RealGM

The thing I disliked the most about last year team was how bad they were on the defensive end.

With the first pick, I would be happy with Wall, Turner or even Favors because of what he can bring defensively.

Who is available at the 16th and 23rd pick that would improve this team defensively while not being a liability offensively?

Well I would think Paul George could do that, he has all the tools to be a beast on defense, and on offense. Then Seraphin is extremely athletic and could be there at 23 depending on how high his stock gets after he works out.

Defensive prospects off the top of my head: Aldrich, Orton, Whiteside, Alabi, Seraphin, Varnado, Aminu, Robinson, Pondexter, Ebanks. Bradley.

The problem is one guy isn't going to fix everything, the Wolves were bad defensively at just about every position on every possession. Pondexter is someone I'd love to see as a later pick.

moss_is_1 wrote:Well I would think Paul George could do that, he has all the tools to be a beast on defense, and on offense. Then Seraphin is extremely athletic and could be there at 23 depending on how high his stock gets after he works out.

Well, I obviously agree that we should target George in the teens. For defense, I think Casper made the good point that he has the capability to be a very good man defender, but may have trouble with the bigger, stronger SF who can back him down (Melo is the poster child here). Regardless, he's too good to ignore at 16.

if we elect to draft three guys in the first, i would be down with this:

Even Turner for obvious reasons.

Stanley Robinson. The guy has Crash Wallace potential on D. A lock down defender against any Sf in the league, as well as nice potential from range.

Avery Bradley. He would be real nice in a rotation with Turner and Rubio because the blend of there size and playmaking ability mixed with his defensive skills, ability to finish and three point shooting. Actually, I think a back court with Turner and Bradley in the triangle works perfectly.

Both Robinson and Bradley can bring some great perimeter D, as well as finishing skills that we just dont have right now. even if they only come off the bench they would help the wolves tremendously.

Also moving up to grab Wes Johnson wouldn't be a bad idea.

If we keep the 3 picks it is a failure. We need to consolidate assets and bring in the 2-3 key guys we need via trade/FA/Draft.

That being said, I like your defensive guys. I have thought that Bradley would be a very good back-up triangle point guard. In that he has decent enough handles to bring it up against pressure, but his main focus is scoring and defense.

revprodeji wrote:If we keep the 3 picks it is a failure. We need to consolidate assets and bring in the 2-3 key guys we need via trade/FA/Draft.

If we just make all the picks and stand pat otherwise I think it would be a failure, but between Love, Al, Pek, Rubio, Flynn, Sessions, Brewer and Ellington, there are other assets that could be consolidated without keeping the picks being considered a failure.

This is a good draft for the Wolves. Deep at SF and PF with appropriately sized players for their positions. That's something the roster has lacked for a long time. The selection in the backcourt is pretty solid as well.

Dan's with the Wolves wrote:The thing I disliked the most about last year team was how bad they were on the defensive end.

With the first pick, I would be happy with Wall, Turner or even Favors because of what he can bring defensively.

Who is available at the 16th and 23rd pick that would improve this team defensively while not being a liability offensively?

THis is a critical topic as we head into the 2010-11 season ... we need players to be accountable for team defense. Right now, we seem to have several who feel it's not their game and merely an optional part of the game.

Some examples: Flynn is an outright disappointment. Ellington and Wilkins could play more if they chose to improve defensively - the opportunity was there and they passed. Brewer must stop flailing his long arms and start getting stops Jefferson has to show improvement - not require a center to have his back ever fricken play. Love must start rotating to help instead of staying home for a rebound. Milicic is merely average and appears good because of our other inept big men.

A couple players can make a huge difference. Turner is an example of a decent defender and there's some length in some of the big men ... that can also run the floor. Right now we are just a slow team with poor defense, and management claims it wants to run. Well, if you want to run, you have to make stops, rebound, and have players that can finish ... we can rebound, but we are horrible defensive teamd and struggle to finish (outside of some Brewer highlight dunks).