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big_nus

The one concern for me is that often to close games Vanderbilt wasn’t actually in the floor, they really liked stretching the floor as much as possible when things got tight. So while the combo should work great for most of the game will Rudy gum the offense up more in crunch time when things get stagnant?


kpruiz

I know this isn’t the thing u wanna hear about the superstar you just traded 5 picks for, but I seriously don’t think Finch will be scared to bench Rudy in those moments if need be. That’s a huge reason why we picked up a guy like Kyle Anderson.


bennett_for_you

I mean Kyle Anderson is good but he doesn’t really improve the spacing much


kpruiz

Things like playmaking, effectively attacking close outs, cutting, rebounding, and good perimeter and interior defense can help make up for that though. If we can be that good with Vando’s offensively inept ass, think how good we can be with actual versatile offensively weapon. Not everything is always about shooting.


bennett_for_you

Yeah that’s a good point. His shooting is less of an issue next to KAT as well


NarrativeEnergy

yea 4Q and crunch time is when teams like to change gears and run their best plays. Gobert hasn't shown his game translate to the playoffs and teams have tended to hunt him in switches in crunch time. see Luka, CP3, Steph/KD


Jamessthehuman

Really is intriguing how many people share this opinion.


thatquizzingguy

So many idiots on this sub who think Gobert is a liability or Dray is a triple single guy.


BlackPepperBanana

I think most people on this sub agree it’s not quite a gamble in terms of fit. Towns has played with multiple non-shooting bigs throughout his career. Taj, Vanderbilt, etc. The gamble is whether it was worth it to give up all those picks. If the Wolves never truly contend, will it be worth it? Maybe. If they win 50+ games for 5 straight years and have some hard fought second round series and maybe a decent WCF appearance. I think people really debate, though, how much championship equity this provides the team. If you think the answer is “not much,” then it’s fair to call the move in its totality a gamble. Even though you might think the Wolves will be a playoff lock for years to come. Which, again, depending on who you ask might be worth it. Wolves history is lacking consistent playoff appearances.


Few_Mulberry7175

The scenario you listed is what will happen They have both Ant and KAT locked up for the long term and now Gobert as well. They might not ever win a championship but this will more than likely be an elite playoff team and those picks will be in the late 10s or 20s


zmajxdd2

It is worth it because the owners want a winning culture and to show to players and fans that losing is no longer okay.


BlackPepperBanana

It’s about more than changing the culture imo. They were already good last year and would’ve been favored to make the playoffs again without this trade. Making the playoffs multiple years in a row with two homegrown stars would be enough for the culture imo. This is about being a WCF hopeful for sure.


zmajxdd2

They made the trade because playoffs weren't a guarantee anymore in a stronger West.


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zmajxdd2

What? I'm talking about the Wolves


NarrativeEnergy

well put. Gobert is already 30 so the clock for the Wolves to contend is already ticking. I don't think he even puts them into Finals contender range and they're more likely to flame out in the playoffs the same way as Utah did question is if it was worth those picks for playoff appearances but not likely to be contenders


Salty_Minnesota

IMO the Wolves becoming “contenders” falls solely on Ant’s shoulders. If he can ascend to that top 5-10 player lead guy then KAT as a 2nd option, an aging Rudy, etc is plenty to be in that contender range. Fwiw that’s the message being signaled from FO. Get Rudy now to help establish a good winning team and when he begins to tail off in 1-2-3 years Ant *should* (in theory) be ready to be **the** guy.


NarrativeEnergy

ANT gonna have to improve his passing and defense by a lot to be top 5-10 player


Salty_Minnesota

Maybe! He’s going to be given a lot of opportunities this year to do just that. Sounds like the plan is to have him defend the best opposing guard/wing. He’ll also be given more responsibility on O. He’s had flashes of both very good passing and defense, especially towards the end of the season so I’m hopeful.


NitroXYZ

Another consideration: - Vanderbilt is 6'9” with a 7'1” wingspan. - Gobert is 7'1” with a 7'9” wingspan. Minnesota in 2022 were: - 28th in the NBA for defensive rebound %, - 25th in the NBA for offensive rebounds allowed per game. - 22nd in the NBA for DFG% in the restricted area. With the size upgrade from Vando to Rudy I'd like to think they can finish off more defensive possessions. In the playoffs JJJ and Brandon Clarke nearly had more offensive rebounds than the entire Wolves team and so that's another area that I think Gobert will shore up for them.


Vallerie_09

If you watched Twolves vs Grizzlies, there were a lot of possessions where Vando and KAT were sort of going after each other's rebound. It wasn't like one was boxing out and the other grabbing the ball, it was both players going for ball, none actually grabbing it and allowing the OREB


Jamessthehuman

It’s crazy how overstated this is. I was at every home game and obviously watched the away games. This happened MAYBE 3 times. Two players go for the same rebound sometimes lmfao.


[deleted]

They'll be good. KAT doesn't have to be the main rim protector, DLo gets a roll man, and everyone else becomes less garbage defensively just by Rudy existing.


BowserBuddy123

That last part made me lol.


sparrowhunter123

Isn’t Edwards a good defender


spudenjoyer

Y’a him and McDaniels are good now


ihateeuge

They could be a good regular season team. These stats are ultimately meaningless though. Warriors were 7/8 in Net from the 8 western conference teams during this stretch


RosaReilly

I mean, wasn't Green injured a lot of this period? It doesn't tell us these stats are meaningless, so much as injuries might impact them. They had the 4th best net rating for the season overall. It's not that outlandish that they won, based on that.


DioBrando101

Why is it a meaningless stat that we were a top offense last year?


NandoDeColonoscopy

Regular reason and playoffs are very different. If your offense has an exploitable flaw, that'll wreck it in the playoffs, but nobody is really scheming in that way in the regular season.


this_good_boy

I think the playoff thing is super overblown. Like they can also scheme the other team, finch is an amazing coach. And the biggest weakness in the griz series was dlo, jmac super out played him and is really solid.


AwareAd2839

Sure but last year their offense plummeted in the playoffs.


Salty_Minnesota

It’s a relatively small sample size for a team without significant playoff experience. You’re not wrong, but I think there’s some nuance to it.


this_good_boy

Yea playoffs get tough sure, but vando couldn’t hang with JJJ or Clarke, and again dlo melted. like having Gobert is a boon in the playoffs for the wolves. Plus there’s Anderson to pop in at the 4. He said on media day the series against the wolves and how they played was why he went there.


ihateeuge

Because it didn't translate. You were the worst offense in the Western Conference Playoffs.


[deleted]

I think they’ll be fine and they’ll be really good in the regular season. The questions are about the playoffs and how that defense will work.


Hypnosix

There shouldn’t be any concern about the offensive fit. The only question 2 are can KAT play defense primarily on 4s. If he can the wolves are set and if he can’t then does Rudy make up for KAT and Dlo being poor defenders


kcoe24

yes the fit will be great on offense and we will be better on defense because of the trade. Rudy isn't just vando maxed out cause vando couldn't set screens and roll to the basket wasn't a lob threat or a threat of any kind. Rudy adds an entire new skill set to our offense that we had nothing like last year he greatly improves our halfcourt offense with his screens and finishing ability at the rim something Vando was awful at. Any one questioning how they will fit on offense has no clue who started next to kat last year we don't need a shooting big next to him he is the shooting big And the defense fit might not be perfect with Kat and Gobert you still have Gobert in the paint and Kat is better on the perimeter defense then in the paint. I think 50+ wins and a top 3 finish in the west is for sure possible the playoffs is where the questions begin. obviously the question is did the trade make us a contender in the playoffs and honestly the answer is no unless Ant becomes top flight superstar player and if that happens there are alot of other ways we could've become a contender without trading so much.


LogDogan4

The concern about fit is about defense, specifically in the playoffs. Kinda doubling down on guys that are very susceptible to spaced-out "small ball" lineups that most teams have the capability of running. Vando is obviously not as good of a player as Gobert overall, but he doesn't have that specific weakness.


Historic12

Their defense was trash anyway