Our friends at ESPN chime in.

[TrentTuckerForever]

:lol: This team sucks. Miller and Love do nothing to address the team's defensive woes both on the perimeter and on the inside. Foye missed pretty much all of last season and has established NOTHING. Yea, those deadeye 3 point shooters are going to come in handy with a post player who rarely passes. Brewer? HAHAHAHA. Oh yea, and we have an idiots running the organization and coaching the team.

Yea, things could come together and this team could surprise. But to treat that as (almost) a given while berating those who are skeptical is downright silly, especially when the season hasn't even started. What has this team proven yet? Foye is still not established, and Love is an undersized and unathletic goon until he learns to play otherwise (which is doubtful). Brewer is more energy than skill. Playoffs? **** that we should be the number 1 seed.

Excellent analysis, Bluesman. Compelling, and rich.

No one here is saying that skepticism isn't warranted - they're saying that analysis that makes the Wolves WORSE than last year's team (20 something wins, bottom of the Western conference) doesn't make sense.

By the way, Love measures out athletically almost exactly like Al Horford.

[shrink]

it is always better to be hated and earn love, then to get undeserved love and bring hate.

I hope McCants doesn't read this, because I don't think he has enough skin left for this much ink.

[DrSithMirth]

I lost respect for ESPN a long time ago. Don't let them have any power.

That said, I do think it'll be a long season, but I'm interested enough to keep watching; I stopped watching early last season. I do not have any faith in management, and my wife keeps wondering why I bother, but I'm still a fan, I guess.

[SSUBluesman]

Excellent analysis, Bluesman. Compelling, and rich.

No one here is saying that skepticism isn't warranted - they're saying that analysis that makes the Wolves WORSE than last year's team (20 something wins, bottom of the Western conference) doesn't make sense.

By the way, Love measures out athletically almost exactly like Al Horford.

Actually it does, if people actually stop and think. This team is in the same place it was last year with a bunch of unproven pieces. Al took a step forward (which most thought he would) and Telfair took at least a half step forward (which many didn't think would happen). They added Miller. That's your big improvement from last year. Foye had a lost year. Brewer is still unknown. Love is unknown. They're weaker inside. Their coach is still an idiot. They added nothing that addressed pressing needs (yay an outsider shooter for the post player who doesn't pass). They are just as likely to move backward as they are forward.

That's impressive given I don't ever recall laughing at watching Horford move around the court.

[casey]

I hate to sound sexist...but I really have a hard time taking a woman's view of an NBA team seriously. She's not a moron by all means....but we wern't even the worst team last year, and I think we've improved greatly from the beginning of last season to now. I don't expect playoffs, but I would be shocked if we ended up with the worst record in the league. I would take her opinions on the WNBA or the fundamentals of a lay up over her write up of any team in the NBA.

Woman doesn't know a thing about basketball.

[skorff26]

I hate to sound sexist...but I really have a hard time taking a woman's view of an NBA team seriously. She's not a moron by all means....but we wern't even the worst team last year, and I think we've improved greatly from the beginning of last season to now. I don't expect playoffs, but I would be shocked if we ended up with the worst record in the league. I would take her opinions on the WNBA or the fundamentals of a lay up over her write up of any team in the NBA.

I wouldn't be making fun of the woman here. She has us at 13 while two of the three guys have us at 15 (the other one has us at 12); I think the woman has a better predicition than the men

[casey]

I hate to sound sexist...but I really have a hard time taking a woman's view of an NBA team seriously. She's not a moron by all means....but we wern't even the worst team last year, and I think we've improved greatly from the beginning of last season to now. I don't expect playoffs, but I would be shocked if we ended up with the worst record in the league. I would take her opinions on the WNBA or the fundamentals of a lay up over her write up of any team in the NBA.

Woman doesn't know a thing about basketball.

Hey, who edited me?!

[cpfsf]

Excellent analysis, Bluesman. Compelling, and rich.

No one here is saying that skepticism isn't warranted - they're saying that analysis that makes the Wolves WORSE than last year's team (20 something wins, bottom of the Western conference) doesn't make sense.

By the way, Love measures out athletically almost exactly like Al Horford.

Actually it does, if people actually stop and think. This team is in the same place it was last year with a bunch of unproven pieces. Al took a step forward (which most thought he would) and Telfair took at least a half step forward (which many didn't think would happen). They added Miller. That's your big improvement from last year. Foye had a lost year. Brewer is still unknown. Love is unknown. They're weaker inside. Their coach is still an idiot. They added nothing that addressed pressing needs (yay an outsider shooter for the post player who doesn't pass). They are just as likely to move backward as they are forward.

That's impressive given I don't ever recall laughing at watching Horford move around the court.

"This team is in the same place it was last year with a bunch of unproven pieces...They added Miller. That's your big improvement from last year. Foye had a lost year. Brewer is still unknown. Love is unknown."

OK, Miller is unproven? Al Jefferson is unproven? So we added Miller (who is definitely proven, and so is Jefferson btw), Foye is healthy and averaged 13.1 PPG 4.2 APG and 3.3 RPG last season (he put those stats up after returning from an injury), and we add Carney and Love and you think we suddenly are worse? The team is a year older (which is good for the Wolves and bad for the Spurs as time is not on their side)

"They added nothing that addressed pressing needs (yay an outsider shooter for the post player who doesn't pass"

An outside shooter was one of the teams biggest needs, players were consistently double teaming Al Jefferson. He has more room to operate now as the defense will be more spread apart.

[SSUBluesman]

"This team is in the same place it was last year with a bunch of unproven pieces...They added Miller. That's your big improvement from last year. Foye had a lost year. Brewer is still unknown. Love is unknown."

OK, Miller is unproven? Al Jefferson is unproven? So we added Miller (who is definitely proven, and so is Jefferson btw), Foye is healthy and averaged 13.1 PPG 4.2 APG and 3.3 RPG last season (he put those stats up after returning from an injury), and we add Carney and Love and you think we suddenly are worse? The team is a year older (which is good for the Wolves and bad for the Spurs as time is not on their side)

"They added nothing that addressed pressing needs (yay an outsider shooter for the post player who doesn't pass"

An outside shooter was one of the teams biggest needs, players were consistently double teaming Al Jefferson. He has more room to operate now as the defense will be more spread apart.

"Al took a step forward (which most thought he would) and Telfair took at least a half step forward (which many didn't think would happen). They added Miller. That's your big improvement from last year. Foye had a lost year."

"They added nothing that addressed pressing needs (yay anoutsider shooter for the post player who doesn't pass)"

[DarkAzcura]

I like the talent on Minny a lot.

ESPN always underrating these kids as normal.

Jefferson, Gomes, Love, Miller, Foye, Telfair, McCants, Smith..how could people think this team is terrible? Probably no playoffs, but I still think they'll be decent. I don't know much about the coaching situation in Minny, though, so maybe your players are running around like there is no defense or offense in place haha. I don't think that's the case, though.

[Basti]

I like the talent on Minny a lot.

ESPN always underrating these kids as normal.

Jefferson, Gomes, Love, Miller, Foye, Telfair, McCants, Smith..how could people think this team is terrible? Probably no playoffs, but I still think they'll be decent. I don't know much about the coaching situation in Minny, though, so maybe your players are running around like there is no defense or offense in place haha. I don't think that's the case, though.

hey our coach received a vote for COY 2008/09 by an ESPN so called expert

[andyhop]

This 82games article using the preseason records of teams to predict regular season records gives a much more positive prediction for the Wolves.
http://www.82games.com/preseason0809.htm

To put it in perspective, the rare poor prior year team that strings together some wins in the preseason has seen an average gain of 17 wins in the next year!

That would be us

One last oddity to wrap it up: teams that have improved their preseason win% over last year by .400 or more gain an average of 17 wins...

That would be us too!!!!!!!

Combining both stats we can clearly see that the Wolves are on course to go 56-26 this season and be a top 3 or 4 seed in the playoffs because stats don't lie.

[hijacktheparade]

Anyone watching LA halftime? They dissed our court.


"Where we at, Boise State? Look at that floor!"

I was coming to post the same thing. ****ing ESPN.

[Klomp]

Anyone watching LA halftime? They dissed our court.


"Where we at, Boise State? Look at that floor!"

[C.lupus]

ESPN is about one notch above Bleacher Report.

[TMo519]

Haters....the floor is tight lol

[4ho5ive]

I think in the 2nd quarter of the Suns-Spurs game, Jeff Van Gundy and Marc Jackson gave their surprise NBA teams for this season. Surprisingly, JVG mentioned us as one of his two surprise teams, i dont think they were talking playoffs, but its still encouraging. Thanks Milhouse's dad!