Wow

So, no Iverson, and the Wolves come out like THAT?

I just see a box score, and it's a horseshit box score.

Another Possibility

To continue with my AI speculation and idea suggestions, here's another one.

Teams involved: Toronto, Philadelphia, Minnesota

The Deal: Minnsota gets Iverson and Ivan McFarlin. Philly gets Foye, Mike James, Morris Peterson, and Pape Sow. Toronto gets Ricky Davis.

The Raptors are said to be looking for a proven scorer at either the SG or SF spot, and Ricky Davis can score - 20ppg with Minnesota last year. Philly gets a couple expiring contracts, a star in the making, and a point guard who can atleast play in a bad system. James is the shortest and least painful of the contracts the Wolves have to get rid of and probably the most likely of those contracts that Philly would cave on. I don't really know why Toronto has fallen out of love with Mo Pete or if they're less in love with Ricky Davis, but it's a possibility.

To Continue My Rant...

I know, I said I was done, but that was only after three quarters. Again in the fourth, like the start of the third, Casey watched James and Davis continually screw up and did nothing to change the team on the floor. Foye had just finished up a fairly long stint in the game - and played fairly well - so he wasn't really an option when James was struggling. But where was Hudson? I never thought I'd say this - and this marks the second time this season I've said it - but I was begging for Troy to be on the floor instead of James. His defense was horrid and he did nothing but stagnate the offense. There needed to be a change in the game for the Wolves and Casey didn't do anything.

However...

James isn't soley responsible for how badly he played because the Spurs defense really keyed in on him and made it difficult to do much with the guys they had on the floor. His shot wasn't falling, he had a tough defensive assignment, and he looked utterly confused when it came to running the teams offense. If I were the coach and was watching my point guard having a tough time, I may not have pulled him, but I would've made a substitution to change his role on the floor - like bring in Troy Hudson at the point and move James off the ball. Turn him into a catch and shooter, an outside threat, and run your offense though KG in the post. Change something so that the Spurs have to adjust to what you're doing instead of beating your head against a sharp, brick wall. Or - hey - try bringing in some guys who can run the floor, bang around on the boards, and general give you a fresh spark of energy. Say, maybe, Justin Reed? Anything to make the Spurs shift out of what they're very clearly comfortable defending.

Now, I'm obviously very upset with the lack of good, consistant basketball that Casey claims his team is playing - they're not - but there were some good things in the game last night.

Defense - When this team is playing well on defense, they're very hard to score on. They seem to communicate well and are helping eachother out. Marko and Hassell are tough on the perimiter and Blount has proved he can actually play a little D when he's in the mood. Ricky comes in flashes and Randy Foye, while showing he's still a rookie, has been fairly dependable on the defensive end of the the floor

Mark Blount - When we traded for Blount I was excited because we got rid of Kandi and got a guy who atleast looked like he tried sometimes. Then, as I watched his game over the last half of last season, I realized he was soft and really liked to shoot too much. He was getting beaten to rebounds by the likes of Earl Boykins, Spudd Webb, and Mugsy Bogues. This year however, he's looking like he really cares about rebounding and defense. I heard some stat while watching the game that over the past 5 games he and KG are combining for 4 blocks a game, with KG at 2.2 and Mark at 1.8. That's a huge help to the perimiter guys defensively. He also had 19 points, 8 rebounds, and 2 steals last night. Watching him play yesterday, I've decided that, while I'd rather have a big banger, I'm comfortable with Blount as our starting center.

Craig Smith - It seems that every time I watch a Wolves game, I'm more and more impressed with this kids game. Yes, he's young and he's made a few mistakes, but when it comes to hustle and smarts, there's no question he's one of the better in those categories on the team. That and he's built like a brick wall. Whether it was Hoiberg or Chapman that clued McHale onto this kid, it's nice to see that the team can atleast get something out of a second round draft pick.

I'm So Mad, This Can't Wait...

Dwayne Casey needs to go. He just isn't a good coach. He cannot make any kind of adjustments or manage a basketball game at all. To start the third quater, Mike James was 0-3, 3 turnovers, 1 foul, and doing his best Sam Cassell-Bull fighter defense. And he's still in the game. Ricky Davis? 0-3, a turnover, and three bad passes. Still in the game. 8 points later, he calls a timeout and his team's once 9-point lead is 1. THEN he calls a timeout. Oh, but he pulled James OR Davis right? Nope. They're still in there fucking it up. Notice how, in the second quarter Popp made some adjustments and ended the quarter on a 10-2 run? Yeah, that's what GOOD coaches do: make adjustments. Casey can't. In his time here, he's never made a good one, or called a timeout when he should have, or pulled a guy out before he killed ALL of his confidence sucking it up.

He, Mike James, and Ricky Davis need to NOT be in Wolves uniforms. Then I might have some faith in this team, but they are just plain bad at basketball.


Rant, ended.

ESPN's Trade Machine and Allen Iverson

There are few things that can eat up hours of my time like the trade machine on ESPN. I spend about half the time dreaming up completely rediculous trades that would never take place, even under the most amazing circumstances. I spend time dreaming up deals that would bring another superstar to Minnesota to play alongside KG, even if it doesn't make much sense for the other team. Of course then a deal comes around that makes me really take a good look at what could be done - in the "real world" - to obtain an available player. In this case it's Allen Iverson. Now, I realize that Jim Gray's words can no longer be trusted, but I don't believe for a minute that our owner's can either. I doubt that the guys running our organization have the brains or the balls to get a deal done to bring THE Answer to Minneapolis, but that doesn't stop me from hoping that a deal could be done - hey, blind squirrel's gotta find a nut sometime, right?

So here are a couple deals that may - or may not - be too complicated for teams to complete, but that might make sense.

Deal #1

Teams involved: Minnesota, Philadelphia, Houston

Philly wants to be rid of Iverson, we all know that.

Houston has its own coach-player drama rearing its head. Bonzi Wells and Jeff VanGundy have not kept their inability to get along a secret. Now, I know they're giving it "one more shot" but I think that's just a professional courtesy on both their parts. So, assuming that doesn't hold, the Rockets may be looking to get rid of Bonzi as well (pun intended. I'll understand if you stop reading now).

Minnesota has so many bad contracts, only the Knicks keep them from looking like the dumbest organization in the league. That said, there are a couple they could dump to grab some more start power at the very least.

The deal:

Allen Iverson goes to Minnesota. Randy Foye, Ricky Davis, Bonzi Wells, and Rafer Alston to Philly. Houston gets Mike James

Why it make sense:

Philly gets two contracts that are up in the next two years(Wells, Davis), plus a Philly familiar, soon-to-be-star(Foye). Not to mention the salary dump over the nex two seasons by losing Iverson.

Houston gets rid of a team-chemistry problem(Wells) and nabs the point guard they were after this past offseason(James) for less than they offered.

The Wolves get rid of two bad contracts(Davis, James) and grab a future Hall of Famer to play next to KG.

The Catch:

Who really wants Rafer Alston?

Deal #2

Teams Involved: Minnesota, Philadelphia, Detroit

Philly we understand: Rid themselves of Iverson

Detroit, while playing well, has some issues on their bench. They're a capable bunch, that's for sure, but they don't exactly have a ton of fire power offensively. Their backup point guard situation isn't much better, not to mention the pending free-agency of Chauncey Billups. They could use some help in both areas.

Minnesota wants AI.

The Deal:

AI to Minny, Foye, Davis, Antonio McDyess go to Philly, Mike James to Detroit.

Why it makes sense:

The Sixers, like in the previous deal, get young talent and a couple contracts that go away in the next two years.

Detroit solves a bench scoring issue with James who could spell both Rip and Chauncey. It may also provide some point guard security in the event that Billups gets too much money in free agency - only a short year away.

The Wolves, get what they did in the first deal: Iverson and rid of two contracts.

The Catch:

Detroit, while interested in Mike James, may not want to mess with the chemistry they have right now - specifically putting any doubt in the fact that Chauncey is their point guard.

Obviously I'm no GM and I'm favoring the Wolves a bit, but I think both those deals would make sense for all teams involved. Of course that's like saying Kevin McHale will try to put a winning product on the floor - which we all know is true. He does try, he's just not very good at it.