The Official Chris Finch Thread

[Klomp]

When you are going to admit Finch has to do better? It's always this or that -- never any blame falls on the coach with you. The board nearly revolted with Saunders and yet you still backed him. Take the blue-tinted glasses off.

I don't think I've ever said that Finch doesn't have to do better. I try to take a bigger picture approach, that maybe isn't as knee-jerk as some others.

[Klomp]

Did we play the “haven’t played together” card with DLo???

https://www.spotrac.com/nba/injured-reserve/

Lots of very good players miss games.
PG AND Leonard, LeBron AND AD, KD, Booker, Middleton, Ingram, Zion

All those teams play a more cohesive game than we do.

Kats played games:
22-23: 29
21-22: 74
20-21: 50
19-20: 35

That’s a whopping 35 games per year missed (47 played) average over the last 4 years. Finchy better get real good at figuring how to coach without him. Stop molding your offense around a guy who’s available less than half the time.

It hasn't just been Towns hurt though.

It's been Towns AND Gobert
It's been Towns and Anderson
It's been Towns and Prince
It's been Towns and McLaughlin
It's been Towns and Reid

Now you can go back and point the finger at Connelly and say that this is all a direct result of Connelly's offseason trade, and that's all well and good. But I'm not necessarily convinced that reversing the trade would have made a significant difference in this situation. In fact, it easily could have been worse.

[Baseline81]

I don't think I've ever said that Finch doesn't have to do better. I try to take a bigger picture approach, that maybe isn't as knee-jerk as some others.

I honestly do not recall you saying any negative thing in regards to Finch. You've done well deflecting -- so and so is hurt, it was a back-to-back game, travel, etc.

As for your bigger picture approach, the regular season is over. The issues some of us have stated have gone on all year. Please refrain from calling them knee jerk at this point.

[Klomp]

As for your bigger picture approach, the regular season is over. The issues some of us have stated have gone on all year. Please refrain from calling them knee jerk at this point.

Building a title contender takes more than one year, unless you are in a free agent destination city or win the tanking war for an all time generational player.

[Klomp]

I don't think I've ever said that Finch doesn't have to do better. I try to take a bigger picture approach, that maybe isn't as knee-jerk as some others.

I honestly do not recall you saying any negative thing in regards to Finch. You've done well deflecting -- so and so is hurt, it was a back-to-back game, travel, etc.

Those are all real things. None of them were fabricated.

There is a very real possibility that a change will need to be made at some point in the future. I just don't think we're there yet. We are just barely one year removed from Finch getting a new contract extension.

[shrink]

What I find frustrating is that if you look at the lengths of the game threads, people post more in the losses than the wins. The importance of the last four games are magnified, starting with the Pelicans game, then the Lakers game, OKC, the all these DEN games. For us, each of these is legitimately a playoff game, and unsurprisingly for this team, we’ve gone 2-2. In the game with OKC, that literally was a one game chance to make the playoffs, people don’t have much to say. Is that because people just want to bitch? Is it because that game doesn’t match their rhetoric saying Finch, KAT or Gobert are always bad?

Now we have at least three more games against Denver. It would be a pretty big upset for any 8 seed to advance .. 93.5% of the time, the #1 seed does. Moreover, the Nuggets are fully heathy, and we’re missing two very important players in McDaniels and Naz. I expect a better showing than Game 1, but it would be foolish to expect to win this series. However, what I do expect is for some of the posters here to spend a lot of time and energy blaming their own specific scapegoats as the reason why the team didn’t win. That’s been the only consistent thing this season.

[Baseline81]

Those are all real things. None of them were fabricated.

There is a very real possibility that a change will need to be made at some point in the future. I just don't think we're there yet. We are just barely one year removed from Finch getting a new contract extension.

Those are things every coach deals with; they are not unique to Finch.

You weren't there yet with Saunders either, despite the fact the writing was clearly on the wall. You pointed to Towns' injury. Yet, in comes Finch and the team, including Edwards, who was looking as if he could bust under Saunders, improves.

There are legitimate gaps in Finch's coaching. And you look the other way on them.

[Baseline81]

What I find frustrating is that if you look at the lengths of the game threads, people post more in the losses than the wins. The importance of the last four games are magnified, starting with the Pelicans game, then the Lakers game, OKC, the all these DEN games. For us, each of these is legitimately a playoff game, and unsurprisingly for this team, we’ve gone 2-2. In the game with OKC, that literally was a one game chance to make the playoffs, people don’t have much to say. Is that because people just want to bitch? Is it because that game doesn’t match their rhetoric saying Finch, KAT or Gobert are always bad?

Now we have at least three more games against Denver. It would be a pretty big upset for any 8 seed to advance .. 93.5% of the time, the #1 seed does. Moreover, the Nuggets are fully heathy, and we’re missing two very important players in McDaniels and Naz. I expect a better showing than Game 1, but it would be foolish to expect to win this series. However, what I do expect is for some of the posters here to spend a lot of time and energy blaming their own specific scapegoats as the reason why the team didn’t win. That’s been the only consistent thing this season.

Name the posters, shrink.

Again, I've said time and time again there is no sole issue when it comes to this team. However, you have to start somewhere when a change is needed. I happen to fall on swapping Finch with another coach. And that likely is due to Gobert and Towns not being moved this offseason.

Do you honestly believe Finch has been faultless this season?

[shrink]

What I find frustrating is that if you look at the lengths of the game threads, people post more in the losses than the wins. The importance of the last four games are magnified, starting with the Pelicans game, then the Lakers game, OKC, the all these DEN games. For us, each of these is legitimately a playoff game, and unsurprisingly for this team, we’ve gone 2-2. In the game with OKC, that literally was a one game chance to make the playoffs, people don’t have much to say. Is that because people just want to bitch? Is it because that game doesn’t match their rhetoric saying Finch, KAT or Gobert are always bad?

Now we have at least three more games against Denver. It would be a pretty big upset for any 8 seed to advance .. 93.5% of the time, the #1 seed does. Moreover, the Nuggets are fully heathy, and we’re missing two very important players in McDaniels and Naz. I expect a better showing than Game 1, but it would be foolish to expect to win this series. However, what I do expect is for some of the posters here to spend a lot of time and energy blaming their own specific scapegoats as the reason why the team didn’t win. That’s been the only consistent thing this season.

Name the posters, shrink.

Again, I've said time and time again there is no sole issue when it comes to this team. However, you have to start somewhere when a change is needed. I happen to fall on swapping Finch with another coach. And that likely is due to Gobert and Towns not being moved this offseason.

Do you honestly believe Finch has been faultless this season?

No, I don’t believe he’s been faultless. Nobody has been, even people’s precious Anthony Edwards.

But I don’t believe in blaming him (or anyone) for losses, and not giving them any credit for wins.

[Battletrigger]

What I find frustrating is that if you look at the lengths of the game threads, people post more in the losses than the wins. The importance of the last four games are magnified, starting with the Pelicans game, then the Lakers game, OKC, the all these DEN games. For us, each of these is legitimately a playoff game, and unsurprisingly for this team, we’ve gone 2-2. In the game with OKC, that literally was a one game chance to make the playoffs, people don’t have much to say. Is that because people just want to bitch? Is it because that game doesn’t match their rhetoric saying Finch, KAT or Gobert are always bad?

Now we have at least three more games against Denver. It would be a pretty big upset for any 8 seed to advance .. 93.5% of the time, the #1 seed does. Moreover, the Nuggets are fully heathy, and we’re missing two very important players in McDaniels and Naz. I expect a better showing than Game 1, but it would be foolish to expect to win this series. However, what I do expect is for some of the posters here to spend a lot of time and energy blaming their own specific scapegoats as the reason why the team didn’t win. That’s been the only consistent thing this season.

Name the posters, shrink.

Again, I've said time and time again there is no sole issue when it comes to this team. However, you have to start somewhere when a change is needed. I happen to fall on swapping Finch with another coach. And that likely is due to Gobert and Towns not being moved this offseason.

Do you honestly believe Finch has been faultless this season?

At this point I prefer to move Towns and Gobert than Finch.

[Klomp]

Those are all real things. None of them were fabricated.

There is a very real possibility that a change will need to be made at some point in the future. I just don't think we're there yet. We are just barely one year removed from Finch getting a new contract extension.

Those are things every coach deals with; they are not unique to Finch.

You weren't there yet with Saunders either, despite the fact the writing was clearly on the wall. You pointed to Towns' injury. Yet, in comes Finch and the team, including Edwards, who was looking as if he could bust under Saunders, improves.

There are legitimate gaps in Finch's coaching. And you look the other way on them.

No surprise that people once again question my posting style and fandom. I had to explain myself back when the coaching change was made too (see quote below from the day of the change). I've had to explain myself through the Gobert stuff, through the Ant stuff, etc.

I think that's why it was important to get him in here now. Gives him (and Rosas, by proxy) a little time to build a small resume before the ownership change. It can't get much worse than we've seen so far, and any improvement from this point to the sale will look worse for Saunders and Taylor than it does for Rosas and Finch.

Are you related to Glenn Taylor? I’ve never seen someone who has hugged Twolves decisions year after year which has led this franchise to be one of the worst one in all of sports with the exception of you. The firing of Saunders is fine...the process was horrific. Rosas, as GM, is a travesty. But just like with Thibs and every other Taylor Tree decision you can’t seem to say it can you?

I don't see the point in making my blood boil over sports. I am a fan of the Timberwolves. As such yes I try to support the moves they make. Do I agree with everything? No. Does that make my opinion automatically right and the team automatically wrong? No. I post because I'm passionate, but I also believe I'm rational enough to try to understand all sides of a situation.

[minimus]

Imagine "Fire Steve Kerr" thread:

- worst road record in regular season = doesn't motivate players enough

- allowed too much Green antics: Poole punch and Sabonis flagrant foul = doesn't control locker room

- couldn't make Wiseman an NBA player = can't develop young players

- started with two losses in playoff = can't implement gameplan

- GSW are NBA bottom team in terms of turnovers and fouls = Kerr doesn't care enough about team problems

[Domejandro]

I still maintain that Ryan Saunders wasn’t a bad coach. Dude took over an absolutely awful team and then was immediately forced to throw out his entire playbook to satiate the offensive vision of an overbearing front office. Then he had to deal with D’Angelo Russell being a malcontent in the locker room.

I think people assume that Ryan Saunders was a bad coach because he was a clear nepotism hire, but he never had a chance with that ridiculous situation.

[Neeva]

What I find frustrating is that if you look at the lengths of the game threads, people post more in the losses than the wins. The importance of the last four games are magnified, starting with the Pelicans game, then the Lakers game, OKC, the all these DEN games. For us, each of these is legitimately a playoff game, and unsurprisingly for this team, we’ve gone 2-2. In the game with OKC, that literally was a one game chance to make the playoffs, people don’t have much to say. Is that because people just want to bitch? Is it because that game doesn’t match their rhetoric saying Finch, KAT or Gobert are always bad?

Now we have at least three more games against Denver. It would be a pretty big upset for any 8 seed to advance .. 93.5% of the time, the #1 seed does. Moreover, the Nuggets are fully heathy, and we’re missing two very important players in McDaniels and Naz. I expect a better showing than Game 1, but it would be foolish to expect to win this series. However, what I do expect is for some of the posters here to spend a lot of time and energy blaming their own specific scapegoats as the reason why the team didn’t win. That’s been the only consistent thing this season.

Name the posters, shrink.

Again, I've said time and time again there is no sole issue when it comes to this team. However, you have to start somewhere when a change is needed. I happen to fall on swapping Finch with another coach. And that likely is due to Gobert and Towns not being moved this offseason.

Do you honestly believe Finch has been faultless this season?

No, I don’t believe he’s been faultless. Nobody has been, even people’s precious Anthony Edwards.

But I don’t believe in blaming him (or anyone) for losses, and not giving them any credit for wins.

Apologists love to somehow blame the “fans”.
It’s mostly the other way around here Finch gets tons of praise after wins and tons of excuse making after bad losses.

[minimus]

I still maintain that Ryan Saunders wasn’t a bad coach. Dude took over an absolutely awful team and then was immediately forced to throw out his entire playbook to satiate the offensive vision of an overbearing front office. Then he had to deal with D’Angelo Russell being a malcontent in the locker room.

I think people assume that Ryan Saunders was a bad coach because he was a clear nepotism hire, but he never had a chance with that ridiculous situation.

The only thing worse than current implementation of Twin Towers with Gobert and Towns was Rosas implementation of five-out with Graham, RoCo at wings and Napier at PG.

[minimus]

Read on Twitter

MVP appreciates MIN actions. MIN fans dont even know what these actions are, but want to fire HC who implemented them. L - logic.

[Klomp]

I still maintain that Ryan Saunders wasn’t a bad coach. Dude took over an absolutely awful team and then was immediately forced to throw out his entire playbook to satiate the offensive vision of an overbearing front office. Then he had to deal with D’Angelo Russell being a malcontent in the locker room.

I think people assume that Ryan Saunders was a bad coach because he was a clear nepotism hire, but he never had a chance with that ridiculous situation.

The only thing worse than current implementation of Twin Towers with Gobert and Towns was Rosas implementation of five-out with Graham, RoCo at wings and Napier at PG.

I get it. I do. But where I start to get annoyed with what I'll still label as knee-jerk reactions is this....

Do we really beleve that the Rosas vision included Treveon Graham as the starting wing of the future? Initial transactions for a brand new front office are very rarely the true vision a GM/POBO has for his team.

It's the beginning of executing Connelly's vision, but there are holes that will still need to be filled. These holes are exacerbated when 4 of your top 7 rotation players are injured a week before the postseason. Yes two of the four players have been playing in games but neither of them are close to 100%.

[shrink]

No, I don’t believe he’s been faultless. Nobody has been, even people’s precious Anthony Edwards.

But I don’t believe in blaming him (or anyone) for losses, and not giving them any credit for wins.

Apologists love to somehow blame the “fans”.

It’s mostly the other way around here Finch gets tons of praise after wins and tons of excuse making after bad losses.

Nah. I think people, whether they are players, coaches, GM or posters, are responsible for what they do.

From my perspective, negative Finch posts seem to outnumber positive ones at least five-to-one. Heck, look at the name of the thread we’re posting in! To me, posters give credit for wins to their favorite players, and blame losses on the coach and the players they hate.

But prove me wrong. Do you want to count the positive Finch posts in our great win vs OKC, and I’ll count the negative ones in the last game, which was a team wide collapse? Granted, I’m going to have many more posts to pick from .. which is kind of my point.

[younggunsmn]

What I find frustrating is that if you look at the lengths of the game threads, people post more in the losses than the wins. The importance of the last four games are magnified, starting with the Pelicans game, then the Lakers game, OKC, the all these DEN games. For us, each of these is legitimately a playoff game, and unsurprisingly for this team, we’ve gone 2-2. In the game with OKC, that literally was a one game chance to make the playoffs, people don’t have much to say. Is that because people just want to bitch? Is it because that game doesn’t match their rhetoric saying Finch, KAT or Gobert are always bad?

Now we have at least three more games against Denver. It would be a pretty big upset for any 8 seed to advance .. 93.5% of the time, the #1 seed does. Moreover, the Nuggets are fully heathy, and we’re missing two very important players in McDaniels and Naz. I expect a better showing than Game 1, but it would be foolish to expect to win this series. However, what I do expect is for some of the posters here to spend a lot of time and energy blaming their own specific scapegoats as the reason why the team didn’t win. That’s been the only consistent thing this season.

Welcome to life. There are always more negative things to point out than positive.
When things go badly, there are things to change and fix. When things go extremely well you just keep doing what you are doing.

Life needs both pessimists and optimists. Without people looking for flaws nothing would ever change and nothing would get better.
Without optimists people would do nothing but fight and people would not be able to push through tough times.

People point out things they don't like because they want the team to get better.
Everyone has a different version of what that looks like, and we sometimes we keep seeing the same problem over and over.
Sometimes it can look over the top.
It sounds like you would rather everyone post nothing but thumbs up emojis.
When TC made the all-in trade the stakes went way up.
Things mean more now than when we were drafting in the top 5 every single year.
Raised expectations = more frustration with failure.

I try to get in there with good things to say when the team plays well.
I try to pick out things that worked when we play badly.
Sometimes life gets in the way too.

You are getting myopic in your views lately and it's unlike the shrink I know who always wanted to squeeze out every little bit of trade value. I've heard nothing but excuses and attacks against negativity from you ever since the Gobert trade.

There is plenty of blame to go around
1. our GM took a massive risk making a historically costly trade for a player who has not made us any better
2. KAT has been here 8 years now and still has the same problems while his peers Jokic and Embiid are winning MVPs.
3. We have had massive 4th quarter offensive meltdowns consistently going back to last year's playoffs and our coach refuses to make any changes to his system and basically never calls any plays. It doesn't matter what personnel we run, result is the same.
4. Ant has not made the big leap as a playmaker yet that we all are hoping for. I believe the injuries have really hurt him over the past month, and as Jon K has alluded to, he isn't going left much anymore. He also blew a relatively easy left hand layup vs Denver.
I don't think that shoulder he fell on is healthy.

The Nuggets won 52 games this year. Many people expected 50+ wins from us too.
We are not that far apart as a 1 v 8 seed.
What happened in game 1 was a colossal embarrassment.
Our defense was actually pretty good the first 3 quarters, good enough to win the game had our offense been decent.
But our offense? 80 freaking points in 2023?

KAT was the biggest culprit. He was the focus of the offense and he consistently made bad decisions and took bad shots.
He's been here 8 years, he is the one consistent factor to the mediocrity through multiple head coaches and point guards.

Gobert also makes us easier to defend because the only thing you have to defend is the lob, which is a harder play to make than most people think. It's not something you can rely on. They're trapping any pick action involving him and we are going to need some good corner shooting to beat the way they are defending us.

NAW is playing great defense and we should keep having him chase Murray.
Unfortunately he is a poor shooter with poor form and isn't going to be able to can those corner 3's.
This is where we miss Jaden who can do both.

Denver added 2 great 3+D guys in the offseason in KCP and Brown for very little while we spent 5 1st round draft picks and 3 rotation players on Gobert. We were the 7 seed and they were they 6 seeds last year, separated by 2 games.
They've taken a step forward and we've taken a step back.
I put most of that on our GM.

Back to the topic of the thread, I'm willing to give Finch one more year because he overachieved last year and this year's roster was ill constructed for what he wants to do. But he has to be willing to change up what he is doing and be more firm with the players.

I think part of the problem with Ryan Saunders is he was too much friend and not enough authority figure.
I see Finch having respect problems too, KAT being "in his feelings" the biggest example.
I'd like to see him more assertive with the offense and the pecking order.
If these guys can't decide who gets the shots, he should decide for them.

And the big problem with his egalitarian offense is that much too often you have a less talented player like a McLaughlin, Prince, NAW, or Gobert trying to make a play. This is a big problem because a good defense is going to be able to force the shots to those players. This is why the 2nd unit offense has looked better at times with Naz and Nowell out there and Gobert off the floor as we have more consistent threats at each level.

[BlacJacMac]

Read on Twitter

MVP appreciates MIN actions. MIN fans dont even know what these actions are, but want to fire HC who implemented them. L - logic.

They blew us out in Game 1. I'm sure Jokic appreciates everything we did that game...