Positive Numbers: Timberwolves (Re-Entry!). Best draft ever? With the possible exception of the one that brought in Kevin Garnett (and he remains The Best Timberwolf Ever, even though he didn't bring us an NBA championship), yes, definitely.
Despite early beliefs that Flip Saunders was enamored with Jahlil Okafor and late heat that D'Angelo Russell is the epitome of what the National Basketball Association will be in the near future, in the end the Woofie Dogs didn't fuck up the club's first-ever #1 pick and drafted the consensus top player available, Karl-Anthony Towns. And not only is he the best by a mile, he also fills a pressing need for the Wolves, rim protection/interior defense. I'm really frightened that he will not develop his entire game; I no longer believe that there's anybody there that can teach skills, which means that KAT will either have to learn on his own or be on his own. But if can somehow find and/or refine a shooting touch that extends to the three-point line, his all-around game may make him the franchise player many expect him to be.
Even better, later in the draft the Timberwolves were able to combine their two second-round draft picks in that draft to Cleveland in exchange for the player they selected at Saunders's behest, Tyus Jones, the Point Guard from Apple Valley who led Duke to the national championship in his only year there. They say that he will never be able to score well in the NBA. But I am a sucker for PGs that led their teams to NCAA titles -- think Shabazz Napier with Miami, or even better, Kemba Walker with Charlotte. I'll go so far as to say this, in fact; he has the vision, gameplan and grit to possibly take over playcalling duties from Ricky Rubio, who has preternatural passing skills but has a jumpshot too suspect for him to be a threat when he drives down the lane.
Finally, Nemanja Bjelica, their second-round draft pick from 2010 and one of two players (Rubio's the other) who was drafted by David Kahn, that got himself disentangled from his club team in Turkey and appears to finally be ready for the USA. Bjelica, a Euroleague Most Valuable Player, may actually have the skill set to fit the Triangle scheme that Phil Jackson wants with the New York Knicks. Nevertheless the T-Wolves have yet another young (well, he's actually 27 but will be playing his rookie year in the NBA) body to continue its rebuilding project, even if they now have, like, 22 Forward/Centers.
Whatever; things are now looking up!
#0: Lynx (Last Week: -2). A 2-0 week. But despite the Wild's not-bad week (more below), I have to put the WNBA team atop the local NHL team for the extreme rarity of that first win. Last Thursday, the Lynx were down by 18 points at Seattle, but then finished the game outscoring the Storm 37-9 while holding them down to 11 points in the third and fourth quarters to win, 76-73. Seimone Augustus turned back the clock by leading all 24 points. Meanwhile, it was one of the players rotating at Center, Damiris Dantas, that converted an and-one to give the team 73-72 lead with 18 seconds to play. I would have folded the tent after being down by that much on the road, but I have to give credit to Cheryl Reeve et al. for showing some, well, balls and fighting that hard to pull off (obviously) the franchise's biggest comeback on the road in its history.
They could have (should have?) followed that with a letdown at Target Center Saturday night against Phoenix. After all, it was the first game Britney Griner was eligible to play after serving her suspension for beating her girlfriend-turned-wife-turned-ex-wife. But the Lynx put the pedal down in the first half, outscoring the Mercury 19-9 in the second quarter to lead 37-23 at intermission, on their way to a 71-56 victory.
Best yet: Even though they technically trailed the Tulsa Shock before Thursday's action by a half-game, Thursday also brought news that the Shock's Skylar Diggins is out for the year for a torn ACL. Sucks for Diggins, but a huge break (sorry for the pun) for the Lynx, who have to be the favorites in the Western Conference now, right?
This week: At Chicago Friday, home vs. San Antonio Sunday, at Connecticut Tuesday.
#-1: Wild (Re-Entry!). They had a good week overall. Not necessarily for the draft, but for a huge get for a player who hasn't yet played a professional game.
Mike Reilly, who quit the Minnesota Golden Gophers after they piddled themselves in the first round of the NCAA men's hockey tournament in March with a year left of eligibility, had been drafted out of high school by the Columbus Blue Jackets. However, every high school draftee who, I guess, goes to college becomes an unrestricted free agent after four years. You hear all the time about players who, after their seasons are over, immediately sign with the NHL team that signs them. But Reilly apparently decided to not turn pro after the Goofs' season was over. Instead, he decided to wait out the days until his contract was up and name his own team -- which happens to be the Wild, whose dad, also named Mike, is a minority owner.
While the Blue Jackets held his rights, all Reilly did was become the hottest Defenseman prospect coming out of college. Because of that, the Wild signed him to a rather cheap contract with the expectation that he will feature prominently on the power play. If he is as good as advertised, he will bring a lot of bang for the buck.
In the meantime Wild General Manager Chuck Fletcher was busy resigning the core of a still-improving squad, foremost among them Mikael Granlund. Oh, and the NHL Draft was last week as well; the team picked a guy named Joel Eriksson Ek. Sure, he's good. But he's no Reilly.
#-2: Twins (Last Week: -1). The merry, merry month of May is over, and so is that great month. But either because the Twinks are trying to recapture that success, or just because it's time, the inexorable decision to bring up another of their prime prospects has been made. The organization has decided to call up and start the free agency clock on Miguel Sano, the mashing Designated Hitter that is currently destroying at AA Chattanooga. Along with Byron Buxton and, to a lesser extent, Alex Meyer, the youth movement is basically here, if not over.
Sano's call-up could not have been better timed. In a reversal from last year, it has been the lineup that has let down the pitching. The club's Batting Average and On-Base Percentage Plus Slugging Percentage has gone into the toilet since May ended, and has been much of the reason why they went 2-4 this week. The DH spot has been a particular hole, which makes Sano the perfect fit. You never want to call up a youngster that can't play some defense, but while down in the minors he has heated up at the plate while remaining as awful as he's always been at Third Base. That is where he will play some of the time, and he'll probably at First once in a while. But it looks like Sano has become so good at his one dimension that his future with the Twins will probably be as DH.
So far, so bad, however; just like with Buxton, Sano has had an incredibly rough first game in The Show. I am currently listening to the game at Kansas City, and in his first two at-bats, he has flied out to Center and struck out. After the weekend quartet with the Royals they will be home for three with Baltimore starting on Monday and for a four-game series against Detroit beginning on Thursday.
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