The Celtics can thank Minnesota for the title they have conquered last
season, as it was the mega trade of Kevin Garnett that made the Celtics
be so good and allowed the Wolves to make the renovation they were
needing. I remember that Minny in the last season with Garnett had a
32-50 record. Even though the mega trade which involved Garnett leaving
to Boston wasn't a really bad one, the truth is that nobody was
expecting that Al Jefferson would have such a breakout season like the
one he had last season with 21 ppg, 11 rpg and 1,5 bpg, while shooting
50% from the field. Jefferson gave the Wolves the intensity in the
frontcourt that very few thought he could do it, by being 2nd in the
league in offensive rebounds (behind Chandler) and being capable of
dominating a game, like the games against Phoenix, where he had 32
points and 20 rebounds, against the Nets, where he had 40 points and 19
rebounds and also against Chicago, where he finished the game with 26
points and 20 boards.
However that's not enough for a team in the Western conference and
the truth is that the Wolves were second last in blocks per game (just
3.73), just in front of the Knicks. So, the team was clearly in need of
reinforce the frontcourt, so they can be more competitive in this area
this season. Maybe because of that, the Wolves sent OJ Mayo to Memphis,
in exchange for Mike Miller and Kevin Love. Even though he is a rookie,
Lowe will have an immediate impact on the team and he may be the key
that the Wolves need to have a stronger frontcourt and pairing him with
Al Jefferson may becomes one of the most dynamic duo in the whole league.
Lowe has a very high basketball IQ and he fits well in every kind of
game plan. His college numbers don't lie: 17,5 ppg and 10,5 rpg! It is
expected that Lowe becomes a top player on the league in the next few
years.
To complete these two frontcourt players, the Wolves had some
interesting players. Ryan Gomes showed that he is an interesting player
last season, with the ex-Boston player finishing the season with 12.6
ppg and 5.8 rpg and his versatility will be a great help on this team.
Craig Smith was another player who took advantage of last season to
show that he has a place on this team, finishing with 9.4 ppg and 4.6
rpg, with his aggressiveness making him a very useful player on this
team, even though he won't have many minutes this season. Jason Collins
will also be part of the team, but honestly this is one of the players
who won't add nothing to the team and his minutes on the field will be
few, as if that's not the case, then the Wolves will be in trouble.
For the point guard position, the Wolves have two young talented
players for the position: Randy Foye and Sebastian Telfair. However
both players had injuries last season, with Foye just playing in 39
games and Telfair in 60. Foye began playing just at the end of January
and coincidencly or not, the team had 14 of their 22 season wins with
him on the field and averaging 13.1 ppg, 3.3 rpg and 4.2 apg. In order
for Foye to become an unquestionable starter on the Wolves this season,
his number of assists will need to improve, as Telfair is a much more
natural point guard and so, it is easier for him to assist his team
mates.
The addition of Mike Miller will also be important for the present
of this team, as not only Miller adds quality to the backcourt of the
team, which struggled last season, by taking advantage of the space the
Wolves backcourt will have, due to the double teams on Jefferson, but
also he is a good clutch player and who knows if he won't give some
wins to his team in the last seconds of a game with some precious 3pts
shots. His backup will be Rashad McCants, who together with Al
Jefferson was the highlight of the Wolves last season, finishing the
season with 14.9 ppg, while being the 6th player of the team. His role
on the team should be the same this season.
At last, the small forward position seems to be the weakest link of
the team, with Rodney Carney, Corey Brewer and Brian Cardinal. The
Ex-Sixers Carney will be the starter, but will a guy who played 15 mpg
and had 5.8 ppg last season be good enough to be the starter on a NBA
team? On the other side, Brewer is an hard-working player, capable of
winning some rebounds, but he isn't an offensive threat, with his 37.4%
FG last season being a proof of that. Coach Randy Wittman will try to
find a solution for this position, which may be adapt Gomes or Miller
to the SF position.
The Wolves won't be a playoff contender this season and there are
more doubts than answers right now, which is something Wittman will
need to fix as soon as possible. The frontcourt duo of Jefferson and
Lowe has everything to be one of the best in the future of this league,
but it's hard to predict how much time they will need to find the
necessary chemistry to make things work in the frontcourt, especially
when the Wolves will face teams which had positive records last season
in 10 of their first 13 games this season.
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