Guest84 wrote:winforlose wrote:Guest84 wrote:
Part of the problem too is we've always been involved with embarrassing situations. Joe Smith deal, Kahn era, Butler fiasco, Saunders firing/Finch hire, etc. The losing isn't necessarily the issue but rather the franchise's goofy behavior and how they handle things. This team needs to win to break that stigma. Show that it's a completely new era of Wolves basketball that's meant to be taken seriously and that will take time.
There is truth to that. But, I gotta throw a flag on the play because of the ownership change. Literally no one is left from anything before Finch. Lore and Arod are not responsible for Glen Taylor anymore than TC is responsible for Rosas or Kahn, anymore than Finch is responsible for Thibs. Karl is still around and he just made his 4th all star game during one of his best seasons. Finch just coached the All Star team and no one was laughing at him or questioning his credentials. In fact Howls and Growls just talked about our defense possibly being the best by numbers since the late 2000 Celtics. Moreover, Finch is the guy to make the KAT/Gobert pairing one of the most profitable two man pairings in the whole league. So yes, the name Timberwolves is associated with fiasco, but the actual people behind it not so much.
P.S. TC put together a Nuggets roster that won a title last year. He is no slouch either.
Agreed...but the national media and casual fans may not view it that way. We're here following the team so we're aware but the team still has stench of the prior regime. Also, another thing to consider is we added a "cheater" as one of our new owners. I personally don't care, but again it's something the national media and casuals can attack. It's just going to take time for the team to be respected.
Arod is only a cheater in the baseball community. I am casual baseball fan (only when the Twins are good,) and I don’t especially care about his past. That is not to say you are wrong or that others won’t share that concern. Ultimately I don’t think Arod’s baseball legacy will get much coverage outside of his having been and played around champions.
I agree that the name Timberwolves has been tarnished enough that it needs to be cleansed in a spiritual fire. Being the number one seed, winning a playoff series (or more,) drafting well (Miller and Minott developing,) hitting on trades (Rudy, Mike, NAW, hopefully Monte,) and developing talent (Ant, Jaden, Naz, and JMAC,) is all a good start. Even bringing in free agents like Kyle and Taurean speaks well of us. But ultimately winning a title is how you win that respect and that gravitas. That is the mission, and I could see us completing it this year.