Should this be added to the newsfeed?

www.hoopsworld.com/Story.asp?story_id=9905

"Coach's Take" has starting 5 expected to be Jefferson, Love, Miller, Foye, and ... Carney?

Also, I guess someone has to be "Top Defensive Player"

Good find, thanks for posting.

I can't imagine there is ANY possible way that Carney starts... right? Ugh... Then again, we are the Wolves.

It just goes to show how little "national" writers know about this team.

I think it's safe to say that we've got a collection of "Wolves experts" on this board. Not necessarily because we're such stunning basketball minds, but more because of how ignorant everybody else is.

DeROK wrote:
It just goes to show how little "national" writers know about this team.

I think it's safe to say that we've got a collection of "Wolves experts" on this board. Not necessarily because we're such stunning basketball minds, but more because of how ignorant everybody else is.


No doubt, I agree. It's pretty sad sometimes how little attention some "writers" pay to the TWolves.

College Wolf wrote:
DeROK wrote:
It just goes to show how little "national" writers know about this team.

I think it's safe to say that we've got a collection of "Wolves experts" on this board. Not necessarily because we're such stunning basketball minds, but more because of how ignorant everybody else is.


No doubt, I agree. It's pretty sad sometimes how little attention some "writers" pay to the TWolves.

Carney was mentioned in a front page espn article (in conjunction with the Brand trade) and the Gomes signing was not. Which means half the sports writers know more about Carney being on the wolves than Gomes.

pants wrote:
College Wolf wrote:
DeROK wrote:
It just goes to show how little "national" writers know about this team.

I think it's safe to say that we've got a collection of "Wolves experts" on this board. Not necessarily because we're such stunning basketball minds, but more because of how ignorant everybody else is.


No doubt, I agree. It's pretty sad sometimes how little attention some "writers" pay to the TWolves.

Carney was mentioned in a front page espn article (in conjunction with the Brand trade) and the Gomes signing was not. Which means half the sports writers know more about Carney being on the wolves than Gomes.


I KNOW!!! I noticed that as well and thought it was odd at the time, but then forgot to post about it or anything.

What a joke.

Carney aside, let's not forget the top defensive player: Al Jefferson. Ummm, what?! I love Big Al, but it ain't his defense I'm loving. His blocks/game numbers probably look good on paper to someone who didn't watch a Wolves game last year, but we all know that's an area of his game that could significantly improve. Then again, as alluded to in the original posting, someone had to be named...right?

I would have said Brewer. He's got serious deficiencies in his game, but the man worked HARD on defense. Top defensive player: Brewer. If he could just hit an open jump shot! I'm not even talking about contested jumpers. Just a wide open, set feet, spin-the-ball-so-the-seems-line-up-just-how-you-like-them jumpshot.

Hate him all you want, Marko Jaric was a very decent on the ball defender.

czaras wrote:
Hate him all you want, Marko Jaric was a very decent on the ball defender.

Everyone here at Twolves Blog became very fond of MarKo. The only thing distastefull about him is his contract.

mmaland wrote:
czaras wrote:
Hate him all you want, Marko Jaric was a very decent on the ball defender.

Everyone here at Twolves Blog became very fond of MarKo. The only thing distastefull about him is his contract.


Mmaland is correct. I specifically remember praising his effort and defense a lot last year. He was one of the best defenders on our team, to be honest. Also, he looked the best he ever had at point for the Wolves. He was a pleasant surprise.

Also, he was by far the coolest "off the court" player we had. I'll miss him.

mmaland wrote:
czaras wrote:
Hate him all you want, Marko Jaric was a very decent on the ball defender.

Everyone here at Twolves Blog became very fond of MarKo. The only thing distastefull about him is his contract.

The contract AND the the 1st round pick.

Well, I remember being a little bit harsh with him, but I would in no case consider it "hating". I was just pretty sad and dissapointed that a gifted guy with a tremendous skill set, usually wreaking havon on the international level and playing great basketball as Serbia's lead guard, for some reason never realized his potential in the NBA ... and especially on my favorite team. I was so excited for all his potential ... no, proven ability when he was traded to the Wolves, that it really gave me the heebie-jeebies to see him becoming nothing more than ...

... a very decent on the ball defender on this stage.

BonK wrote:
www.on205th.com/2008/09/damn-adriana-lim...till-with-marko.html


Shame on that guy. I will never cheer against Marko and Adriana.

Thanks for the link!

At the end of the HoopsWorld article:

The Burning Question
Can this team develop a winning mentality? If this team doesn't expect to win, they never will. After going 22-60 it will be hard for this team to adapt that mentality if the season doesn't get off to a good start or they have a long losing streak. It's up to Randy Wittman to convince these guys that they can compete and play with the required effort every night to do so.
http://www.hoopsworld.com/Story.asp?story_id=9905

Here is an interesting technique for the coach to get his player's to learn a winning attitude from Charley Rosen's mailbag at FoxSports.com:

Russ from Brooklyn: I'm a basketball lover/student and occasional recreation coach. Truly wise coaches understand that defense and rebounding are the pillars on which a successful season rests. My question is how to most effectively "sell" this to a bunch of teenagers who are infatuated with flash, highlights and offensive exploits. I showed them a list of 25 championship teams in the NBA along with how high these teams ranked in defense and rebounding. I figured that players can dislike a coach's personality but they can't argue with facts. But it hasn't worked so far. What else can I try? — Russ, Brooklyn, N.Y.

Rosen: Sad to say, there are no charts or logic that can convince young hooplings what winning basketball is really based on. But here are some action-oriented suggestions that might possibly work.

- Devote most of your practice sessions to defensive and rebounding drills.

- Have competitive 5-on-5 half-court scrimmages with the following tweaks: the defense is awarded one point for every shot missed by the offense, one point for every blocked shot, two points for each turnover, and one point for every rebound. The offense gets one point for every basket scored and every foul-in-the-act-of-shooting, and two points for every rebound. Make the losers run line drills until their tongues drag on the floor.

Still, the only real power that a coach has is to determine who plays and who doesn't. Simply yank the guys who don't do the things you want them to do as soon after their particular misdeed as possible, and let them figure things out for themselves on the bench. Good luck.