007

I would offer to Britt that what's unoriginal lies in the continual and long standing failure of the Wolves organization to acknowledge what the real problem is. Isn't it usually said when a coach gets fired, that it's easier than firing all the players? Well, in this case, both the coach AND the players are getting fired, with the core issue remaining...the Iron Ranger and Clueless Glen. There is absolutely no evidence that McHale's new Navy will be any better in the end. Why? Because it's not simply about the players; it's also how you treat them, how you work with their agents, what type of contracts you sign them to. It's a skill set beyond the hardwood, and the Ranger doesn't have it. We've seen this now for many years. THAT is what's unoriginal. We're still waiting for Godot, and it's time the play ends.

I can certainly argue that the last three drafts haven't been that good. McCants hasn't proven a thing, while Danny Granger's upside is at least as viable. Randy Foye or Brandon Roy? Hmm...I think I'll take Roy. And, if all Corey Brewer becomes is Bruce Bowen or Raja Bell, that's a waste of a good seventh pick. Usually players of that ilk should be found in the late first or second rounds. Add to that all the familiar and unoriginal examples...Ebi, Paul Grant, William Avery, and the results are overwhelmingly negative in evaluating McHale's tenure here.

For the record, it's not because KG was traded that I harp on these facts. Some of the things KG said at the Boston press conference was incredible. Taylor showed plenty of loyalty and love to the guy, over 200 million worth. KG--while great--was an over priced talent, but never recognized his role in all this mess. He's content to play victim. Now as you, me, and many others have said, there are no excuses. But the fact remains everything negative about the Wolves has flowed downhill from the front office. Marv Wolfenson, Harvey Ratner, Bob Stein, Jack McCloskey, Glen Taylor and Kevin McHale. A wall of organizational shame.

Yeah, it will be interesting to see what happens, and I'll go to games, because I love basketball, and it will be a challenge for me to guess which referee is actually on the take. But even more than wasting a top talent like KG, the real tragedy is here ruining a basketball market with incompetence, arrogance, and spin. It's an old familiar theme; boring, unoriginal, but it's the truth.

Ticket to Ride

An era looks to be ending, I'm sorry to report. As much as I've enjoyed watching KG over the years, I guess everything has to end, especially in professional sports. The delusional behavior by just about everyone associated with this drama brought this to a head. Here's what I posted on Britt Robson's Rake blog:

"If you can only primarily deal with one agent and GM in any professional league, you're screwed. Somewhere along the line, Glen Taylor must have an on-the-road-to-Damascus epiphany and understand what damage he and McHale have wreaked on an unsuspecting basketball market. If that understanding ever is achieved, sackcloth and ashes aren't nearly enough for what has transpired here during KG's tenure. Given that scenario, this deal is pretty much the same as any other realistic offer. It won't solve the core issues facing this club. At least we might get our draft pick back from the last botched trade.

Fred Hoiberg can't fix this, neither will Jim Petersen, who I'm sure --just like the other Boston trade--will defend it for at least a year and half. And, just like the other Boston trade, he will be wrong. It will take a totally fresh look to build the scouting, dealing and coaching acumen to make this team a success.

However, KG is no Tim Duncan. If reports are correct, him asking to get paid another 100 million dollars over four to six years demonstrates we could have never found the resources to build around him anyway at this stage of his career. The T-Wolves needed to get salary relief from him if he was to stay in Minnesota for life. So fine Danny Ainge, give him one last big payday. There are no excuses left for KG; if those three are healthy, they should make runs deep into the playoffs for at least three years, given the East's reputation as the JV conference.

As for what we have now, I guess I wouldn't worry about the rebounding. Other than Ticket, we were getting dominated when it counted anyway. KG wasn't tough on the glass, he grabbed a lot of easy rebounds at the end of plays. We now at least have a couple of players willing to play in the low post. Consistently.

What we have left are many gambles, but no safe bets. It will take much more hard work and fresh analysis to build the right mix of youth and veterans to compete in the Western Conference.

We're again at wait and see, with the Iron Ranger still at the controls. Given his performance at draft time, and Taylor's subsequent spin of this drama, why should we bother to trust anything they have left to say?"

The James Gang

The whole cliche of putting a team on your back presupposes there's a team willing to be led, and and perform when called upon. The difference in the NBA ECF last night was clearly Lebron, but it was Daniel Gibson, the rookie out of Texas, who I thought made key contributions in the second half that helped put the Cavs over the top. James had his gang show up last night.

All along the conventional wisdom has been that James needed a couple of other folks to step up and eliminate the one on five mentality the Pistons were taking when guarding him. Drew Gooden was a part of the gang early, but by the fourth quarter was taking bad shots and getting too emotionally involved with the refereeing, getting a technical late in the fourth. When Gibson was in the game, the Pistons tried to exploit him on both offense and defense...and failed. He was able to withstand Billups' repeated attempts to post him up, and hit a couple of big shots when the ball was rotated to him. It will be interesting to see his development, since Cleveland paid big money to Larry Hughes to run the point.

Lebron was the show though, and his dunk late in the fourth was a highlight to last his entire career. He's undergone some of the same criticism KG has during his career; the difference is at 22, Lebron listened, KG really hasn't. King James' aggressiveness and refuse to lose posture last night got them three more baskets than Detroit. Just about everything else stats-wise was roughly similar. The superstar rose to the occasion. It's what we've been begging KG to do for years--go hard to the basket, try and get easy baskets or get to the line. The NBA rewards aggressiveness.

In the end we see a contrast between winning and losing teams: superstars needing other players to step up, when they do, the superstar then fiercely and aggressively leads the team into competition. No excuses; it's clear what the pecking order is. If Lebron can perform at that level the rest of the series, for the Cavs to win his gang will need to show up. If the Wolves are going to regain respectability, if a team can be assembled around him (a BIG if), he must approach leadership with a fierceness that he hasn't displayed, despite all the talk to the contrary.

I still think Flip gets his team into the Finals against the Spurs, but we may be seeing one of those emerging moments where a superstar gets to be Nova class, and a team rises to yet another level. It's something Minnesota basketball fans have always dreamed, but seen little of.

Sunday Reflections

Sunday mornings are great for reading all about basketball. I've read Robson, Vecsey, Aschburner and Winderman so far. While I think the beat writers must borrow heavily from each other in producing their Sunday summations, the columnists and bloggers are a little less traditional. Robson goes on the stats analysis route, comparing Wittman to Casey. Shockingly, he has determined that the Wolves played worst defense under Randy than Dwane, which I think even a casual fans could pick up on if they had watched the last half of the season. For the beat writers, it's time to announce their picks for league "best of" categories. Needless to say, our club doesn't qualify for any achievement awards.

The bigger news was from the resident grenade throwing columnist for the NY Post, Peter Vecsey. I like Vecsey the best, simply because he will often work through the mainstream media hype to tweak our "heroes". Sometimes the tweaks are cheap (Charlatan Barkley, Abscess Ahmad), and are often as a result a poor working relationship he had with the individual in the past (Barkley). But he's direct in his criticism, and is willing to take on the establishment.

He leads with the notion that the Knicks are going after KG, which isn't surprising. I'm sure Sam Smith of the Chicago Tribune will once again continue his "Star Trek"-like five year mission to encourage the Bulls to deal for our fading superstar as well. Vecsey however casts doubt on whether this would ever happen, sarcastically saying: "Yup, that's who the Timberwolves aspire to be, last season's Knicks." Of course since the Knicks have given the Bulls the one thing Minnesota really wants this year--a top first round draft pick, as a result of the Eddy Curry trade--I would doubt if the Knicks really have anything the Wolves want. At least I certainly hope that's the case, but with the Iron Ranger, you never know.

Even though this season was lousy, if you're at all interested in organizational psychology and business, June through August are going to be fascinating months for the Wolves. As with other years, it will probably be more bluster than real activity, with fans being once again disappointed and disheartened by the results. But consider a few scenarios:

1) Keeping the lottery pick AND KG. Depending on who we get (please, no more PG's!), that would generate some buzz, despite any front office reshuffling.
2) Losing the lottery pick AND KG. Sure, we'd probably pick up a number one as a result of a trade, but I think the shock value of that long discussed outcome would cast a bit of a pall across the Wolves community, and generate still MORE anger at Taylor and McHale.
3) Keeping the lottery pick and losing KG. The team is officially blown up, with hopefully two top 10 draft picks. Sad to see KG go, but hopeful for the future, unless of course McHale stays. Then the fan's trepidation will remain.

Of course, it's looking like the Ranger is sticking around. Gotta work on that podcast!

Appreciate This!

San Antonio 110 vs. Minnesota 91

My brother and I attended the Spurs game last night. Thank God we got in for free. How people could actually pay for games at this point is beyond me. This was an uninspired mess of a contest. To add insult to injury it was fan appreciation night, one of the worst I've seen in modern sports franchise history. Among the lowlights:

* A person picked for the halfcourt million dollar shot actually threw the ball UNDERHAND toward the basket.
* A tarp full of DIGIORNO pizzas being dragged out to center court, then handed out to the first level fans only.
* At least two cheap Polaroid 32 " HDTV's were given away, but the winners had been preselected, so there was no random chance for anyone who showed up to win.
* For exiting fans, a cheap mug courtesy of the Minnesota State Lottery.
I'm not sure when the Ricky Davis figurines were handed out, but face it, he's enough of a bobblehead on the court. I didn't need one to bring home to remind me how he's contributed to this wreck of a team.

And then there was the game.

Remember January 3rd, the last time San Antonio played here? An exciting game, going down to the wire. Mark Blount actually played Tim Duncan straight up and went 12 for14, scoring 28 points. Garnett had 17 rebounds, in a 103-101 victory for our club. Those were the days when the games meant something, when you saw the effort coming from this club. A few weeks later after the Pistons game here at home, it began to unravel.

The story since then?

Garnett is supposedly getting his quad checked out in California somewhere. The MSM press is taking it hook, line, and sinker. What about one of the media outlets actually putting someone out on a plane to check whether or not KG is simply barbecuing at his California home, artificially on the shelf for the rest of the season? I guess the StarTrib and the PioneerPress are too busy with their lawyers to actually shell out any dough for a reporter to investigate. I'm not sure what the television outlets are covering at this point.

Back on the court, we have Duncan taking Blount to school, scoring almost at will when he wasn't on the bench or yawning. There was no team play, passing or offensive rebounding to speak of, only a team going through the motions. Smith and Blount were repeatedly rejected trying to take the ball to the hole, and Trenton Hassell missed close range shots with regularity. The Wolves zone was soft; the Spurs could shoot over the top of it anytime they wanted, a result of actually SHARING the ball. All in all, a nasty, lackluster effort--complete with bad promotions--on a night to show appreciation for the fans who show up to watch this crap.

And the draft choice watch continues...