Timberwolves Continue to Sacrifice Promising Future for Empty Pleasure Present

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Alright, apparently we need to have another discussion about our Minnesota Timberwolves. If you’re still paying attention (I know you probably aren’t) you watched them beat the currently 8-seed Clippers last night, in a game that we lead start to finish at the Target Center. It did get closer than it should have. For a little while in the 4th quarter, I thought the Wolves were going to blow their load all over the brand new arena floor once again, when the Clippers cut what was once a 20 point lead down to 4.  

However, unlike what we’ve seen over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over again from the Timberwolves in recent years, Karl Anthony Towns and a wave of veteran Wolves refused to lose… In another reality, it would’ve been fun to watch.

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But last night wasn’t fun. It was frustrating. Very frustrating.

First, why the fuck weren’t we playing these veterans more often when the season mattered? And don’t blame Thibs. I know that’s everyone’s go-to (and he did his fair share of damage) but I NEVER saw anyone calling for more minutes out of Luol Deng or Derrick Rose when he was coaching.

Let’s take a moment to remember why those two even play on this team… But now, everyone is so impressed by Ryan Saunders’ eye for talent. Being able to find that guy who wasn’t quite ready to scab up and die…. what an amazing coach.

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Where are the calls for more Anthony Tolliver minutes? What about the rookie Keita Beits-Diop? What happened to needing more minutes for a perfect off-the-bench big man and a promising young talent? Imagine what would have been said (no matter the outcome of the game) if Thibs would have played Luol Deng 38 minutes while Tolliver and Diop rotted on the bench…

Actually, let’s just take a look at what everyone said when Deng was named the starter last night before the game…

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In all of this Ryan Saunders helmet touching and Luol Deng fanfair, the Timberwolves and their fanbase have again forgotten the current state of their team and what is best for the future. 

After losing 4-in-a-row and 6 of their last 7, the Wolves had slumped to 13th in the Western Conference and the tank was again in sight.

CLICK HERE FOR WHY TANKING > WINNING FOR WOLVES

Instead, we stayed stagnant at the trade deadline and kept veterans (like Deng, Teague, Rose, Gibson, Tolliver) on the roster. Guys who can help us win right now. That means we might miss the 8-seed by a few less games, meanwhile dropping 5-10 picks in the NBA draft. How is this a good strategy for a mediocre-bad team like the Wolves?

Please tell me if you can think of ANYTHING that winning now does to help the Timberwolves build a contending team for the future. Please…. go ahead. 

And don’t give me that confidence bullshit. Nothing the Timberwolves do right now on the confidence meter is going to carry over to a completely rebuilt roster in 2020 and beyond…. The chances of making the playoffs are slim to none at this point, and even if we do make it, why are we so happy to get swept by Golden State or Denver in the first round? 

If the NBA season were to end right now (according to tankathon.com), the Wolves would sit in 12th place for the lottery draw, holding a 1.7% chance of getting the #1 pick and just an 8% chance at top-4. Add 3 more losses to the season and we’d drop to 6th in the lottery and jump up to a 9% chance at the #1 pick (37% CHANCE AT TOP-4).

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If only Twitter and local media cared as much about our future as they did about getting Tom Thibodeau fired, Glen Taylor might realize that he again has no fucking idea what he’s doing. But, we don’t care about winning here. We only care that we all can hold hands and that everyone loves Ryan Saunders. We just want to see KAT, Wiggins and the new coach singing songs and laughing together. 

ahhhh soooo heartwarming, who needs winning.

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Eric Strack | Minnesota Sports Fan

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