The above picture looks like something out of a comic book. One might even think the violence Clippers punk-forward Matt Barnes visited upon the throat of T-Wolves center Greg Steimsma was even deathblow caliber. Metaphorically, maybe it was. The cheap shot Barnes took got him ejected in the game's second quarter, but it also seemed to ignite the Clip-joint and lead directly to a style of play that enabled them to strong arm their way to a 96-90 victory over the Wolves Wednesday night.
The Wolves struggled mightily in the month of January, going 3-12 and losing 10 of the month's final games. To say this month has sucked would be appropriate. Injuries have crippled the roster, those players returning from injury have seemed to stall out, and even the coach's wife has had medical problems which caused the coach great worry and absence.
Here are five things the Wolves have to do in the regular season's remaining three months to right their record and make a run at the playoffs:
1. Get Ricky Rubio a shot doctor. The Wizard of Spain's shot is not making rain. It would have been nice to see Rickety overhaul that thing he calls a perimeter shot in his 9-plus months away from action with a bum knee. A recent article on Grizzlies point-man Mike Conley illustrated the way in which Conley re-tooled his shooting motion since he first joined the NBA six years ago, redesigning it into a sturdier, more NBA-savvy weapon. Ricky's shot hasn't always been broke, and it's a credit to him that at least it's accurate when he's standing still (80% career free throw shooter). But his "jumper" looks broke, looks frail, looks unbalanced. Everybody wants to look at the upper body on a shot, but check out Ricky's feet when he launches a three. Almost always nearly touching--no balance. Set those feet apart (look at Shved's feet, a nice base), Ricky. Get up off the floor a little. Get the ball off your moptop. Stop shooting 6% from 3-point land this season.
2. Toughen up. Injuries are one thing. Being intimidated is another. I liked Steimsma not backing down against the Clippers, especially after Barnes decked him. I really liked how he defended himself when Grant Hill elbowed him in the head a couple plays later. But where are Steamer's teammates backing him up the way Caron Butler and Rony Turiaf did? I'd like to see Pek in there, forearming people out of the way. I'd like to see JJ Barea stop flopping. I'd like to see Rickety Rubio take a page out of the John Stockton Guide to Setting Nasty Little Man Screens. I'd like to see Derrick Williams stop getting dunked on by Blake Griffen. I'd like to see Andrei Kirilenko stop getting alley-ooped on in his transition defense. Cleanly and carefully, just foul the shit out of Griffin if you have to and then watch him toss briquettes from the charity stripe.
3. Don't rely on Kevin Love to save the season. He ain't back til March, and he won't be in shape til next year. For a manual on how to play without your injured star player, see the Grizzlies' performance last year without Rudy Gay in the playoffs when they knocked off the one-seed Spurs in the first round and took the Thunder to the limit in round two.
4. Derrick Williams, we might need you to snap out of it. Talk about somebody who needs to get a mean on. What I wouldn't give to be able to send him down to that mean guy's dojo (you know, the Cobra's sensei) from Karate Kid. Anyone else feel like DW just needs to want it more?
5. Tighten up the D. Hustle and defensive effort are things that should be there on a nightly basis for this team but aren't. Kirilenko seems to be the catalyst in this department, and I don't know that I've seen the fire from him recently. But even when shots aren't falling, injuries are ravaging the roster, hustle and want go a long way. To that end, play more Chris Johnson.
