Malcolm Lee & Backcourt Defense

[Grits n Gravy]

How can he fit in and contribute this season? He seems to be largely an after thought after all the roster moves. I still think he can develop into a good rotation player especially specializing in slashing and defending. Outside of Rubio he is the only backcourt player with any kind of defensive DNA and imo should be given strong consideration for minutes(if earned) because of this. It's actually a little scary how devoid of defense in the back court we are with Rubio out.

Luke - Battles hard but simply lacks the physical tools.
JJ - Far too small to defend adequately and has a some of the Love syndrome in he'd rather argue than get back and defend.
Roy - I think we could agree his knee's put dampers on expectations and his ability to defend.
Shved - As high as I am on him he proved pretty conclusively he is all but disinterested and generally very poor when it comes to defense especially fighting through screens. He is not strong enough to defend adequately on day 1.
Bud - I'd imagine he will likely be playing mostly at small forward but will surely see a bit of 2 time. Haven't seen enough to comment but pretty sure he is far from having a defensive rep.

If AK47 is allowed to roam a bit he could put up quite hefty block numbers with the amount of penetration we might be giving up, same goes for Steamer. Having Love and Pek playing the majority of minutes behind these guys is also a little worrisome. Pek maybe pretty dam solid in man to man but lacks a bit of the mobility on rotations to help and Love hasn't shown that he is able or willing to consistently get position and take charges(weirdly remember him doing quite well in pre season).

Malcolm has outstanding foot speed and lateral quickness and more importantly a pride in defense though I would love him to get stronger. I'm sure with all the new bodies that Adelman has enough options to hold everyone accountable defensively like he did Beasley so I think we may see Malcolm Lee playing a bit more than expected.

Don't get me wrong I think with Rubio in the line up we will probably be a top 5 maybe top 10 offensive team and that will probably be what we hang our hat on. Adelman will surely be as tough on anyone who doesn't play defense and certainly so come the playoffs.

[Klomp]

Really good discussion topic.

I could actually see him getting more minutes than we expect early on. I think we have to be realistic about Roy's playing time, especially at the beginning of the season.

Same with Shved. I think our expectations for him are higher than the team's are.

Kahn downplayed Shved's impact with the Timberwolves in his first NBA season.

"This year it's important to not put too much pressure on him to produce at a high level," Kahn said. "We have the kind of depth in our backcourt where he'll be able to make the transition to the NBA at his own speed."

That leaves Lee. I think the coaching staff likes him a lot if he can stay healthy and play smart offensively.

Otherwise, we could see more of Luke or JJ at the 2, I wouldn't rule it out...

[Mattya]

Really good discussion topic.

I could actually see him getting more minutes than we expect early on. I think we have to be realistic about Roy's playing time, especially at the beginning of the season.

Same with Shved. I think our expectations for him are higher than the team's are.

Kahn downplayed Shved's impact with the Timberwolves in his first NBA season.

"This year it's important to not put too much pressure on him to produce at a high level," Kahn said. "We have the kind of depth in our backcourt where he'll be able to make the transition to the NBA at his own speed."

That leaves Lee. I think the coaching staff likes him a lot if he can stay healthy and play smart offensively.

Otherwise, we could see more of Luke or JJ at the 2, I wouldn't rule it out...

Not to mention I could see Bud getting more minutes at the two giving some extra minutes for Williams at the three, to see what he can do there.

[Klomp]

Malcolm and Roy working out at Target Center today...

[Basti]

Malcolm and Roy working out at Target Center today...

Reading Calinks' post in the other thread made me think that Lee must have had a bad day or Roy rode a hot streak. Granted, it was a scrimmage only but still.

Anyway, I wouldn't count on Lee getting more than spot minutes this season. Look at what crappy competition he had last year whereas he will have to outperform much better players. Obviously, there's the injury risk but assuming that everyone stays somewhat healthy I don't think he will play so much.

Also, while I like his energy and approach to the game, he looked very lost last season (which was understandable, though). I'd really love to see him alongside Rubio, though. They should feed off each other well, both offensively and defensively. Outside shooting could be a reason for concern but with Love and another shooter at the 3 it shouldn't be that much of a concern. Did they actually spend more than a few minutes on the court together last season?

[EddyCool]

Malcolm and Roy working out at Target Center today...

Reading Calinks' post in the other thread made me think that Lee must have had a bad day or Roy rode a hot streak. Granted, it was a scrimmage only but still.

Anyway, I wouldn't count on Lee getting more than spot minutes this season. Look at what crappy competition he had last year whereas he will have to outperform much better players. Obviously, there's the injury risk but assuming that everyone stays somewhat healthy I don't think he will play so much.

Also, while I like his energy and approach to the game, he looked very lost last season (which was understandable, though). I'd really love to see him alongside Rubio, though. They should feed off each other well, both offensively and defensively. Outside shooting could be a reason for concern but with Love and another shooter at the 3 it shouldn't be that much of a concern. Did they actually spend more than a few minutes on the court together last season?

I'm pretty sure they didn't play against each-other today. Just, they were working out with David Adelman together. Roy was shooting 3's over and over, and made 13 in a row at one point.




Also, I may be wrong, but I don't think Lee debuted until Rubio's injury.

[weasel]

Malcolm and Roy working out at Target Center today...

Reading Calinks' post in the other thread made me think that Lee must have had a bad day or Roy rode a hot streak. Granted, it was a scrimmage only but still.

Anyway, I wouldn't count on Lee getting more than spot minutes this season. Look at what crappy competition he had last year whereas he will have to outperform much better players. Obviously, there's the injury risk but assuming that everyone stays somewhat healthy I don't think he will play so much.

Also, while I like his energy and approach to the game, he looked very lost last season (which was understandable, though). I'd really love to see him alongside Rubio, though. They should feed off each other well, both offensively and defensively. Outside shooting could be a reason for concern but with Love and another shooter at the 3 it shouldn't be that much of a concern. Did they actually spend more than a few minutes on the court together last season?

Lee was coming back from knee surgery last year, and didn't have any practice time. By the time he came back he was a few months behind everyone else. This year, with the surgery behind him, and with the chance to work with the coaches all offseason, I'think we will get a better chance to see what he can do. Whether or not that will translate into playing time for him is a different story.

[Basti]

Don't get me wrong, I was aware of the possible reasons as to why he looked lost. I just don't want to put up too many expectations onto a 2nd round pick.

I'd gladly eat tons of crow

[Narf]

I don't think "solid 10th man off the bench who can play some defense" is exactly high expectations

[jade_hippo]

I'd like to think one of JJ or Luke will be gone by mid season, and we can't honestly expect Roy to hold up for 82. The kid will get some court time at some point.

[Basti]

I don't think "solid 10th man off the bench who can play some defense" is exactly high expectations

Some posts prior to the start of last seasons were saying something different. But to be fair, if I recall it correctly, only a handful were a bit too optimistic.

[cpfsf]

I don't think "solid 10th man off the bench who can play some defense" is exactly high expectations

Some posts prior to the start of last seasons were saying something different. But to be fair, if I recall it correctly, only a handful were a bit too optimistic.

I'm assuming everyone got their hopes up after the team offered a guaranteed 3 year contract.