1.They’re Going to Be Good
The Wolves have had good players in place for the last two seasons, but they’ve been taken away by injuries. Save for Chase Budinger, they’re all looking healthy as the 2013–14 season commences, and they’re going to win markedly more than they lose. Offensively, especially, this team is arguably the best on paper that the Wolves have ever had.
2.The Unique Talents of Their Best Three Players
Ricky Rubio is a passer unparalleled. Those who remember watching Larry Bird play—and the uncommon knack he had for seeing things a split second before everyone else—will enjoy Rubio’s similar sensibilities. Passing is the most undervalued skill a basketball player can possess when the name of the game is finding the open man and putting the ball in the basket. It breeds unselfishness, too, which the best teams must come to possess.
Kevin Love has shown streaks of selfishness and disloyalty and overconfidence. But he has otherworldly skill as a hustling rebounder, and in this pursuit he can be as selfish as he wants—it’ll just mean more rebounds for the Wolves. What’s more, it’s always enjoyable to watch a hustler who has a knack for getting into position and snaring missed shots against taller, meatier clods. Now, if he could just refrain from gunning too many threes and bitching at the refs instead of running down the court….
Nikola Pekovic is a beast. The way he routinely bowls over sexier-looking athletes under the hoop with his raw-boned force is a gorgeous thing. Honestly, when my 5-year-old son Archie and I visited practice earlier this month in Kato, just watching Pek take a drink at the water cooler was awe-inspiring—I saw the experience of Pek guzzling that water, tattoos rippling and sweat dripping, burn a hole in Archie’s brain. An injury-free year could mean the best season from a Wolves center in franchise history. Though Randy Breuer, Luc Longly, Felton Spencer, Rasho Nesterovic, Dean Garrett, Ervin Johnson, Mark Blount, Al Jefferson, and Sweet Darko Nesterovic don’t make for the gamest competition. Not that I was trying to disparage those guys.
3. It’s Been A Long Time Since Minnesota Had a Good Team
This will be the tenth season since the Wolves made the playoffs last. And that was a hell of a team in 2003–04. Did you realize the Wolves had the best regular season recond in the entire NBA that year? Yep, 58–24. Starting five of Sammy Cassell, Trenton Hassell, Latrell Srewell, KG, and Ervin Johnson, with Freddy Hoiberg, T-Hud, Wally, Mad Dog, and Gary Trent off the bench. Ironically, it was the last time that newly-hired for this season GM Flip Saunders spent an entire season with Minnesota—his firing halfway through the next season started the Wolves’ unraveling.
4.Nearly Every Important Player on Their Team Is Still Improving
This team really does have youth and improvement on its side. Kevin Love, Ricky Rubio, Derrick Williams, Alexey Shved, Chase Budinger, and Corey Brewer are all entering their peaks. Pekovic, JJ Barea, and Dante Cunningham are in their peaks. Only Kevin Martin are Ronny Turiaf are past their physical primes. And of the three rookies, Robbie Hummel, Gorgui Dieng, and Shabazz Muhammad, small contributions are possible. Hummel, in particular, could sneak up the Rookie of the Year charts in a weak year for rookies if Adelman carves out some playing time for him.
5.They’re Going to Surprise People
Of the national pundits, most leave the Wolves either out of the playoffs or throw them in the eighth spot. I’m telling you here that they’ll be sixth or better in the ultracompetitive Western Conference—and will win a playoff series.
Five Things that Could Propel Wolves Success
1.Coach Adelman
For Minnesota fans, please enjoy the wisest coach you’ve ever had in the cage. I think he’s got that desire, still, and I know he’s got that knowledge. He often looks like he ate some bad nachos on the bench, but a little crotchety ain’t a bad thing.
2.Fresh Legs
The youth and rested/recovered players who were injured and have returned full strength should be a definite plus over a long NBA season.
3.Familiarity
Love and Rubio spent 28 minutes together on the court in 2012-13. A full preseason together should bode well for them. Other players, such as Kevin Martin and Chase Budinger, are disciples of Adelman’s “system,” having played for him in prior stints. The more these guys play together, the better they’ll be.
4.Winning Environment
I think they’ll start off with four wins in their first six games. I think things will build from there. Winning is contagious.
5.Better D Than Anticipated
Triggered by Rubio, I think the Wolves D will surprise some. Like passing (or ballhogging), hard-nosed defense (or lazy D) is infectious. I think Rubio’s a world-class anticipator (second in NBA in steals last yr), and I think that while Pek doesn’t block a lot of shots, he wears other guys out with the chest-to-chest stuff. Corey Brewer’s no slouch. Love and D-Will look visibly more in shape, too, which should bode well for the defensive end of the court. And I can’t wait to get me some Gorgui Dieng in there to flyswat a few shots. Let’s go, Gorgui.
Five things that could undercut Wolves success
1.Nice Guy Nonsense
Like the 2010 Twins, the Wolves have a lot of good guys. When the Twinks lost Torii Hunter (oh, it still hurts!), they lost their fight. The best Wolves team in franchise history had the feisty Kevin Garnett, fearless Sam Cassell, hardnosed Trent Hassell, and coach-choker Latrell Sprewell on the roster. This is where the loss of Andrei Kirilenko to the Nets in the offseason especially stings. Other than JJ Barea and Pek, I don’t see a lot of nasty on this roster.
2.Injuries
New ones or recurrent ones could be a death knell. Looking at the injuries of last year, though, they shouldn’t affect the hurt parties too badly. Rubio’s game is less predicated on great wheels than it is on a great head. Kevin Love’s hand should be fine, especially for rebounding. Pek worries me, just because he’s so powerful and seemingly tightly strung. Like if you asked him to touch his toes, his hands might not make it past his kneecaps.
3.Defensive Softness
Yeah, we’ll miss Kirilenko here. We’ll even miss The Steamer, Greg Stiemsma. But while a lot of people think the Wolves are going to suck on D, I just don’t. Smart players don’t suck at anything. Wolves are smart.
4.Great Competition in the West
A lot of experts out there are saying that any one of six teams in the West (not including the Wolves, of course) could rep the West in the Finals. While I think that the Spurs, Clippers, and Thunder as contenders, I consider the Grizzlies, Warriors, and Rockets a step below. And I wouldn’t sleep on the Lakers or the Mavericks. This type of competition could also drive Wolves to be better, especially by season’s end.
5. Love Selfishness/Chemistry
I’m really hoping K-Love doesn’t pull that crap he did last year where he went all disloyal on Minnesota. That kind of thing kills chem. Better to ship a dip than keep that kind of garbage around. But I’m hoping Rubio and Adelman rub off on him enough to make a dif.
Five Former Wolves I’d Like to See Give Jim Peterson a Run for TV Color Commentary
1.Trent Tucker – Bring the best basketball announcer in Wolves history back, Big Fellas!
2.Sam Cassell – Guy never seemed to stop talking…wait…that could be a bad thing
3.Wally Szczerbiak – Might sound like a dip, but he always looked pretty
4.Mark Mad Dog Madsen – I’d just like to hear what he’s up to, and it would be safely G-rated
5.Trevor Winter – I played against this guy when he starred for Slayton High and he was smart as shit; holds fascinating career NBA stats of one game played: hack-a-Shaq-ing, he committed five fouls in five minutes.
Five NBA Teams That Could Win It All
Heat
Any time that a team’s won two straight ’Chips and returns an intact team, they’ve gotta be contenders, right? But I’ve read explanations from lots of pundits who, if betting, would take the field over the Heat. Count me as one of them. But I’m definitely nudged that way because I can’t stand LeBron James’ coddled persona, Dwyane Wade’s mugging, and Chris Bosh’s needless hype. Save for Shane Battier, Greg Oden’s comeback attempt, and Ray Allen’s gorgeous shooting motion, this team is just gag-inducing to me.
Spurs
Love the way that Popovich coaches in general—though he definitely choked in some of the endgame Finals decisions last season, especially in Game 6. But the system he’s installed there just seems to make the Spurs competitive year after year, no matter who they plug in. That said, Kawhi Leonard and Tony Parker look set to shine this year, along with the Spurs’ newest get, Marco Belinelli, who could be the next Manu for S.A.
Bulls
Great defense here is no secret key to the Bulls’ title hopes. Getting D-Rose back and healthy is another boon. I just like how their parts fit, the selfness nature of most of their best players, including Joakim Noah, Luol Deng, Kirk Heinrich, Mike Dunleavy, and Taj Gibson.
Clippers
The Clippers have never done shit. But that should really change this year unless all their dudes break their ACLs like all the Clippers in the Old Days used to. Doc Rivers gives them some credibility, and I see this team improving throughout the year and peaking at the right time. If the Clippers bad juju doesn’t kneecap them.
Wolves
Ah, why the hell not? This is another team that—if it stays healthy—will be on a steady ascent as the season unfolds. I think that a good coach, teamwide smarts, and positive chemistry are the ultimate weapons in this game, and I think that a variety of T-Pups are coming into their own and are ready to display unforeseen levels of skill and production.
Five NBA Teams That Should Be Relegated to the NBDL
1.Charlotte
Anyone else think that the Bobshits are just the third best basketball team in their state despite being the only pro squad? In any seven game series, the college boys over at Duke or UNC would top the Bobbers, I’d bet. Would you bet Al Jefferson and Kemba Walker over the latest McDonalds All-Americans that Coach K has put together and meticulously coached?
2.Philly
Why the Sixers have tanked it so fast is a mystery to me. Just two years ago, they won a playoff series. Obviously, the Andrew Bynum signing fouled them up last year, and why they took a chance on him was anybody’s guess. But they sure fell fast and are looking listless.
3.Boston
Boston looks like Minnesota back in 2006 when the Wolves traded away Garnett. Now it’s Boston that jettisoned KG (and Paul Pierce, and Jason Terry), and the Celtics are left with a bunch of crappy chuckers like Kris Humphries and Jordan Crawford and Brandon Bass and…I’m bored.
4.Orlando
I feel sorry for Orlando. They were tantalized by Dwight Howard, who never grew up and then complained his way out of town. Coach Jacque Vaughn has a thoroughly undermanned roster, though I hope he guides Victor Oladipo—the jazziest NBA rookie of the bunch this season—to a higher place…like maybe via a trade to Minnesota. We’d give you Derrick Williams and JJ Barea and Ronny Turiaf, I bet.
5.Phoenix
Love the choice of new coach in Jeff Honacek. Just seems like the right kind of former NBA player to be a good coach—never an outright star, but always getting the most out of his own limited skills and playing a winning style. The Phoenix players, on the other hand, bite hard. At least they shitcanned Beasley before he could give everybody the ickies.
Five Most Annoying Things About the NBA
1.The overhyping of “King” James – the commercials with him these days are just fawningly ridiculous. He's won two titles. Take the crown off, please.
2.Free Agency Speculation – Can we just watch, review, and theorize instead of speculate? I'm not going to give a shit all season long what Carmelo Anthony does once the season's over.
3.Reggie Miller, Shaq, and Chris Webber on TV. And any other ex-player who finds himself in a suit behind a desk with a microphone in front of his mouth, yet doesn’t know how to articulate anything other then rote cliche.
4.Coastal Preferential Treatment – Sicka the Knicks and ’Tics. Sicka the Lakers and Clips.
5.Fouls and substitutions and free throws. And replays. Let’s keep it moving. See hockey. See soccer. See Naismith's original rules.
Five Wishes for the NBA in 2013–14
1.That Dwight Howard would fail in Houston and people would see why.
2.That the Van Gundy Bros would start a reality show – I nominate them to succeed Adelman in Minny in two or three years, btw. Co-head coaches.
3.That the Lakers would play like playoff contenders before Kobe comes back, and then suck.
4.That NBA ticket prices were more affordable.
5.That the NBA would feature its teams over its players. The game over the dunk.
