Minnesota vs. Miami Heat: 12/30/11

1st Quarter: Timberwolves actually ended up with a decent start so far. Love highlighted it with an alley-oop from Ridnour. However, fouls and turnovers eventually took their toll and the TWolves dropped down to a score of 31-20. Many of the issues that struck the Timberwolves

Halftime: Rubio looks a bit antsy as he seems to be making incorrect reads on the Miami defense, but settled down to make some very good passes. I'm really surprised with how good the bench players, especially Anthony Randolph, are playing today. AR isn't forcing anything and is just playing within his means, albeit aggressively. Wayne Ellington has been doing a fantastic on both sides of the floor. The Timberwolves are leading 53-51. You just have to hope that the Timberwolves can stand the barrage that is sure to come.

3rd Quarter: Wolves look sloppy coming out of the first half. Ridnour hit a couple of threes, and Love is his persistent self. The Heat showed their athleticism and just overpowered the Timberwolves with their fast break and outside shooting. Battier, Haslem and Anthony keep forcing the Wolves into dumb mistakes on the offensive end. The Wolves are down 82-75.

Post Game: Rubio was pressed really hard by the Heat, but still managed to find the open man. The shooters of the team are hitting all the open shots, and Randolph's monster block helped the Wolves stay in it. LeBron is having a monster game as usual. Dwayne Wade is absolutely cold blooded as he just seems to make everything in the 4th quarter. Wayne Ellington saw a lot of shots late in the game, and couldn't convert them. Overall, was a fantastic game by the Wolves against a very, very talented team.

Game Review: Minnesota vs. Milwaukee Bucks 12/27/11

Halftime: That was the ugliest first half I have seen in a while. Every aspect of it was hideous. Even the referee's ought to be fired. The Wolves seemingly reverted back to last year's form and relied on Kevin Love to do everything. While the Milwaukee Bucks are a respectable team, the TWolves just seem lost without Adelman today.

Post- 3rd Quarter: If you thought the 1st half was bad, you should have seen the first few minutes of the 3rd quarter. It was arguably the most pitiful basketball I've ever seen being played at an NBA level. On a good note, Kevin Love and Luke Ridnour are going absolutely nuts on the Bucks.

Studs:


1.) Kevin Love: The rebounding champion went on an absolute tear last game, seemingly the only Timberwolves player who could remotely fundamentally play basketball at points. He set a franchise record in free throws attempted and also poured in 31 points and 20 rebounds, 9 of which were offensive. Grade: A


2.) JJ Barea: Despite getting injured late in the game, the minute guard's efforts did not go unnoticed. His slashing drives to the basket helped to pave the way for other Wolves to come in and get easy points.


3.) Luke Ridnour: The savvy veteran played with poise and helped pull the Timberwolves out of a 20 point deficit in the 3rd quarter. It was his 2-for-1 that helped jump start the Timberwolves late run. While he may be taking a lot of heat for holding back Rubio's growth, his calm, wily presence helped this young team alot. Grade: B+


Duds:


1.)Wes Johnson: Wes is quickly running out of time to justify his standing as both a starter and as a lottery draft pick. Johnson might be in Adelman's doghouse pretty soon, if he doesn't step his game and his intensity up. Grade: D


2.)Michael Beasley: Another high usage, low-efficiency gamfe for Beasley. This is exactly what most Timberwolves fans had hoped that he would grow out of and mature into an efficient, lights-out scorer that he was brought into becoming. Grade: C-


3.)Derrick Williams: Derrick maybe just a rookie, but that doesn't give him license to keep barging into opponents like their bowling pins and drawing offensive fouls. He also needs to recognize that an open 3 in the NBA is a very rare opportunity to score easy points. These easy shots must be taken advantage of. Grade: B-

Game Review: Minnesota vs. OKC

     Looks like Minnesota was definitely starving for some good basketball. With the Gophers playing a cupcake schedule and the Lynx season done, the Timberwolves were able to play in front of a sellout crowd, their first since 2007. Despite falling 104-100 to the Thunder, there was definitely an optimistic outlook for the rest of the season.

     The offense definitely looked capable of scoring at a far more efficient rate than last year. Even against a team loaded with defensive stoppers (Sefalosha, Harden, Ibaka and Perkins) the TWolves managed to pile up a 100 points. However, there are some points of concern, primarily the outside shooting of the team (3-22). This will certainly look to go up as the year progresses as the Timberwolves were among the league leaders in 3-PT percentage. It also seemed to stall whenever Ridnour was running the point. There wasn't too many forced shots during the game but they always seemed to occur with Luke running the point. It seems that it is just a matter of time before Rubio takes over from the steady veteran.

     The defense obviously still needs plenty of work, but Coach Adelman's coaching has obviously shown through. Love actually rotated on help defense and took a charge, a very rare occurrence. We happened to be playing against the likes of Durant, Westbrook and Harden who absolutely destroyed the Timberwolves. On a good note, Beasley looked like he was working his butt off trying to stay in front Durant, no matter how futile that might be.

Barea: 14 points, 2 rebounds and 2 assists in 27:06


     Barea picked up where he left off last year. He penetrated at nearly at will and had one of the plays of the game with a sky-high finger roll that just kissed the net. He also was able to pester Harden and Westbrook into committing fouls, even though they both got away with a couple of no calls. Grade: B+


Beasley: 27 points, 5 rebounds and 1 assist in 36:27


     B-Easy had a game typical of last year: High-volume, low-efficiency. However, this game was particularly inefficient, with Beasley only getting to the free throw line 3 times on 11-27 shooting. He was definitely taking some bad shots and ill-advised drives but I believe this will help in his maturation towards (hopefully) becoming the Alpha Wolf. His hard work on the defensive end versus Durant will eventually pay off, just not against the reigning scoring champ. Grade: C+


Johnson: 5 points, 1 rebound and 3 assists in 24:43


     Wesley was arguably the worst player of the game. He attempted to make plays that weren't demanded of him, i.e. the drive towards the basket and consequential turnover, and looked lost on offense. Even his defensive technique looked rusty as he seemed to rely too much on his athletic ability rather than fundamentals. Overall a very poor start. Grade: D-


Love: 22 points, 12 rebounds and 5 assists in 41:01


     The reigning Most Improved Player didn't have his greatest game, despite what the stats show, but still put together a pretty solid game on paper. He missed a couple of open shots and had Ibaka and Perkins draped over him the entire game. He did manage to go the line 12 times and even played respectable defense in the post. He must feel a bit awkward with other players actually trying to rebound the ball and all. Grade: B


Milicic: 12 points, 3 rebounds and 0 assists in 19:48


     This is the Darko Milicic that the Timberwolves need. He played fantastic defense and set the tone for the game when he knocked down Kendrick Perkins in the game. He didn't force anything that wasn't there and was surprisingly efficient on the offensive side of things. Darko unfortunately didn't play as much as usual due to early foul trouble. Grade: B+


Randolph: 2 points, 1 rebound and 0 assists in 3:20


     Randolph was the lucky recipient of a beautiful Rubio pass... and that was pretty much it. Might be the odd man out if the Timberwolves decide to go with a nine man rotation. Grade: I (Incomplete)


Ridnour: 2 points, 3 rebounds and 4 assists in 17:51


     Luke unsurprisingly played the least amount of minutes of the start 5. When he did play, the offense sputtered and stuttered, yet somehow Ridnour managed to somehow put together solid numbers. Ridnour looks like he will drop back into his traditional role as the steady backup veteran point guard once Rubio is ready to take the reins. Grade: C


Rubio: 6 points, 5 rebounds and 6 assists in 26:18


     Timberwolves fans, meet your future!! Rubio played a near flawless debut with very few mistakes. On offense he wowed the sold-out crowd with his slick passes and court vision. On defense, he appears to have solid potential, but went up against one of the best guards in Russel Westbrook. Rubio may not put up 20 points every night, but that's not his game. He will, and always be a distributor first, second and third. He might be a scorer fourth. Grade: B+


Tolliver: 0 points, 2 reboounds and 0 assists in 19:36


     This game showed how important Tolliver is to the Timberwolves. Despite not scoring 0 points, any reasonable intelligent critic/fan could tell you that Tolliver had a good game. With a major block late in the game, he no doubt established himself as the Timberwolves' glue guy. He takes charges, sets picks, and does whatever is needed to win the game. The only thing hurting him is that he missed all of his shots in the game. Grade: B


Williams: 13 points, 6 rebounds 1 assist in 23:48


     The Timberwolves' number 2 pick turned in an above-average performance yesterday. The recipient of most of Rubio's passes, Williams flashed some solid athleticism. However, he seems to slow down greatly when handling the ball and doesn't have the speed to guard small forwards. There are plenty of places for improvement, but there are also plenty of sources for optimism. Grade: B-

The Weekend Update: December 26, 2011

     The weekend before Christmas, malls are full, families are stressed, children are playing and sports are playing. This is a loaded weekend for sports in general, but particularly scarce on the Minnesota end. The Vikings just came off a 33-26 win over the similarly floundering Washington Redskins, in essence removing themselves from having the first two picks in the NFL draft. I'll put up a game recap of that as soon as I can.

     Meanwhile, the Minnesota Wild have cooled down considerably since their hot start, losing their last 6 games. They still maintain an lofty position in the standings thanks to their quick start (Yes, it was that good.) Most of the pundits and experts are attributing this to the loss of 5 forwards and both of their goaltenders being a bit rusty after coming back from injuries. But fans are growing a bit antsy after losing such a comfortable margin in such a short time.

    The Minnesota Timberwolves are coming of an undefeated preseason, a first for the time I believe. Kevin Love looks pretty content to stay in Minnesota and the team seems to be relatively focused. Of course, they have yet to experience a loss and there hasn't been any true pressure on the team yet. Also make sure you take a peek of the NBAXmas event on TV this entire afternoon and evening.

And has my Christmas present to all the readers....http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4qSlFu4cy3o

Player Overview: JJ Barea

     Jose Juan Barea: A player who's playoff antics earned him an oversized contract from the Minnesota Timberwolves hopes to improve the team significantly this year. Brought in to both help mentor rookie Ricky Rubio (try saying that ten times fast) and to help distribute the ball throughout the offense. After spending last season as the quintessential spark plug off the bench for the Dallas Mavericks Barea will look to make a bigger on the young Timberwolves. Despite his high usage rate (23.3) and lack of efficiency (ranks 10 spots below last years starter Luke Ridnour) he is arguably one of the NBA's best pick-and-roll guards. He also give new head coach Rick Adelman the option of playing a 2 PG lineup with Rubio at helms and Barea as his wingman.

     However, Barea's small stature (generously listed at 6'0, 175) and lack of defensive awareness make him a liability on the other side of the ball. While he may have outperformed his competition in the playoffs, during the regular season opposing players would average  +0.9 PER over Jose.

    On a veteran loaded team like Mavericks, the 27 year old Barea was still a relative baby. However, the Timberwolves are the NBA's youngest team, not including the three rookies they added this year, making Barea on the elder statesmen on the team. While he may not be the most efficient players and definitely overpaid, Barea will be able to make a definite impact for this young up-and-coming Timberwolves team.

Minnesota Timberwolves Preview Pt. 1

The Minnesota Timberwolves, a team which is so maligned but yet they ooze so much potential and talent that they should be a contender just from the sheer number of high draft picks they have stockpiled over the years. For many, this lockout-shortened season hasn't gotten off to the start that they would have wanted to (Kobe Bryant, Dwight Howard, LA Lakers), the Timberwolves might actually be able to use this as springboard for greater things to come. With the arrival of Spanish phenom Ricky Rubio and the drafting of Derrick Williams the Timberwolves are poised to finally do something they haven't been able to do since the Kevin Garnett era, contend. Whether for a .500 record or a playoff spot, and (for the kool-aid drinkers), a championship. But all this depends on how well new coach Rick Adelman can get a group of underachieving athletes to work together.

Next up... player overviews