Around the NBA (Part Two)

[life_saver]

KAT seems to be quickly becoming scapegoat for Knicks fans...after watching Knicks this playoffs, I am so glad Thibs is not here anymore. The way KAT is used on offense is absolutely criminal...they are essentially using him as a non-shooting role player on offense. He is not even involved in most of their offensive sets. Sometimes he gets the ball during end of shot clock with a defender all over him on perimeter. He has like just 13 3 pt attempts so far in 5 games vs Celtics which is insane

Even defensively, Knicks just seem confused at times...Brunson is really bad defensively & you can't have play KAT as 5 all the time in playoffs.

[KGdaBom]

Nuggets up 33-28 early 2nd quarter. Go Nuggets!!!!!!!!!!!

[FrenchMinnyFan]

SGA is definitely competing with Luka for flopping award...

[guest81]

Everything's been coming up Wolves. Either this is going end in a complete heartbreak or this could really be our year

[Guest84]

Wolves will need to pay attention to this Julian guy on Denver if they play. He’s lighting up okc right now

[winforlose]

Wolves will need to pay attention to this Julian guy on Denver if they play. He’s lighting up okc right now

Braun and Strawther are the Denver heroes tonight. Both stepped up in a big way and contributed 36 points thus far on very efficient shooting. Denver needs to score probably 4 more points to put this away. Possible they have it already, but I would feel more comfortable with a few more made shots.

[Movics]

Everything's been coming up Wolves. Either this is going end in a complete heartbreak or this could really be our year

Neither one of these teams can beat us 4 times out of 7…

[Domejandro]

Everything's been coming up Wolves. Either this is going end in a complete heartbreak or this could really be our year

Neither one of these teams can beat us 4 times out of 7…

Both teams absolutely have the capacity to do so. Oklahoma City is stacked with defenders at every position, while still maintaining quality size. Denver has the best player in the world.

I would much rather face Denver (nobody can stop Anthony Edwards, he should absolutely feast in that head-to-head matchup), but either way, it's worth expecting a tough series.

[Worm Guts]

If Denver manages to make it to the WCF, they’ll have played 4 more playoff games than the Wolves. That seems like a significant advantage for the Wolves.

[FrenchMinnyFan]

Great game. Denver give it all. Hope they can finish the business and play against us. Go Wolves!

[Movics]

Everything's been coming up Wolves. Either this is going end in a complete heartbreak or this could really be our year

Neither one of these teams can beat us 4 times out of 7…

Both teams absolutely have the capacity to do so. Oklahoma City is stacked with defenders at every position, while still maintaining quality size. Denver has the best player in the world.

I would much rather face Denver (nobody can stop Anthony Edwards, he should absolutely feast in that head-to-head matchup), but either way, it's worth expecting a tough series.

OKC can match our depth too, but I don’t think Holmgren and Williams are good enough offensively to be 2nd and 3rd options in a deep playoff run. I think Ant/Randle/McDaniels are a more reliable trio on offense and our defense isn’t any worse.
Denver is just not deep enough and they will have played 4 more games in the playoffs if they win in Oklahoma. That’s a big advantage for us imo.

[life_saver]

OKC is quite beatable in playoffs imo...their biggest problem is that they don't have many shot creators outside Shai..you need that in playoffs. Basically any team with Jalen Williams as 2nd option is beatable in playoffs

[winforlose]

OKC is quite beatable in playoffs imo...their biggest problem is that they don't have many shot creators outside Shai..you need that in playoffs. Basically any team with Jalen Williams as 2nd option is beatable in playoffs

OKC is built to matchup with us, the same way we are built to matchup up with Denver. They have the double bigs to contain Rudy and Randle. They have elite perimeter defenders in Dort and Caruso to make things tough on Ant and Jaden. They have a foul merchant to back us off and not let us play physical defense. They have a bench with every bit as much shooting as ours. I don’t think it is a given that OKC beats us, but I also don’t think it is a given that we beat OKC. Denver on the other hand is a great matchup for us and terrible for them. They lack elite on ball defense, Gordon and MPJ might not be 100%, Ant loves guarding Murray, and we play the best defense against Jokic of anyone in the league. I think we win that in 5 or 6 and hang our first Conference Championship banner. That said, I also suspect that we have an edge over NYK and a big edge over Indy and could put up a much better banner instead.

P.S. Very glad our next game is Tuesday instead of Sunday. 5 more days of rest will help, especially if the next series goes longer. Meanwhile OKC is in there first ever seven game series (with this group,) and Denver is in their second consecutive 7 game series. Both teams should be softened up for us, if we can just come out hungry and eager instead of lazy and sloppy.

[Loaf_of_bread]

Should okc win, their problem against us is a lack of offensive options/offensive versatility. We can go toe to toe defensively, and they may have a slight advantage... but we can overcome it offensively. They will be tough though..

[TimberKat]

OKC is quite beatable in playoffs imo...their biggest problem is that they don't have many shot creators outside Shai..you need that in playoffs. Basically any team with Jalen Williams as 2nd option is beatable in playoffs

OKC is built to matchup with us, the same way we are built to matchup up with Denver. They have the double bigs to contain Rudy and Randle. They have elite perimeter defenders in Dort and Caruso to make things tough on Ant and Jaden. They have a foul merchant to back us off and not let us play physical defense. They have a bench with every bit as much shooting as ours. I don’t think it is a given that OKC beats us, but I also don’t think it is a given that we beat OKC. Denver on the other hand is a great matchup for us and terrible for them. They lack elite on ball defense, Gordon and MPJ might not be 100%, Ant loves guarding Murray, and we play the best defense against Jokic of anyone in the league. I think we win that in 5 or 6 and hang our first Conference Championship banner. That said, I also suspect that we have an edge over NYK and a big edge over Indy and could put up a much better banner instead.

P.S. Very glad our next game is Tuesday instead of Sunday. 5 more days of rest will help, especially if the next series goes longer. Meanwhile OKC is in there first ever seven game series (with this group,) and Denver is in their second consecutive 7 game series. Both teams should be softened up for us, if we can just come out hungry and eager instead of lazy and sloppy.

Agree. I think if we play OKC, it's going to be a slugfest. We can't turn the ball over, will need to contain them just enough, and we need everyone to step up with score 120+ points. I don't know I like the long rest. It didn't work for us in the last round. Everyone came back rusty in game 1

[winforlose]

OKC is quite beatable in playoffs imo...their biggest problem is that they don't have many shot creators outside Shai..you need that in playoffs. Basically any team with Jalen Williams as 2nd option is beatable in playoffs

OKC is built to matchup with us, the same way we are built to matchup up with Denver. They have the double bigs to contain Rudy and Randle. They have elite perimeter defenders in Dort and Caruso to make things tough on Ant and Jaden. They have a foul merchant to back us off and not let us play physical defense. They have a bench with every bit as much shooting as ours. I don’t think it is a given that OKC beats us, but I also don’t think it is a given that we beat OKC. Denver on the other hand is a great matchup for us and terrible for them. They lack elite on ball defense, Gordon and MPJ might not be 100%, Ant loves guarding Murray, and we play the best defense against Jokic of anyone in the league. I think we win that in 5 or 6 and hang our first Conference Championship banner. That said, I also suspect that we have an edge over NYK and a big edge over Indy and could put up a much better banner instead.

P.S. Very glad our next game is Tuesday instead of Sunday. 5 more days of rest will help, especially if the next series goes longer. Meanwhile OKC is in there first ever seven game series (with this group,) and Denver is in their second consecutive 7 game series. Both teams should be softened up for us, if we can just come out hungry and eager instead of lazy and sloppy.

Agree. I think if we play OKC, it's going to be a slugfest. We can't turn the ball over, will need to contain them just enough, and we need everyone to step up with score 120+ points. I don't know I like the long rest. It didn't work for us in the last round. Everyone came back rusty in game 1

True. But we stayed mostly healthy, and Curry didn’t. Rest is important to maintaining health. Also you saw GSW struggle in the 2nd half just like LAL. That extra rest might translate to a disadvantage in game 1, but an overall advantage in the series.


As much as Wolves/Knicks finals would be full circle and fun, I was wondering if we prefer Indy. They haven’t beaten anyone at full strength in either playoff run. They have size but are not as good defensively as NYK. During the regular season we didn’t want to play at their pace, but thus far in the playoffs we proved we can and will play at pace. Bridges and OG are both great defenders, and KAT can be when he wants to. Brunson is a tough matchup for Jaden and I worry would wear down Ant. Just early food for thought.

[KGdaBom]

OKC is quite beatable in playoffs imo...their biggest problem is that they don't have many shot creators outside Shai..you need that in playoffs. Basically any team with Jalen Williams as 2nd option is beatable in playoffs

OKC is built to matchup with us, the same way we are built to matchup up with Denver. They have the double bigs to contain Rudy and Randle. They have elite perimeter defenders in Dort and Caruso to make things tough on Ant and Jaden. They have a foul merchant to back us off and not let us play physical defense. They have a bench with every bit as much shooting as ours. I don’t think it is a given that OKC beats us, but I also don’t think it is a given that we beat OKC. Denver on the other hand is a great matchup for us and terrible for them. They lack elite on ball defense, Gordon and MPJ might not be 100%, Ant loves guarding Murray, and we play the best defense against Jokic of anyone in the league. I think we win that in 5 or 6 and hang our first Conference Championship banner. That said, I also suspect that we have an edge over NYK and a big edge over Indy and could put up a much better banner instead.

P.S. Very glad our next game is Tuesday instead of Sunday. 5 more days of rest will help, especially if the next series goes longer. Meanwhile OKC is in there first ever seven game series (with this group,) and Denver is in their second consecutive 7 game series. Both teams should be softened up for us, if we can just come out hungry and eager instead of lazy and sloppy.

Agree. I think if we play OKC, it's going to be a slugfest. We can't turn the ball over, will need to contain them just enough, and we need everyone to step up with score 120+ points. I don't know I like the long rest. It didn't work for us in the last round. Everyone came back rusty in game 1

I like the long rest. It gives all our players a great chance to heal up any bumps and bruises.

[winforlose]

OKC is built to matchup with us, the same way we are built to matchup up with Denver. They have the double bigs to contain Rudy and Randle. They have elite perimeter defenders in Dort and Caruso to make things tough on Ant and Jaden. They have a foul merchant to back us off and not let us play physical defense. They have a bench with every bit as much shooting as ours. I don’t think it is a given that OKC beats us, but I also don’t think it is a given that we beat OKC. Denver on the other hand is a great matchup for us and terrible for them. They lack elite on ball defense, Gordon and MPJ might not be 100%, Ant loves guarding Murray, and we play the best defense against Jokic of anyone in the league. I think we win that in 5 or 6 and hang our first Conference Championship banner. That said, I also suspect that we have an edge over NYK and a big edge over Indy and could put up a much better banner instead.

P.S. Very glad our next game is Tuesday instead of Sunday. 5 more days of rest will help, especially if the next series goes longer. Meanwhile OKC is in there first ever seven game series (with this group,) and Denver is in their second consecutive 7 game series. Both teams should be softened up for us, if we can just come out hungry and eager instead of lazy and sloppy.

Agree. I think if we play OKC, it's going to be a slugfest. We can't turn the ball over, will need to contain them just enough, and we need everyone to step up with score 120+ points. I don't know I like the long rest. It didn't work for us in the last round. Everyone came back rusty in game 1

I like the long rest. It gives all our players a great chance to heal up any bumps and bruises.

Gordon has hamstring issues. I thought he was grabbing at his calf (it had been an issue earlier this season,) but Twitter and Hoopshype both have it as the Hamstring. If the Nuggets can win game 7 their best Ant defender now has even more soft tissue issues with only 1 day of rest before game 1. Denver had chances to put this thing away and get more rest, this is the consequence of not doing so. Just like guys falling into KAT’s knee or Ant having the bad fall was our consequence for letting go of the rope after going up 2-0 on Denver. Not only is the rest valuable, but not having to get worn down and banged up in extra games is essential.

[Movics]

Gordon was grabbing at his hamstring right below his butt in the 4th quarter last night

[Baseline81]

I like the long rest. It gives all our players a great chance to heal up any bumps and bruises.

Personally, not a fan of the long rest. Look how poorly the squad played at home against Golden State. Hopefully, with whomever wins game 7, the Wolves will be focused. Stealing game one at an opponent's venue would set the stage.