December 16, 2005

Eternally Verbally, I Have Numbers, Succumb To Time Outs, In Rhyme Bouts You'll Dial 9, Just To Get A Line Out

You haven't seen anyone write on this blog about the last 3 games because we've been too busy hating our lives.

Ok, seriously? The Wolves have lost 3 games by 5 points. I'm in a tough spot here. Part of me understands that it's a long haul, and there are a lot more games left, and we're still leading the Northwest, and the team is playing better than expected.

But the other part of me wishes Kevin Garnett could make shots when absolutely needed.

OH MY GOD! BLASPHEMY!

No, I'm not saying anything, it's just that over his career, KG hasn't been the "dagger" guy that he could be. There have been incidents, sure, where KG hit the clutch shot and deflated the other team (playoffs against Sacramento in overtime, bitch WHERE?!?!!?), but the amount of misses outnumbers the makes. The facts are simple: if KG makes the last shot in those three games, the Wolves win 2 of them and send another to OT. It's too bad, because he's such a great player, but when the game comes down to one posession, the other team does a great job on keying on him and knowing it's going to go through him. It's like the "superstar" theory is working in reverse. Now, instead of forcing KG to make a pass or something and letting the other guys burn you, they just key on KG and the KNOW he's going to shoot. I mean, let's be honest here. You're not trusting a last-second shot to anyone else on this team, except maybe Wally if you need a three. And that's rare. Usually, it's going to KG, he's going to shoot, and let the chips fall where they may. I don't necessarily have a huge problem with this.... I just wish he would make more.

It's a self-fulfilling prophecy, and if you can't ride on this train, bail at the next station. KG is god, and if god wants to shoot, he shoots. That's part of being a fan of this team. You go as KG goes. It's almost fatalistic in its nature. We know the best player on the team is going to shoot the ball at the end of the game, but the other team knows it too. And you basically just hold on for dear life, because all that's going to decide the game is one shot. That's it.

Again, the reasonable part of me enjoys watching this team play (except for the village idiot who wanders onto the court and begins throwing up hook shots outside the paint. HINT: rhymes with "Coal of Bandi"), and I know that they are getting really close to being a consistently good team. They STILL have not been blown out this year, and that's huge. I like that a lot. I felt like it was going that way last night, and that was fine. I was willing to accept a blowout loss to SA. My pride ain't bigger than Tim Duncan. But I don't know, these tough losses make me feel a little ill. I feel like we're teetering between a Good Team and a Bad Team, and these losses could just shove us down the wrong path. I doubt that is true, but you never know. Reactions to losses are much more important than reactions to wins. Look at the Atlantas and Torontos of the world. If they lose a close game, they mail in the next 5. Because why even try? They came close once, and lost, so it's not even worth it. I know the Wolves aren't to that point yet, but this is a big test. Come on boys. Get some.

As far as specific analysis of this game, or the last two, I don't think so. I think if you watched the games you saw the same thing I did, and if you didn't, you saw the same thing I did. They played hard, in stretches, had offensive lapses (but very few of the defensive type), came back strong in the 4th and fell painfully short. The thing that makes me nervous is that it's a pattern now. The last 3 games have been EXACT copies of each other. And that's not good. They need to blow out an opponent, soon. Shit, Dallas coming up on Sunday, then NOOCH, but then, ahhhhhhhhhhh. Portland. Beat them by 40, and this whole thing could turn around.

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