OJ Mayo Trade

[B Calrissian]

Gomes is already getting 10 more minutes than Smith. Are you going to keep saying Smith is better when his minutes drop? I can't imagine he will continue to get 20 minutes a game with the way Love and also Cardinal have been out playing him.

I think we should wait and discuss this again in a month or so.

[Worm Guts]

Gomes is already getting 10 more minutes than Smith. Are you going to keep saying Smith is better when his minutes drop? I can't imagine he will continue to get 20 minutes a game with the way Love and also Cardinal have been out playing him.

I think we should wait and discuss this again in a month or so.

What? Even if his minutes drop, that doesn't mean he's being outplayed by Gomes or Cardinal. It just means they're a better fit.
And in a month this won't be relevant. I said Smith has outplayed Gomes this season, I didn't say he'll outplay him in the future.

[B Calrissian]

But he has been outplayed by Gomes, Cardinal, and Love. Haven't you been watching the games?

[Worm Guts]

Over the course of the season? No frickin way. Maybe over the last 3 games.

[Zeitgeister]

But he has been outplayed by Gomes, Cardinal, and Love. Haven't you been watching the games?

Craig Smith shoots 50% from the floor, and he's even more effective at drawing fouls then Kevin Love is. His rebounds are down a little this year, but his assists are up a little. Craig Smith has been our 4th best player this year.

[Jonathan Watters]

I have no idea what I was thinking...

key quote because I really don't think you had any idea what you were thinking when you were inclined to spend about 20 posts and 10,000 words arguing about how the Wolves would look so promising if only they had Brook Lopez and Joakim Noah instead of Love, Miller, and Brewer. The next Andrew Bogut minus about 7 shooting percentage points and a poor man's Anderson Varejao, that's what the Wolves missed out on - who cares

And your key quote would be "who cares". "Who cares" if Kevin Love can't finish against a legitimate frontcourt and his shooting percentage is significantly lower than Lopez's - he's a better finisher because you want him to be. "Who cares" that Love and Jefferson are a disaster defensively, and that the two other suggested options would both be better fits - Love was the obvious correct choice by a large margin because you want him to be. And Corey Brewer, "who cares" if he showed very little improvement during his time this season and is remarkably behind the curve when there were literally half a dozen players drafted directly after Brewer who have proven to be more productive while retaining more upside - he was a good pick because you want him to be.

Have at it my friend, there's obviously no arguing with somebody who made their mind up before the games even started...

[Jonathan Watters]

Over the course of the season? No frickin way. Maybe over the last 3 games.

Now Craig Smith was a good pick. Please be aware that I'll be happy to admit it when it is true...

[Devilzsidewalk]

And your key quote would be "who cares". "Who cares" if Kevin Love can't finish against a legitimate frontcourt and his shooting percentage is significantly lower than Lopez's - he's a better finisher because you want him to be. "Who cares" that Love and Jefferson are a disaster defensively, and that the two other suggested options would both be better fits - Love was the obvious correct choice by a large margin because you want him to be. And Corey Brewer, "who cares" if he showed very little improvement during his time this season and is remarkably behind the curve when there were literally half a dozen players drafted directly after Brewer who have proven to be more productive while retaining more upside - he was a good pick because you want him to be.

Have at it my friend, there's obviously no arguing with somebody who made their mind up before the games even started...

do you actually think he'll shoot 40% for his career though? That'd actually take a lot of work to maintain that level of inefficiency. He's started out cold, this isn't the real Kevin Love - he's not gonna brick open jumpers and rush his shot inside for the rest of his career, he's still learning the game.

They are a disaster defensively, but that's not how the team is being built, its gonna be based on a great offense and toughness inside. They might not be shotblockers, but they can develop into a team that makes you work hard inside and limits teams to 1 shot. Also the guards are what's killing - whenever the guards step up, the team looks great. I think Love can contribute just as much with his outside shooting, rebounding and passing as Lopez can with his lesser, but still good rebounding, interior presence, and 17 footer.

Corey Brewer still has tons of work to do, but you can't say he hasn't shown any improvement - his jumper looked much improved. He's actually hitting outside shots now whereas last season he had nothing.

I don't think you're being fair to Brewer because he seems like he still has a good chance to be a starter and most of the guys behind him aren't much beyond that, and I don't think you're being fair to Love because he's had some really nice games and there's no reason to believe he's not going to be a good player and the Wolves got some extra assets in addition.

[casey]

Over the course of the season? No frickin way. Maybe over the last 3 games.

Now Craig Smith was a good pick. Please be aware that I'll be happy to admit it when it is true...

Still pisses me off that we passed on Millsap though.

[Jonathan Watters]

do you actually think he'll shoot 40% for his career though? That'd actually take a lot of work to maintain that level of inefficiency. He's started out cold, this isn't the real Kevin Love - he's not gonna brick open jumpers and rush his shot inside for the rest of his career, he's still learning the game.

If the problem was just bricking jumpers, I'd agree. He'll start knocking down jumpers. But that isn't the problem, and we both know it - the guy is a generous 6'9 and completely grounded. He can't finish around the basket against legitimate big man defenders, and while he will improve that rate over time, especially if he is willing to put in the time in the gym - you can't just hand him that improvement and say everything will be fine. He's a long ways off from 45%, and 45% is borderline unacceptable especially considering what he is giving away on the other end.

They are a disaster defensively, but that's not how the team is being built, its gonna be based on a great offense and toughness inside. They might not be shotblockers, but they can develop into a team that makes you work hard inside and limits teams to 1 shot. Also the guards are what's killing - whenever the guards step up, the team looks great. I think Love can contribute just as much with his outside shooting, rebounding and passing as Lopez can with his lesser, but still good rebounding, interior presence, and 17 footer.

Why is it that Love is going to develop into something he's not even close to right now - and that this should be taken for granted - when completely logical developments from Lopez that would turn him into a phenomenal complement to Jefferson are brushed aside?

The fact of the matter is that the Jefferson/Love frontcourt defense is an absolutely critical flaw. Take Lopez, and there is at least some light at the end of the tunnel in this very, very important area. If you say the team is being built to completely ignore this, you are essence saying that the Wolves aren't being built to win. I think we can both agree that this is the expected outcome here...

[Jonathan Watters]

Corey Brewer still has tons of work to do, but you can't say he hasn't shown any improvement - his jumper looked much improved. He's actually hitting outside shots now whereas last season he had nothing.

His shooting numbers looked very similar to what he did over the latter portions of his rookie season.

I don't think you're being fair to Brewer because he seems like he still has a good chance to be a starter and most of the guys behind him aren't much beyond that,

Brewer has a chance to be a starter. But he's light years away from being one on a team with any sort of relevance.

and I don't think you're being fair to Love because he's had some really nice games and there's no reason to believe he's not going to be a good player and the Wolves got some extra assets in addition.

Well, crazier things have happened. Maybe Al and Kevin Love figure it out and end up dominating. It would be fairly unprecedented and quite the turnaround, of course. I'm just evaluating the situation from where things are currently, and currently it doesn't look good.

[Devilzsidewalk]

you like Lopez, I do too, I just like Love more. Why? I don't know, just think he has a rare understanding of the game and that gives him a better ceiling. I know you totally disagree because of his physical limitations, I can't argue with that now, just have to see how it plays out. At any rate, this thread has run it's course for now.

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