The Rake Magazine

Author: Britt Robson

  • Wolves 2007-08 Season Recap, Part 1

    Note: I know I said I’d have a Wolves recap for you Monday, but with all the playoff ball consuming my time (not to mention other writing projects–my editors know what they are) I now realize I’m never going to get this done unless I break it into parts.

    So, here’s Part 1, which deals with what I wanted to hear from Kevin McHale at his season-ending press conference last week. (Please bear with the changes in typeface that may crop up because I cut and pasted some of the press conference transcription.) At least one other part will be an evaluation of each player on the roster: Both how I regard him and how I believe the Wolves’ front office regards him. Anyway, thanks for your patience. I’m also willing to kick around the playoffs, if anybody is interested, and will probably in the next couple of days set up an open thread with a bevy of impressions to get things rolling and see what happens. 

    When Timberwolves personnel veep Kevin McHale did his by-now traditional meeting with the media the day after the 2007-08 season to discuss the State of the Ballclub, his mood was decidedly more upbeat and the number of reporters he was addressing was much smaller than in recent years past. Part of the reason (for both) was that there was no buzz McHale was going to step down. The other part (again, for both) was that the bar of expectations had been set so low, especially for the immediate past and future of this ballclub.

    McHale sought to change that some with his dramatic proclamation that, barring significant injuries, the 2008-09 Wolves should improve by some 20 games, flirting with .500, if not a bottom-rung playoff spot in the ultra-competitive Western Conference. And how was this going to occur? Essentially by standing pat and letting the existing personnel get more familiar with each other.

    McHale said this two or three different ways, but just to be clear, I asked him, "Beyond the seasoning of existing personnel, what does this team need?" This is what he said:

    "It needs to come together and play. Everybody says ‘We’ve got to go and get somebody from the outside,’ [but] those guys have got to go in there and grow together as a team, establish themselves a little bit—Al has established himself—kind of, underneath that how are we going to play, our style of play, becomes more dedicated defensively in getting back; our transition defense needs a big step up. Defensively we have got to get tougher. So most of the growth I see is internally. Now in the draft we’ll get a good player in the draft, but with way it is set up we’ll get a 19, 20, 21 year old kid; if you are hanging your hopes on that coming into a man’s league….I would say that, overall, I would just say basically a little more shooting around Al, because he is going to get double-teamed and you have got to have court-spacers. But I thought Foye, when you had Foye and used Foye to enter the ball on the strong side and when you left him he made shots; that is a big part of it. Because I think Bassy was out trying [to distribute], not shooting a lot. Again I think shooting. But to me the biggest jump we are going to make is that group in there staying together and being confident."

    Asked point blank what *besides* seasoning is needed, McHale repeatedly invoked seasoning.

    There are two fundamental problems with this. Minnesota does not have a legitimate NBA center on its current roster capable of starting for a playoff contender. The other fundamental problem is that the Wolves have a glut of swingmen. You could argue–I do argue–that unless Randy Foye dramatically improves his court vision and attitude and Corey Brewer dramatic improves his strength and sinew, the team’s last three top draft picks are all best suited to play the off-guard position. And yet McHale specifically cites the two aspects of the game in which off-guards are thought to be most adept–transition defense and outside shooting–as the two largest areas where this ballclub needs to improve. 

    I understand where McHale is coming from. He’s not going to say this team needs a hardy, defensive oriented big man, because unless he’s going to reach for a player based on position more than talent in the draft, or overpay in free agency, there doesn’t look to be any way to address that weakness. By contrast, talking about the need for shooting and transition defense sets the to-do agenda for his swingman glut heading into next season. I’d have more sympathy for his hands being tied if he wasn’t the one spooling out the rope.

     

    But make no mistake: Minnesota will never be a viable playoff contender without a staunch big men to take the defensive pressure off the team’s two best players, Al Jefferson and Ryan Gomes. A steady diet of postseason games has reminded me what it takes to be an elite NBA team: A bonafide superstar, a demi-star, knowledgeable role players, and capable team defense. It is possible–not quite probable–that Jefferson is a budding superstar. Gomes is certainly a knowledgeable role player who can find a niche on most any ballclub. But put them on the court together at center and power forward and you cannot defend in a playoff-worthy manner.

     

    The numbers at 82games.com show that the Wolves allow a whopping 12.1 points per 48 minutes more when Jefferson is on the court (116 points per 48) than when he is off it (103.9 points per game). One reason for this is because opposing centers have an eFG% (which factors in three-pointers, not generally applicable to centers and power forwards) of 56.3%. By contrast, the power forwards Jefferson guarded had an eFG% of 40.3%. Unfortunately, the sample size for Jefferson at the 4 is woefully small, so we don’t know if that excellent D on eFG% would hold up; but we do know his inept defense in the pivot, where he played exponentially more minutes, overwhelms that performance. And we know that even a scorer as gifted as Big Al isn’t going to lead his team to many victories if that team is ceding 116 points per game.

     

    On to Ryan Gomes. Whereas Jefferson had a huge disparity between his minutes at center and those at power forward, Gomes, because he went to small forward not only when a center was slotted in beside Jefferson, but when Craig Smith or Antoine Walker entered the game, is shown to have played 26% of his team’s minutes at small forward and 34% of the Wolves’ time at power forward (meaning he was on the court approximately 60% of the time). Thus, his stats between the two positions are a little more reliable in comparison to each other. And again according to 82games.com, Gomes yielded an eFG% of 48.6% to the small forwards he guarded versus 54.7% to the power forwards he guarded. (His own eFG% was better at power forward–49.7% versus 48.5% at the 3–but not enough to overcome the disparity of his less effective D in the low block.)

     

    Fortunately, McHale understands this. When I asked him at last week’s press conference: "Are you comfortable, long term with Jefferson at center and Gomes at the 4?" here is what he said.

    "Well I don’t think, I think that Al is a 4-5, not a 5-4, and that Ryan is a power 3-4. Ryan gets more shots at the 4 because he can move around and all those big guys have that paint fixation. But he rebounds better at the 3, posts up better at the 3. They give you flexibility and that is a good thing. Do I want to see that 4-5 combination for 48 minutes? No. I would like to have another big guy for when Al plays the 4. Al has got to get better defensively. Randy Foye has got to get better defensively, Rashad McCants has got to get better defensively, Ryan Gomes, all those guys have to get better defensively. I like the versatility that they give you and again that is why I like bigger players that can do different things. To me Gomes may have scored more at that 4 spot, but to me he punished teams more when he was offensively rebounding and going into the post at the 3. I like that style of play. But he can play both."

     

    When I pointed out that the vast bulk of minutes wound up with Al playing center and Gomes playing power forward, McHale acknowledged: "For 25-30 games, yeah. And I thought we fell into that. They are both two-position players which are really good to have. [But] you don’t like Ryan Gomes, who works really hard, against Rasheed Wallace. What you really like him playing 4 is against Luis Scola who is sitting in the paint. But what I like is you can make one substitution and go huge or one substitution and go small."

     

    Compounding the problem is the fact that the Wolves play horrible perimeter defense, and have for as long as I can remember. It wasn’t quite as deadly when Kevin Garnett was the superstar in residence, and totally committed to the defensive end. (KG’s willpower slipped the last two seasons he was in Minnesota. I thought it was age until I saw him this season in Boston, reborn as a panther capable of hounding anyone from the three point arc to the low block.)

     

    The third and final question I asked McHale was: "For some reason perimeter defense has been a chronic defect of this franchise. Why has that happened?" His reply was: "It bothers me too. It bothered me for twelve years. For me it goes back to 7th grade basketball: If you can’t keep your man in front of you, I’m going to take you out. Don’t let him cut in front of you and keep your rear end between him and the rim. That’s as tricky as I like to make it and sometimes I think we scheme up so much we got so many schemes going on that we lose sight of that. We have got to get better at that, at containing the ball. The good teams in our league defensively contain the ball. They may have holes in other areas but they contain the ball…That is a definite, huge area of concern that we have got to work on."

    To me, that in a nutshell is why the Wolves only won 22 games this season: They played an undersized lineup where the center and power forward couldn;t effectively defend their counterpart, and they allowed perimeter players to penetrate into the paint almost at will.

  • Saturday Playoff Thread and Sunday Playoff Series Picks

    AP Photo/The Plain Dealer, Joshua Gunter

    The obvious pundit’s take on yesterday’s playoff games was that the big guys stepped up, especially LeBron, Duncan, and CP3. Here are some of the dominant impressions I came away with after plastering myself to the rocking chair and catching all of two games and the majority of two others.

    Cleveland 93, Washington 86

    Two things the Wizards should have feared–that Deshawn Stevenson’s asinine comment about LeBron being "overrated" would give him a dollop more motivation, and that Gilbert Arenas would abandon his teammates and try and match LeBron bucket for bucket in crunchtime– came to pass. That stupendous first half dunk where LeBron not only climbed the ladder but got out a special, heretofore unknown stepstool and put it on top of the ladder to reach Boobie Gibson’s too-high feed will be shown in any five-minute recap of his career. but it was the two hoops he made with the score knotted at 84 with 2:38 to play–blowing past Stevenson for a layup and then a little runner just inside the foul line–that truly demonstrates his championship-bound DNA. Arenas, meanwhile, shot 0-4 in that final 2:38 and had no desire to dish it off to one of his two very capable teammates, Antawn Jamison and, even better, Caron Butler, the guy who average 20.3 ppg for the season yet managed to squeeze off only 10 FGA yesterday, making half of them. The fact that Arenas fouled out in 27:47 doesn’t speak well for his mobility either–all the more reason to be realistic about what he can bring to the table in this series. BTW, Stevenson was 1-9 FG–isn’t that always the way with guys who talk louder than they walk in hopes of elevating themselves through pressure. Or perhaps it just doomed egotism.

    Two more quick thoughts: The Cavs, supposedly the one-man team, had an assist-to-turnover ratio of 24/8, while the Wiz, who should be distributing the rock among their plethora of scorers, went 16/13 and shot 40.2%. The matchup that really killed Washington was Z Ilgauskas (22-11-4 and a game-best plus +22 in 37:15) over Brendan Haywood (15-10-0 and five fouls in a game-worst minus -19 in 29:59).

    San Antonio 117, Phoenix 115 (2OT)

    How can anyone not regard NBA hoops as the greatest sportswatching pasttime after this classic? The Fundamental for 3 to bump it into a second overtime?!

    Okay, that’s the only blatantly obvious highlight in a bouquet of big, big plays that I’ll rhapsodize about. If you saw it, you know, and if you didn’t, there are buzz-oriented recaps available elsewhere. Odds are you can find these following pearls of wisdom repeated elsewhere too, but these are the things that stuck in my head from the latest chapter in this amazing Spurs-Suns saga.

    The Shaq trade was as much addition by subtraction as through the presence of Baby Huey Aristotle himself. I don’t know how much Amare Stoudamire actively disliked Shawn Marion as a human being, but ever since the Matrix went to Miami, Stoudamire has been unstoppable on the pick and roll, deadly pulling up for jumpers at the charity stripe, and, here’s the real dividend, invested in team play enough to become an average defender. Now I’ll grant you that Tim Duncan clearly dislikes having Shaq on his back in the low block, but let’s also be clear how little Shaq had to do with Phoenix being up 43-27 in the first 17 minutes–he had zero points, one rebound and three fouls in about 5 minutes of play. No, it was Nash-to-Amare (5 dimes and 10 pts, respectively) and the space that threat opened up for Barbosa (9 pts) and Diaw (8 pts) that built that lead, abetted by a bunch of Spur turnovers and horrible performances at both ends of the court by Finley and Parker.

    I don’t care how often Shaq can get inside Duncan’s head (he scored 40 points anyway); he nonexistant pick-and-roll shows and abject inability to otherwise deter penetration by Ginobili and Parker cost the Suns a game they should have won. I say this as a longtime defender and admirer of Shaq. Compounding the misery for Suns fans was the presence of Kurt Thomas, doing for San Antonio exactly what Phoenix craved: Low post defense and rugged box-outs on the boards. Put Kurt Thomas on the Suns and leave both Shaq and the Matrix in Miami so Amare could run free and Phoenix might just have won this game (I qualify it only because I’m not sure the Spurs ever lose a game they *need* to have).

    I love the way the Spurs play basketball. But–and I know I am late to the party on this–I have come to detest the way they blatantly whine about every single call. Yesterday’s snit-fit was their worst display yet–no mean feat about these cry-babies. Duncan literally jumped up and down and stamped his feet on one call. Yeah, I know there was a play where he was whistled for a foul on a jumper where he obviously didn’t touch the shooter. But when he went ballistic, Bennett Salvatore literally give it a second thought, because, like the boy who cried wolf, Duncan is going to bitch whether it was a phantom foul or there’s blood on the floor. And now, increasingly, Tony Parker and the flopping Ginobili are escalating their aggravated martrydom stances. The Spurs franchise should be apprised of how much this constant bullshit detracts from the classy performance their team displays when the clock is ticking.

    Which brings me to the commentators. Mark Jackson’s pro-Shaq bias was flagrantly on display on the two quick whistles his man received. The first found Shaq swinging one of his formidable forearms aside the noggin of Oberto–Jackson claimed it should have been a non-call. TOn the second, an obvious foul where Shaq tried to draw a charge but was clearly standing inside the circle, Jackson literally said "that ain’t right" because he doesn’t agree with the circle rule! Then there was the time Shaq was whistled for a foul on Kurt Thomas and Jackson derisively called Thomas a notorious flopper–flash to the replay, showing Shaq with his forearm on Thomas’s neck, pushing Thomas’s head below Shaq’s waist.

    Now sometimes Jeff Van Gundy enabled his partner’s idiocy–demerits there. But I don’t remember JVG being so pleasantly loosey-goosey before, the opposite of his anal coaching style. When Jackson tried to give him shit about using the word "acquiesce" (that’s right, don’t get too uppity Mark), Van Gundy disbelievingly replied that he wasn’t going to dumb himself down during the broadcast. Then there was Van Gundy’s caustic rip on the 6th Man Award and his statement that he’d "rip Michael Finley’s head off" for not sliding over in rotation earlier on a three-point play in the paint. More to the point, Van Gundy was loaded with compelling insights. He identified San Antonio’s hack-a-Skinner strategy in fouling Brian Skinner, in order to squeeze another possession or two out of the end of the first half, a manuver that indeed paid off handsomely for the Spurs. And he pointed out the deeper level of defensive strategy–how San Antonio would be successful if Grant Hill was shooting a two-pointer, even if Hill hit the shot; the point being to have Finley play D in a manner that forces Hill, and not Amare, Nash or Shaq, to beat you.

    Final quick thoughts:

    One negative of the Shaq deal and the Amare emergence is less emphasis on Steve Nash distributing off the dribble. Nearly every single shot Nash hit yesterday was a crucial bucket–the guy was just brilliant–and it would behoove the Suns to let him freelance with the ball a little more frequently to throw another option into the mix–because Bruce Bowen ain’t what he used to be on defense.

    Raja Bell, on the other hand, had a superb defensive game for the first three quarters and then, like the rest of the Suns, couldn’t stop San Antonio’s penetration.

    Another tremendous coaching performance from Pops. He was dead-on when he noted that the Spurs "seemed in
    a hurry" on offense in the first half, and that Duncan trey was clearly a designed play–that takes some stones. [*Update: There are now some reports that the play wasn’t designed. The Spurs freelanced the Duncan trey!] Phoenix was 21-1 when leading heading into the final period. Thanks to Pops and the usual crunchtime crew–we didn’t even bother noting Ginobili’s game-winner until now–the Suns are 21-2 and feeling that snake bite.

    New Orleans 104, Dallas 92

    Dallas was doomed the day Mark Cuban decided Jason Kidd was worth Dasagna Diop *and* Devin Harris, never mind the two #1 picks. Without those two guys, it is much harder for the Mavs to post up and much harder to penetrate. The most revealing stat in yesterday’s game was that Dallas shot 19-56, just 34%, from *inside* the three-point arc. The extent to which the Mavs have entrusted their offense to Kidd can be seen in the fact that the other four starters *combined* for just four assists, and three of those were from Jerry Stackhouse.

    That Dirk Nowitzki and Josh Howard had one dime between them, while Erick Dampier put up just five shots, indicates imbalances all over the place. On the other side, David West had four blocks, Chris Paul four steals, Tyson Chandler as many offensive boards, 7, as any Dallas player had on the defensive board. As I said in my preview, New Orleans is longer, quicker, and the patently better team. Now Jason Terry and Stackhouse aren’t going to combine for 5-16 FG every game, and Nowitzki and Kidd are proud veterans who have seen much better days and know their window is closing with this franchise, which should make for some ferocious contests the rest of the way. But the future is in New Orleans’ court.

     

    Utah 93, Houston 82

    The outcome of this one was predictable, even if I pig-headedly predicted it the other way. Without their center (Yao) and point guard (Alston), Houston’s bench is perilously thin and green, and the Jazz took advantage. None of the Jazz starters were better than plus +5 nor Houston’s worse than minus -6, but Chuck Hayes was minus -17 in 15:36 and Carl Landry (a particular favorite of mine) was minus -12 in 11:09. By contrast, Matt Harpring was plus +19 and Kyle Korver plus +17 off the bench for Utah.

    This was a gritty game, full of sweat and elbows. Luis Scola made me feel really smart about my ROY pick by battling Carlos Boozer to a draw, and Shane Battier worked the seams and Utah’s fixation on Tracy McGrady to get a game-high 22 points with an ultra efficient 7-7 FG. But Bobby Jackson was out of his league thrust in against Deron Williams, shooting 3-15 FG and doling out just 3 assists. T-Mac was the de facto point guard for the Rockets and he concentrated on the task a tad too diligently, passing up makeable shots to "get everyone involved," especially in the first three periods. If McGrady can only muster 20 points on 21 attempts (he sank 7), the Rockets are toast unless Landry and Hayes grow up in a hurry or Alston makes a miraculous recovery that has him at full strength by Game Two.

    Houston actually led briefly in the third quarter, but I thought the game turned on a pair of treys Korver buried to turn a 2-point Jazz lead into eight during the last three minutes of the third. After that, Utah just wore the Rockets out. Few teams are better at that the one coached by Jerry Sloan. If the Rockets don’t get off the mat in the next contest, there won’t be any more basketball in Houston this postseason.

     

    Here are today’s playoff picks:

     

    Toronto (6) vs. Orlando (3)

    Pivotal points: Both teams like the long ball and the Raps are actually a little better at it, making this a potentially volatile series. Can Toronto exploit its distinct advantage at point guard (Calderon/Ford over Nelson/Arroyo) to compensate for its lack of an answer for Dwight Howard down low? How does Toronto, a team that looks so good on paper (balanced scoring, better than 2/1 assist/turnover ratio teamwide) finish only .500—a dozen games below the Magic?

    My guesses: The Magic play classic inside-outside basketball with Howard in the paint and Turkoglu and Lewis using their length to get off treys outside. Toronto can make this a series if Chris Bosh hits enough midrange J’s to bring Howard outside his defensive comfort zone, if Howard is frequently fouled and clanks at the line, and if Toronto’s bevy of long-range chuckers get reasonably warm. That will be worth a couple of games.


    My pick:     Orlando in 6.

    Philadelphia (7) vs. Detroit (2)

    Pivotal points: Is Philly just happy to be here or capable of overachieving on the momentum of its remarkable second-half push to the postseason? Conversely, will the Pistons be subconsciously taking a team who finished 19 games behind them for granted while they look ahead to Orlando and Boston? Does Flip Saunders continue to play 10 guys or shorten his bench?

    My guesses: Tayshaun Prince is Andre Iguodala’s bad dream, Chauncey Billups is one of the few point guards Andre Miller can’t post up, and Samuel Dalembert’s shot-blocking is wasted on a ballclub that excels at Saunders’ midrange, low-turnover offense. So how did Philly split four games with the Pistons this year? Dunno. But the playoffs are a different animal.

    My pick: Detroit in 4.

    Denver (8)
    vs. Los Angeles Lakers (1)

    Pivotal points: Will a team sporting Marcus Camby and Anthony Carter among its starting five ever decide to play team defense? Who matches up with Kobe Bryant? Will the Lakers play their controlled, triangle-offense game, or get suckered into a shootout?

    My guesses: Melo and AI put up gaudy individual numbers next to their team L’s as they have done much of the season. By default, the main Kobe-checkers are the chuckleheaded JR Smith and the offensively challenged Yakhouba Diawara (with a little bit of AC and maybe even Linus Kleiza also thrown into the breach), all to no avail. The Nugs will win once when the score is over a combined 240, but this colossal waste of talent won’t see the second round.

    My pick: Lakers in 5 or 6.

    Atlanta (8) vs. Boston (1)

    Pivotal points: Will Josh Smith, a poor man’s Kevin Garnett, make the most of his time in the spotlight opposite KG? Has Ray Allen been napping as third wheel to conserve energy for the postseason, or will Joe Johnson abuse him on defense? Will the Hawks be able to break 100 in this series?

    My guesses: There will be at least one monster blowout and at least one improbable Atlanta victory, maybe even in the first two games at the Garden. Expect a great series from Rajon Rondo who will outplay the more heralded Mike Bibby at both ends of the court. Johnson will go off, but so will Paul Pierce, who will make life worse for Marvin Williams, increasingly known as the guy taken ahead of Chris Paul and Deron Williams.

    My pick: Boston in 5.

     

  • 2008 NBA Honors and Saturday Series Playoff Picks

    Okay, we’ve waited until the last minute and now it’s time to roll. I still reserve the right to change my mind about Coach of the Year and MVP.

     Defensive Player of the Year

    Winner: Kevin Garnett

    Runner-Up: Rasheed Wallace

    Honorable Mention: Tyson Chandler, Kobe Bryant, Raja Bell

    Comment: The Celts phenomenal improvement with untested and proven-mediocre defenders surrounding him makes this the easiest pick of the postseason. Wallace and Chandler were both stalwarts in the paint for very good defensive units, Kobe wanted to play D a little bit more this season, and Bell has lost less than Bruce Bowen.

    Sixth Man of the Year

    Winner: Manu Ginobili

    Runner Up: Jason Terry

    Honorable Mention: Leandro Barbosa

    Comment: Ginobili was the most clutch player in the league this year and arguably the real leader of the Spurs this season. Terry and Barbosa were heads above the rest but well behind Manu.

    Most Improved Player

    Winner: Hedo Turkoglu

    Runner Up: LaMarcus Aldridge, Mike Dunleavy, Al Jefferson

    Comment: Second-year guys are *supposed* to improve, which penalizes Aldridge a bit here and gives more credit to Turkoglu, who held firm to second on the Magic’s pecking order despite the signing of Rashard Lewis. I’m not the only person who has been sneering at Dunleavy ever since he went too high in the draft–kudos to him for the perseverence. The Jefferson shout-out is not a homer call; "Big Al" assumed team leadership, played out of position all season and still finished tied for second in double-doubles.

    Rookie of the Year

    Winner: Luis Scola

    Runner Up: Al Horford

    Honorable Mention: Thaddeus Young, Kevin Durant, Al Thornton

    Comment: That Durant is favored to win this award makes as much sense as Vince Carter leading the all star voting all those years. The easiest thing in the world to do is chuck up shots for a losing team, which Durant did at an inaccurate rate (43%, 29% from 3pt). Yeah, I know Scola is 45 (actually he’ll be 28 at the end of the month), but he’s still a rookie and was incredibly vital to the Rockets’ continued surge after Yao went down. Horford make the Hawks look smart and got them into the playoffs, two things very few people expect anymore. Young was better than Durant and Thornton at being of value to his ballclub.

    Coach of the Year

    Winner: Rick Adelman

    Runner Up: Eddie Jordan

    Honorable Mention: Phil Jackson, Byron Scott, Mo Cheeks, Stan Van Gundy, Doc Rivers

    Comment: The second-toughest category behind MVP. Both Adelman and Jordan lost their top two players for extended stretches of the season–and the person considered their best player for at least 25 games–and still finished better than expected at the beginning of the year. Adelman gets the nod because it was his first season in Houston and players had to adjust to a totally different offensive scheme. The five honorable mentions are all worthy winners in another year. Dishonorable mention goes to Isiah Thomas and George Karl.

    Most Valuable Player

    Winner: Kevin Garnett

    Runner Up: Kobe Bryant

    Honorable Mention: Chris Paul, Deron Williams

    Comment: Ask me tomorrow and I’ll probably say Kobe. In fact, if it wasn’t such a cop-out, I’d give co-MVPs to Kobe and KG. I won’t feel badly if either one wins it. My bias is with Garnett, a player I covered on the beat for a dozen years, seeing the selflessness and the infectious effort everyone’s raving about now on the East Coast, up close over and over again. By contrast, I’d long disdained Kobe’s selfish mood swings and begrudged him the three rings he never truly appreciated as he vied for alpha status with Shaq.

    But Garnett has more than history to recommend him. The unprecedented improvement–and for those who justifiably cite Ray Allen, remember the squad also lost a burgeoning Al Jefferson–the establishment of a defensive identity when there wasn’t one there previously. And as for the pure numbers, KG slight decline in points and rebounds is almost totally a function of him wisely being rested back from 40 to 35 mpg to be ready for the postseason. The guy hasn’t lost anything, and has rediscovered his passion for defense, the one element of his game that had begun to leave his lifeforce the past two years in Minnesota.

    The case for Kobe? The second-best player on his team, Pau Gasol, played only 27 games with him. The third best, Andrew Bynum, played only 35. More often than not, Lamar Odom, Derek Fisher, Vlad Rad and Luke Walton provided the bulk of his supporting cast. Could KG have taken that crew to the best record in the West? This was the year Kobe grew up on the court. It was his best season in a spectacular career, and, unlike Garnett, he’s never won MVP. There is no wrong choice here.

    I don’t think New Orleans and Utah would even be in the playoffs without Paul and Williams, and Paul’s gaudy numbers plus his team’s leap forward would get him the nod in most years. But this is a special year. And with that, we’ll move on to the playoff picks…

     

    Washington (5) vs. Cleveland (4)

    Pivotal points: Can Gilbert Arenas be content with being a sporadic microwave and defer alpha status to Caron Butler and Antawn Jamison? Will Jamison’s outside shooting take Ben Wallace out of the low block (or out of the game)? Is LeBron’s back ailment enough to prevent him from being LeBron?

    My guesses: Arenas can’t control himself, and both wins and loses at least one game for the Wiz. Aside from LeBron’s penetration, the Cavs will have difficulty scoring inside, making Brendan Haywood and Jamison’s contribution on the defensive boards critical to the series (and Joe Smith an intriguing X factor). Goaded by DeShawn Stevenson calling him overrated (how stupid is that?) and his own sense of pride, LeBron rises to the occasion as best he can. It’s probably foolhardy to bet against the league’s best player in a first-round playoff series, but with all the Wizards’ injury woes, they still finished a mere two games behind the Cavs this season, and have the additional motivation of losing out twice in this budding rivalry.

    My pick: If it goes seven games, I don’t think I’d align myself against LeBron at home. But I don’t think it is going seven.  Washington in 6. 

    Phoenix (6) vs. San Antonio (3)

    Pivotal points: As always in big games involving Shaq, how will the refs call plays in the paint? If Duncan or Stoudamire get in early foul trouble, the other team benefits greatly. A first-round series vs. physical San Antonio favors Nash, who has previously played them further into the postseason after he’s suffered some wear and tear. The narrow gap between sixth men Ginobili and Barbosa widened considerably this year. Finally, Kurt Thomas has changed teams.

    My guesses: There hasn’t been a more unstoppable player in the NBA the past two months (more than Kobe or LeBron) than Amare Stoudamire. The Spurs consistently have beaten the Suns because of their nonpareil perimeter D, but with Shaq as a force and Amare freed up to roam, their inside-outside game is formidable. There has never been a more competitive first-round series, as these are two superb teams who both know their window is closing fast. Bottom line, I’ve watched Pops and Fundamental and more recently Manu and Parker come up big when it matters for so long, that I’ll have to see the stake go through their heart before I assume they’re dead.

    My pick: San Antonio in 7.

    Dallas (7) vs. New Orleans (2)

    Pivotal points: The Hornets seem to be th
    e longer and quicker team, Dallas obviously the more experienced in the postseason. Can the Mavs’ outside shooters–especially Jason Terry and Jerry Stackhouse, but also Dirk Nowitzki and Jason Kidd–score often enough to test the young New Orleans players under playoff pressure? Will Peja continue to choke in big games? And will the Mavs’ first-round loss a year ago be a plus or minus in their mental makeup?

    My guesses: I don’t understand the infatuation with the Mavs on the part of some pundits. Dallas has no answer for Tyson Chandler at either end of the court. Chris Paul is a nightmarish matchup for an aging Kidd. Meanwhile, David West is a pretty good matchup for the Mavs’ go-to guy, Nowitzki. Yeah, Dallas has a lot more playoff experience–chokes to Miami in the finals and Golden State. If Terry and Stack are "on fire"  from the perimeter they might be able to filch a game or two. But there’s no question who is the better team here.

    My pick: New Orleans in 5.

    Utah (4) vs. Houston (5)

    Pivotal points: With Rafer Alston on the shelf for the first two games, can Bobby Jackson deter Deron Williams and run the offense without looking for his own shot too much? Can Houston wear down Carlos Boozer? Which decline is more costly and less likely to be righted, Kirilenko’s overall game or McGrady’s shot selection and accuracy? Who wins the battle or two very good benches?

    My guesses: As much as Jackson can body up D-Ron, he has never been a competent floor general and could find himself in foul trouble to boot, making rook Aaron Brooks a key participant in the first few games. Losing Yao doesn’t hurt the Rockets in this series: Scola, Landry, Hayes and even Battier in certain instances are better options on Okur and Boozer than the Yao, and Mutombo can be rotated in as a change of pace in the low block. The math is pretty simple: Utah doesn’t lose at home and the injury to Alston gives the Jazz a great chance to steal at least one of the first two games on the road. All that said, I love what Rick Adelman has done with this team and consider them the most underrated ballclub in the playoffs.

    My pick: It could be Utah in 5 or 6 if they get the early jump. But my gut tells me Houston in 7.

  • Taking His Time

    Be it his folk-blues amiability or his pervasive wide-brimmed hats, Eric Bibb favors Taj Mahal. His voice is less basso and gravelly (more reminiscent of Spearhead’s Michael Franti), and his musical palette less diverse and worldly than Mahal’s ’round the globe hybrids, but Bibb is the superior songwriter. The latest evidence of this can be found on Get Onboard, his 17th disc since 1997 (!), which uses his typical template of social consciousness writ intimately personal with a dollop of religiosity (and not in the pejorative sense) and, most importantly, a guileless generosity of spirit.

    My favorite track is "River Blues," which comes equipped with strings (a cellist and another on violin and viola) and a rhythm section yet feels remarkably simple and unadorned. Bibb’s gone down to the flowing waterfront to clear his head. He’ll stay all day, watching the leaves turn gold, patiently biding the hours until the emotional fallout from the spat with his lady ebbs.

    I don’t feel like talkin’/Got nothin’ to say–please don’t preach/Sometimes we can agree to disagree/My mind’s actin’ like a screen/Don’t wanna say something unkind/I don’t mean…

    The delivery neatly conflates the temporary exasperation of the situation with the permanence of his love for her–this is a distinctively minor drama, dangerous mostly in its capacity to lose perspective, and Bibb’s water walk ensures that won’t happen. He lets it drop that the spat is over him not spending enough time with her, a theme that is picked up two songs later, in "Conversation," a vocal duet with Ruthie Foster. A delightful mixture of plaintive blues and canoodling love song, it has her stating she misses his company, him replying that he knows but they both know they need the dough he earns, her saying she doesn’t need palm trees or exotic locales, just him around. He draws up the conclusion:

    We could pack a picnic every evenin//Spread a blanket in the park/Have a picnic by the river/On a blanket in the park/Watch the sun set over Hoboken/Be back in bed before it’s dark.

    The relationship between "River Blues" and "Conversation" is artfully designed, subtle yet unmistakeable, with a message of compassion through patience and restraint that’s usually very difficult to relate without perverting the message itself. Another delicate grace note is the fact that the songs are intersected by "Deep In My Soul" and tagged by "God’s Kingdom,’ both with the theme of strength through devotion in a higher power. Now I’m not an overtly religious guy, and I certainly don’t like to be bludgeoned by how other people perceive the value of faith. And this particular gambit still won me over.

    The undercurrent running through Get Onboard contains a similar wisdom about when to double-down on your emotional (and spiritual) investment and when to be pliable. The lead track announces the refrain, "I live for the spirit I am" ("Spirit I Am" is its title) and the finale, "Stayed On Freedom,’ cribs a Civil Rights anthem which itself was adapted from a spiritual.

    With so much material to draw upon, who knows what Bibb will include in his sets this evening at the Dakota Jazz Club & Restaurant? But if you’re looking to mellow out with sustenance that’s at once spiritual, intelligent, and romantic, this is your ticket.

  • Postseason Housekeeping

    First of all, I apologize for the inactivity vis a vis On The Ball, and once again offer my kudos to my dedicated commenters who are proving perfectly capable of continuing intelligent discussion without me. That said, I owe readers a little heads up about how I’ll be handling postseason posts.

    I went to the Wolves press conference with McHale yesterday morning and will offer up my thoughts on the state of the team moving forward–but probably not until Monday. I just needed to decompress from the season a bit; plus there were three interesting music gigs in the Twin Cities, concluding tonight with Eric Bibb at the Dakota, that I felt like writing about over at my music blog, Hear Hear.

    Sometime this evening or night, I’ll post my picks for various NBA awards–I still haven’t made up my mind on MVP and Coach of the Year, two unbelievably competitive races–and do previews and picks for the playoff series that begin on Saturday. On Saturday night I’ll do my previews and picks for the playoff series that begin on Sunday. And on Monday I’ll have my Wolves’ season recap and review.

    Somewhere in the midst of all of that, I also want to take up commenter AK’s suggestion that we coordinate playoff series to view and dissect. In fairness to folks who don’t have cable, I want to say that I’ll definitely talk about and provide a forum for the network games this weekend, which are San Antonio and Phoenix on Saturday afternoon and Denver and the Lakers on Sunday afternoon. The other series I know I am catching this weekend are Houston and Utah on Saturday night and Boston and Atlanta on Sunday night. I’m still not clear how I’m going to set up shop for this playoff thread, at least initially, as you notice that I’ve also set myself up with quite a bit of writing otherwise over the weekend. But rest assured that as the field winnows and the pivotal games and series become more apparent, there will be a place here for both me and my reader/commenters to chime in and kick stuff around.

    Meanwhile, I notice that there are some discussions continuing apace beneath my past On the Ball submission. Feel free to extend it there or transfer it over to this one. And know that, for better or worse, you’ll be reading quite a bit more of my hoops reactions in the days ahead.

    Thanks for your patience and your participation.

  • Crescent City Brass

    Having already tackled the legacies of Duke Ellington and Count Basie at medium-sized band concerts at Orchestra Hall last June and August, trombonist/curator Delfeayo Marsalis returns tonight with a tribute to Louis Armstrong, and wisely decides to deploy two musicians—Nicholas Payton and Kermit Ruffins—as stand-ins for Satchmo.

    As with his paeans to Ellington and Basie, Marsalis is using seven or eight pieces and a vocalist or two to capture both the jangle and intimacy of Armstrong. His stewardship of this project seems especially appropriate, given that the Marsalis clan has become the first family of jazz in New Orleans (in the eyes of the nation if not the city), the crossroads of African, Creole, and Cuban cultures that was so vital to Armstrong’s distinctively American, iconic music and persona. Significantly, among tonight’s eight performers, only pianist Bill Charlap and local singer Charmin Michelle were not born and/or raised in the Crescent City.

    Successfully recruiting Payton was an artistic and commercial coup for the event. The 34-year old trumpeter shares Satchmo’s stolid physical stature, bold brassy tone, and even some of Armstrong’s startling originality in his improvisations. What Payton’s lacks, however, is Armstrong’s gravelly vocals and penchant for mugging melodramatically for the audience. Presumably this is where Ruffins comes in–although that probably damns him with faint praise. Ruffins is a fine trumpeter in his own right–just not in Payton’s, never mind Armstrong’s, league. His CDs on the Basin Street label have demonstrated his ability to have fun with the music, however.

    The rhythm section–bassist Reginald Veal and drummer Herlin Riley– is comprised of Marsalis family stalwarts, having played with trumpeter Wynton Marsalis for long stints extending back into the 1980s. They know their Armstrong backwards and forwards. Ditto saxophonist/clarinetist Victor Goines, who played Armstrong’s legendary Hot Five tunes alongside Wynton Marsalis at Jazz at Lincoln Center recently. Charlap is a refined and accomplished pianist, who likewise seems at his best reinterpreting classic material (a disc entitled Stardust and an entire album devoted to Leonard Bernstein are the highlights of his catalogue). I haven’t been a fan of Michelle’s work in the past, but it has been a long time since I’ve heard her.

    The promo materials promise such crowdpleasers as "West End Blues," "What A Wonderful World" and "Mack The Knife." Personally, give me that three-horn front line on vintage stuff like "Muskrat Ramble" and "Twelfth Street Rag," with Payton wailing away in brassy splendor.

    Ironically, Payton’s latest recording, Into The Blue (due out April 22 on the Nonesuch label), almost couldn’t be less like Armstrong. It features a quintet, with Payton as the only horn, and eight of the ten tunes Payton originals. Some are the songs are atmospheric and breathy, as if Payton was aping Chet Baker; some of them find Payton shadow-boxing riffs against a funky matte thrown up by his sidemen, in a manner reminiscent of some of Miles Davis’s recordings after he returned from retirement in the 80s.

    The best-known of the sidemen is keyboardist Kevin Hays, whose impeccable credentials include a long stint with Sonny Rollins and a tremendous recent turn with organist Larry Goldings on drummer Bill Stewart’s Incandescence, released this month. But Hays plays a lot of electric piano and Fender Rhodes on this outing, which further fuzzes up Payton’s soft-focus leanings. I much prefer the still reflective pieces where Hays is on acoustic, including "Drucilla" and "The Crimson Touch." And there are occasions when electric Hays does a nice job of stoking and engaging Payton, as on "Triptych" and "Fleur De Lis."

    Payton is as technically unassailable as ever, with crystal clear intonation, geometrically sound improvisations, and rhythmic precision both solo and in tandem with the rest of his ensemble. I don’t begrudge him trying new things either, although his vocal on "Blue" demonstrates why Kermit Ruffins will likely be singing most of the Armstrong parts tonight, and the in-the-pocket groove of "Nida" could have used just a tad less cowbell (seriously).

    Bassist Vincent Archer, drummer Marcus Gilmore and percussionist Daniel Sadownick round out the quintet. Into The Blue is neither a terrible disc nor one that will crack my "selected discography" of Payton’s best work. ** (Two stars out of five.)

  • Somi Preview

    The singer Somi, who will be performing at the Dakota tonight and Thursday, is like a cool glass of pink lemonade, a titch more sweet than citrus, yet still refreshingly tart on the tastebuds. Born in Illinois to parents of Rwandan and Ugandan heritage, Somi (actual name L. Kabasomi Kakoma) is a smooth cultural-musical polyglot, sinuous like Sade, with some of the breathy restraint of Cassandra Wilson, yet cognizant of the African vocal tradition of long, extended coos that gradually fade in the ether.

    Last year’s Red Soil In My Eyes, her second full-length disc, is better than her debut at showcasing her range. The opener "Ingele" is a beguiling reminder of Sade with a bossa nova pitter-patter that both singers borrowed from Astrid Gilberto. "African Lady" is a slab of Afro-beat based on a Fela tune and has his dank horn voicings. "Natural," performed as a duet with breakthrough Blue Note guitarist Lionel Loueke, may be her most impressive vocal, providing us with depth and sheen as she roams the musical scale, while the music straddles the still pool of folk and the agile improvisation of jazz. Red Soil contains some duds, of course — "Day By Day" is a compound cliché, the lyrics and the pat rhythm, and "Mbabazi" strains too hard, down to its heavy-breathing denoument. But it demonstrates that Somi is talented and able to vary the mood without a clumsy drop in quality control.

    I’d expect more jazz at the Dakota gigs, not just because it’s a jazz club, but because Somi’s current touring ensemble includes a backing trio with extensive jazz chops. Guitarist Herve Samb is a Senegalese native last at the Dakota with David Murray’s Gwo Ka Masters. Samb’s own music leans toward hip-hop inflected neo-soul, so he too is a polyglot. He’s also scheduled to perform in France later this week so I’m not positive he’ll make the Somi gigs. Pianist Toru Dodo is a Japanese native schooled at Berklee who has played with jazz heavyweights like Kenny Garrett and Benny Golson. And percussionist Daniel Moreno has gigged with George Benson and Roy Haynes, appeared on Roy Hargrove’s Rh Factor world-jazz fusion disc, and collaborated with Angolan singer-guitarist Waldemar Bastos who put on a fabulous (and obviously memorable) performance at the Walker nine years ago.

    In the past year or two, the Dakota has increasingly supplemented its jazz calendar with kindred music from New Orleans and Africa in particular, ranging from Dr. John and Irvin Mayfield to Toumani Diabate and Dee Dee Bridgewater’s Red Earth project. These next two nights with Somi have a chance to further buttress that breadth.

  • The Three Pointer: Painless #60

    AP Photo by Carlos Osorio

    Game #81, Road Game #41: Minnesota 103, Detroit 115

    Season Record: 21-60

    1. One More Smallball Razzing

    Since this will probably be my last Wolves three-pointer of the year (I’ll either do a season evaluation and/or cover the team’s press conference later this week after tomorrow’s Milwaukee tilt), it’s appropriate that I jackhammer on the anti-smallball theme one more time, eh?

    Without being a conspiracy theorist, isn’t it odd that we finally got a long look at Jefferson-Gomes-Brewer-McCants-Foye the other night (a lineup one might think would be deployed on a more regular basis, given that it best reflects the five players this organization is probably most invested in right now) and tonight had not one but two stints where Al Jefferson and Chris Richard actually were allowed to play on the floor together? Now, granted, the first one was just 3:16 in the second period and the second only a tad longer at 3:33 in the fourth, which is hardly a large sample. But lo and behold, how did the Wolves and Jefferson fare in that combined 6:49?

    How about plus +9, factored out at plus +1 in the first half stint and plus +8 in the second half one. If you go plus +9 in 6:49 of a 12-point loss, that means the Wolves were a miserable minus -21 in the 41:11 Jefferson and Richard didn’t play together. Here’s another interesting stat: On a night when Jefferson labored hard to get his 30 points, shooting 12-26 FG, he was 4-5 FG during his time with Richard, and thus 8-21 FG without Richard. What makes this even more skewed is that Richard had a case of the dropsies tonight; he flubbed an easy slam opportunity on a pick and roll, frittered away a basic feed into the post, and couldn’t even retain possession of a rebounded free throw in the final period. Imagine Al Jefferson playing beside a center who could not only hang on to the rock a little bit, but stick a 12-footer just often enough to deter those double-teams. Imagine Ryan Gomes guarding Tayshaun Prince instead of Rasheed Wallace.

    2. The Foye-McCants Redundancy

    It is quite possible that Randy Foye and Rashad McCants can find a way to co-exist in the same backcourt, especially if they realize it is the only way they both get regular rotation minutes. But in a very fundamental way, they really do have a lot of overlap in their respective games. Neither one of them is really a point guard, in that point guards are working for a seamless blend and a synergistic ensemble above all else–they are the Anthony Hopkins or Gene Hackman of hoops, capable of greatness mostly in the context of their character role. Foye and Shaddy are more like Jack Nicholson, the shooting guard of actors, a guy who is essentially himself regardless of what role he plays, a guy who elevates the ensemble by being a shining star, not a blender.

    Everybody knows this about McCants, of course. Tonight he got up 17 shots (making 8, with 2-7 from 3pt range) in 30:30, and received a technical foul for banging into Rodney Stuckey heading back up the court after executing a spectacular dunk that facialed both Jason Maxiell and Amir Johnson in the 4th quarter. Foye is a little less obvious, especially if you just read his stat line in the box score instead of watching him operate an offense. Tonight, for example, he had an impressive 9/1 assist-to-turnover ratio. But what the stats don’t show is after he nailed a jumper midway through the first period for his initial points of the night, he waited three seconds on the team’s next possession to give himself a heat check and try to stick another. Later that same period, he stepped back and made a trey for his second bucket of the night. Eight seconds into the team’s very next offensive possession, he launched another trey–heat check #2 (both heat checks missed).

    On a slightly more macro level, Foye very much buys into his 4th quarter mythology. Tonight, he was 4-7 FG with 4 assists after three periods. But in the final 12 minutes, he launched as many shots as he had in the first three quarters (going 2-7 FG) and doled out even more assists (5, versus zero turnovers). In other words, Foye’s governance of the offense was much more pronounced in the 4th quarter, in ways that were both good and bad.

    There are worse things than two Jack Nicholsons, of course, and by that I mean that both Foye and McCants have undeniable talent. Er, offensive talent, anyway. Neither one seems to be able to play a lick of defense. Randy Wittman has loosened the reins a little bit these past couple weeks, which has certainly made the games more entertaining in the sense of showmanship and skill-rendering, but in the process the Wolves are yielding a whopping 112 points per game during the month of April, and it starts on the perimeter. Tonight, both Chauncey Billups and Ronnie Stuckey could get pretty much anywhere they wanted off the dribble, and Shaddy’s defense was equally porous and lackadaisical.

    Getting a quality point guard would be a boon for this ballclub in more ways than one. It would shake up the pecking order and compel both Foye and McCants to redefine their styles and priorities. It would also nice to see Jefferson, Foye and McCants all benefit from a slick passer with good court vision who, unlike Mr. Telfair, could keep opponents honest with an accurate jumper and/or an ability to finish at the hole as well.

    3. Snyder and Brewer Are Not Redundant

    The largest stylstic difference the past few games has been when Brewer and Snyder have subbed in for one another. Even as Snyder’s defense has become more sporadic, he has gotten to the rim off the dribble more consistently than any of the swingmen or back court players on the roster. Brewer, on the other hand, is thankfully concentrating on defense and rebounding once more and letting the shots come to him by accident–he was an efficient 4-5 FG in 24:46 tonight as a result.

    The biggest similarity between the two small forwards is they both are anxious to exploit opponents in transition and are much less effective when the pace is slow and the offense bogs down in the half court. On the odd chance that Snyder is still around next year, it might be good to see them playing together on a quintet that tries to play three-quarter court traps and just generally pressures the ball. Of course that’s best utilized when you have a shot-blocker to help clean up the gambles of pressing, which brings us back to square one (or at least point one) and the need for a pivot man to prevent small ball from becoming the fallback position.

  • The Three Pointer: The Last, Best Weekend

    AP Photo by Nikki Boertman

    Game #79, Road Game #39: Minnesota 102, Orlando 101

    Game #80, Road Game #40, Minnesota 114, Memphis 105

    Season Record: 21-59

    1. Wanting It More

    It does not significantly diminish the two wins posted this weekend by the Timberwolves by pointing out that neither Orlando nor Memphis bothered to be particularly resilient or really dedicate themselves to "the old college try." The Magic have a #3 seed in the east sewn up and didn’t seem especially distraught about allowing the Wolves to overcome a 9-point deficit in the final 4:23 of the game. The Grizzlies rested outside sniper Mike Miller (bad back) and benched their top two centers, Darko Milicic and Jason Collins (each DNP-CD) to get a longer look at the small (6-9) youngster Andre Brown in the pivot. Such are the vagaries of late-season hoops. Consider that the previous two years, the Wolves themselves bent over backwards to move the clicker upwards in the loss column.

    By contrast, the Wolves weathered a blistering 3-point shooting performance by Orlando in the first half and overcame the Magic with a balanced scoring (abetted by riding their most highly-touted quintet of the future at crunchtime) and more diligent defense; then blew Memphis out with a franchise-record 43-point first quarter and their most dominating performance of the season on the boards. What these things have in common–the resilience, the ball movement, the rebounds, the defense–is an abiding desire to win. It has been awhile since this team was demonstrably hungier than its opponent for two successive games.

    Let’s focus in on the pivotal movements of both games. After playing cat-and-mouse with the Wolves with a lead that fluctuated from 4 to 14 since the first 90 seconds of the game, Orlando and Minnesota each made key substitutions with 8:18 to go and the Magic up 5, 91-86. For Minnesota, it was Al Jefferson in for Chris Richard, giving the Wolves a lineup that includes their last three first-round picks–McCants, Foye, Brewer–and arguably their top two players this season, Jefferson and Gomes. Somewhat remarkably, despite the frequency with which the Wolves play smallball, this particular quintet does not even rank among the top 20 most-frequent five-man units this season for Minnesota (according to 82games.com), which means it hadn’t even mustered 36 minutes up this point.

    Well, for the final 8:18 they stayed intact, and the result was a 16-10 margin, including 12-2 over that last 4:23. A primary reason for this disparity was Stan Van Gundy’s decision to sub in Jameer Nelson for Carlos Arroyo instead of Keyon Dooling, giving the Foye-McCants backcourt a substantial physical mismatch versus Nelson (6-1, 190) and Dooling (6-3, 195)–especially when you consider that the Magic flank the beastly Dwight Howard with a pair of 6-10 swingmen (Rashard Lewis and Hedo Turkoglu) and throw the 6-5, 220 Maurice Evans in the backcourt as starters.

    Consequently, the Wolves were able to rally despite zero field goals from Jefferson, who went 0-4 from the floor while the rest of his teammates registered 10-18, including 4-4 from beyond the arc, two apiece by Foye and McCants, who played together over the last 17 minutes. For that matter, Foye played the entire second half, and all but 34 seconds of the entire last three periods, leading the team in points (25, on 10-21 FG) and assists (6). With Jefferson otherwise engaged with the giant speciment named Howard, Foye went off for a dozen 4th quarter points, McCants added 8–but more significantly, hit a vital crunchtime trey to bring the Wolves to within a point with 1:17 left to play. This was right after the Wolves looked doomed by a sequence where Ryan Gomes clanked a wide open jumper and Turkoglu drove the left lane for a layup. It was also the last field goal of the game. The Wolves’ defense clamped down, the Magic, worried about Howard getting fouled and missing free throws, chose to have Dooling and Turkoglu miss out side jumpers, and the game came down to a scrum where the Wolves battled for an offensive rebound that eventually fell to Gomes. Howard fouled him with 2 seconds on the clock. Whatever Gomes’s difficulties with jumpers with the game on the line, he’s money from the free throw stripe–swish, and swish. Ballgame, Minnesota.

    Still riding the high of their first road victory of the season against an Eastern Conference team, the Wolves ensured that there would be no drama in the game against the Grizz. They purely and simply blew out Memphis in the first period, led by Kirk Snyder, whose four turnovers and minus -14 in less than 25 minutes of play against Orlando stood in stark contrast to Corey Brewer’s fine outing. Against Memphis, he went hard to the hole, scoring nine points on a putback layup, dunk, and a driving layup, plus three FTs. Meanwhile, the Wolves doubled up the Grizzlies (who made the smallball Minnesota squad look rather large with their pipsqueak lineup) on the boards, 20-10. That set the tone, which had the Wolves racking up a monstrous 21 *offensive* rebounds in the first three periods alone, finishing with 62 boards overall. Four players–Jefferson, Gomes, Snyder and Brewer, had double-digit rebounding totals. McCants was again a deadeye from outside. The final 9-point margin really wasn’t that close.

    2. The Return of Corey Brewer

    How long has it been since you were excited about Brewer’s NBA future–a month? Six weeks? I daresay the same might be said of Brewer’s own outlook. But, as will probably always be the case with Brewer, he rekindled his nearly snuffed confidence with defense on Friday, particularly in the final 6:58 of the second period. It started with a steal of Arroyo and floor length drive culminating in two free throws. Then he went high flying sidewise to block Arroyo’s open court layup attempt a few minutes later, stuck a jumper after that, and filched the ball from Howard and generated another layup in the final minute of the period. Bottom line, in the second quarter alone, Brewer had 8 points, 4 boards (two offensive), two steals and a block. No doubt it helped that he and his former Gator college teammate Richard both had dozens of friends in the stands down in Florida. In any event, shaking off all those weeks of bad ju ju, he carried over the old Brewer hustle into the Grizzlies game and racked up 11 rebounds to give him 20 in less than 52 minutes of play his last two contests, along with four steals. Yes, he can get overamped–he fouled out against Memphis and had moments versus Orlando where he was ball-dogging a player who wasn’t his man–but when that enthusiasm is productive, he can flash back to the steals and blocks and boards rather than those hideous misses that have marred his play before then.

    3. Quick Hits

    Chris Richard also had dug his niche a little deeper as the backup center with a pair of nice games over the weekend. While it remains possible that Richard will become this year’s Bracey Wright–a kid with a flash of promise honing everything he can out of his game who just doesn’t have NBA ability in the long run–his attitude and work ethic have been a joy to behold this entire season.

    Another second-rounder who constantly works hard at refining aspects of his play–Craig Smith–has not been missed at all the past two games, which could help make some signing decisions a little easier in the off-season.

    During the trey for the Milwaukee finale, I’ll announce a couple of playoff games or series in advance that I’ll be covering along with delivering my choices for various awards, and guessing the winners of the first round matchups. If we can keep this beautiful conversation going into the postseason, I’m game.

  • Abbreviated Three-Pointer: No D in Wolves

    Game #78, Home Game #40: New Orleans 122, Minnesota 90

    Season Record: 19-59

    1. Trying to Trade Baskets

    The Minnesota Timberwolves shot 73.3% in the third quarter last night, 11-15 FG, including 3-4 from beyond the 3pt arc. The worst shooting performances were Ryan Gomes and Chris Smith at 1-2 FG; Al Jeffeson was 2-3 FG, Rashad McCants was 3-4 FG, and Marko Jaric and Kirk Snyder were each a perfect 2-2 FG. Eight of those eleven baskets were assisted, led by Gomes with three dimes.

    The Wolves were outscored 41-27.

    The front line of the New Orleans Hornets annihilated Minnesota’s frontcourt, shooting a collective 14-18 FG, including a trio of treys by Peja Stojakovic, for a collective 31 points. Chris Paul chipped in 8 points on 3-4 FG and 1-1 FT and dropped five dimes with nary a turnover. Morris Peterson went 2-3 from the free throw line to complete the scoring.

    In the fourth quarter, the Hornets cooled down a tad, shooting only 57.1% (12-21) after the blistering 77.3% of the third. Alas, Minnesota could only muster 5-20 FG, making the final a blowout 32-point loss after being a bucket down at the half.

    Asked how tough it was going up against MVP candidate Chris Paul, Randy Foye was begrudging. A lot of it is the people around him–they have great finishers," said Foye, adding, "we were stopping him."

    The operative word in that last sentence is "were." Yes, Paul failed to register a field goal in the field half, arriving with just two points (2-2 FT) and one rebound at the break. Foye, meanwhile, had exploded for 16 points in the first period, including 4-4 from three point range in his 6-7 FG overall. But Paul also had 8 assists in the first half, compared to Foye’s 2. So if we compared the two *point guards,*, Paul generated only four fewer points–his 2 points and the 16 from his eight assists–than Foye’s 22 generated points (18 scored plus 2 assists).

    And that was the first half. In the second half, Paul shot 6-7 FG, added 3-4 FT, grabbed four rebounds and again dropped 8 dimes in the half, to finish with 16 assists versus one turnover. Foye went 0-6 FG and 2-2 FT in the second half, with three assists and zero turnovers. Final line: Foye outscored Paul 20-19 but got out-assisted, 16-5. Asked about what happened in that second half, he was still begrudging, noting that "I got in a little bit of foul trouble, picked up some cheap fouls."

    Paul’s teammates may be great finishers anyway, but it helps that the frontcourt towered over Minnesota’s front line by 3, 4 and 2 inches, respectively at the center, small forward and power forward positions. That explains how five of Paul’s assists were alley oop dunks.

    2. It’s The Meat (Size) and the Motion (Penetration)

    After the game, coach Randy Wittman bemoaned the fact that his team went with the jump shot as the default position. "We need that guy who will put it on the floor," he said. "We have struggled all year getting free throws–we had 9 tonight–and we’re settling for jump shots." When Foye’s first quarter scoring explosion was mentioned, Wittman re-emphasized, "Yeah he made some jump shots but then he kind of fell in love with that…We moved the ball pretty good but we have got to look for people who will put the ball on the floor and get to the rim."

    Asked if that is the team’s biggest need, Wittman gave an answer that should be applauded for folks who are sick and tired of smallball. "No, we need to get bigger. What is prefereable?" he asked rhetorically, the penetrator or the larger bodies? "Whatever presents itself. We also need outside shooters. Al is a willing passer."

    3. McCants and Brewer

    Whatever drama may have existed between Wittman and McCants is again on the back burner, as Shaddy played 30:09 off the bench and was his usual self, leading the team in points and field goals and tying Foye for the high in FGA. Foye and McCants combined for a gaudy 9-17 in three-point shooting and yet the ballclub still got pasted by 32 points. Not coincidentally, defense has been an achilles heel for both Foye and McCants this season.

    On the other side of the ledger, Corey Brewer continues the out-of-body experience of watching his season disappear down the rabbit hole. As happens enough to be something of a pattern this season, Brewer came out and stuck his first two jumpers, including a nifty dribble-drive left, put on the brakes and nail a fade-away sequence early in the second period. But then he came down and chucked up a heat-check J on the very next possession that clanked, leading to five more misses that were lucky if they clanked. Also in the second period, Marko Jaric drove beneath the hoop and fed the rook on the baseline for about a 10-footer that he flat-out airballed, a shot so inept that the 12,000 or so people in the stands were murmuring about it for the next 15 seconds. Then there was the four footer he was gift-wrapped in the second half that barely grazed the front iron. In all seriousness, I’m not certain giving Brewer any more burn in these final four games is a good idea. Better just to let him keep practing and then proscribe an off-season diet of milkshakes, bench presses, squats and cheeseburgers along with a daily diet of about 10,000 jump shots. The boll weavils have infested his confidence and it will take a few months to clean them away.