Grading Ten T-Wolves Offseason Moves

1. Kahn Out – C

  Always felt like Kahn sort of never really had a chance at GMing the Wolves long term, not with the petulant treatment he received from the media—led by the childish antics of Bill Simmons and his dead horse-beaten KAHHHNNN! joke that wore poorly with me halfway through the first time I heard it. It always seemed ironic that Simmons’ main objection to Kahn was that he rose to the GM spot by way of an unorthodox path—journalist, salary cap expert, and lawyer rather than ballplayer.

Headier times for Kahn and Rubes.

  But isn’t that how Simmons sort of set himself apart with his fan’s perspective/self-made blogger/writer/common man approach? Isn’t his damnation of Kahn a damnation of himself? I go between liking to read Simmons because he occasionally displays an original sense of humor and getting really annoyed with his undeserved, Boston Baked Bean-centric whininess. Watching SImmons on the NBA draft telecast this year for the first time was a perfect example. He was entertaining until the Garnett/Pierce trade left the Celtics bereft, after which he pouted and louted and got called an idiot by Doc Rivers.

  I thought Kahn left the Wolves in better condition when he left than they were in when he arrived. Among his best moves were drafting and coaxing Rubio to play in Minnesota and attracting Coach Adelman. His worst moves: drafting Jonny Flynn over Steph Curry and not figuring out how to make the media like him more.

2. Flip In – B

  Always said that the downfall of the mid-2000-to-present-day Wolves began with the 2005 firing of Coach Flip Saunders. I think Flip’s a good coach who excels at strategizing offense and managing in-game substitutions and treats players how they’d like to be treated. numbskull extraordinaire.

Be funnier if we'd'a got a shooter in the Draft.

Unfortunately, players—if they’re of poor character—will take advantage of this, and I think this has happened to Flip at least twice now if you look at his tenures with the Pups and the Whizz. Man, was he saddled with some clowns, though, in D.C.—Andray Blatche and Gil Arenas and JaVale McGee, a

  Hard to say how Flip will do at the GM spot for the Wolves—I get the feeling his talents would’ve been better served if he’d have accepted the Gophers (lame) offer to coach up some college ball. There’s also the weird deal where you have an old coach who probably won’t be in the jockey seat for more than a couple years, leaving Flip as the obvious coach-in-waiting. But on the plus side, Flip’s been a boon to a mostly acarpous franchise. Fans trust him, and so does, apparently, Glen Taylor.

3. Securing Adelman – B

  Seems like Adelman was hanging by a thread by season’s end. But I wonder if some of the offseason stuff—especially the hiring of Flip and ditching of Kahn—re-attracted him. I think he genuinely likes the roster, too, and feels like his mark on Pups hoops in Minnesota has been largely…postponed, for lack of a better word. Seems like he’s the best man to coach the guys in dusty blue, black, and white, and that this next season could be much more fulfilling. And watching him coach, you can tell he still cares and knows what he’s doing. Credit management for taking it easy with Coach A, giving him plenty of leeway to deal with his wife’s health problems, and putting other organizational pieces in place that appeal to him. Two more years of Adelman would be great—three or four a treat.

4. Love at the Draft – C

  Corny. Transparent. Predictable. And I guess he didn’t bring us any damn luck, anyway. Kev’s got a long way to go to being a genuinely good dude in my book. I mean, the money that gets thrown at some of these young athletes makes it tough for them to be humble, grateful, all that. But you only get one life. You gots to pick up the requisite lessons somewhere.

  Maybe I’m too tough on Love. Hahaha…like he cares.

5. Drafting Shabazz – D

Let's see if Bazz-Man's got more tricks up his sleeve.

  I didn’t like the drafting of Shabazz Muhammad at all. Seemed like a mistake, and I was left waiting the entire draft for another move that would leave Bazz traded to some other team. But I guess he’s here to stay. And hog the ball. And go only left. And play no D. And work on his rep as a me-first brat. And make us Minnesotans forget how the shaky-ass Gophs schooled him and the Bruins in the Tourney last March.

6. Drafting Dieng – B

  I like this pick of Gorgui Dieng a lot better than the Bazz choice. Seems like he’s got a few good things going for him: played on a ’ship team at L’ville, knows how to swat shots, is a learner and a hustler and a passer, isn’t afraid of the Minnesota cold. If he has any semblance of a jump shot or hook, he’s an immediate upgrade over Stiemsma as the backup. Plus, his name means “the old one” in his native Senegalese language—which mirrors his age (23) condition as an NBA draft pick, which seems like a plus.

7. F.A. Signing of Martin – A

  My fave move of the offseason thus far. Seems like Wolves got the class of the free agent shooting guards that were available this year when they agreed to sign Kevin Martin. I like him more than JJ Redick, who plays no D, and is one-dimensional on O with his threeball. I like him more than OJ Mayo, who still seems like he’s got an offcourt problem or two in him and isn’t a proven threeballer, though he can D and is young. I like him more than Mike Dunleavy, who’s got no D and is two years older.

Pretty smooth. Pretty chic. Can he shoot?

  An added bonus is that Kev-Mart’s signed for $7 mill/yr for next four years, lot less than the $14 mill he made last season with OKC. And he’s tall for a two at 6-7. And he’s done well for Coach A in two prev stints. Let the era of Kev-Mart’s cockeyed, wrong-side-of-the-head-releasing jump shot begin. Just hope those shots go in.

8. F.A. Signing of Neon Chase – B

  This seemed like it was never in doubt—that Chase Budinger was going to end up with the Wolves rather than Milwaukee or whomever else was feigning interest in him. I’m not a firm believer in Neon Chase’s game yet, but I was encouraged by the taste he gave us last season, knee injury notwithstanding. Can light up the three and is more athletic than he looks with that neon yellow mop and invisible goatee. Would like to take a deeper look at his ability on D. Another guy that seems to want to play for Adelman bodes well for Adelman’s grip on the ship.

9. Losing Kirilenko – D

  I’m giving a D as much to Andrei himself as I am to the Wolves. Why he’d walk away from $10 mill to play for us next season seems like a bonehead move—couldn’t he still parlay free agency NEXT season into the longer term contract he’s said to be seeking THIS season? He’s 32. Next year he’ll be 33.

Don't cry, Love. Er, wait. Do.

  I liked Andrei. I think he was good for Alexey. I think he was an excellent defender and backcutter, which was good for Rubes and the entire spacing of the offense. He’s one of these guys whose efforts don’t show up in the box score always, but add to team chemistry, balance, and winning nature. Like Shane Battier. Like Steve Nash. Like KG in his dotage these days (by the way, love the Nets as a potential usurper of the Heat next year in the East). There’s a reason the Spurs are on Kirilenko’s tail.

10. Wooing Pekovic – A

  Seems like we’re well-positioned to bring back Big Pek. It’s gonna take some serious coin—could anyone have imagined such a scenario when he was buried on Kurt Rambis’s bench that first season (13 minutes, 5.5 pts, 3 rebounds per game) in 2010-11?  Good for Pek, I say. He doesn’t seem like some idiot that’s gonna blow all the money he gets. He’s more likely to reinvest it in an ice fishing house building factory.

  The guy has some deficiencies, for sure—no hops, little undersized height-wise, occasional lout on D, a bit tweak-prone when it comes to injuries—but I seriously enjoy watching him lumber into and through everyone who gets in his way down in the paint, and all with that no-nonsense demeanor. And his tattoos amuse and frighten me.