In what may be a recurring pattern, I stopped writing for four months. Besides sleeping with grizzly bears, I've been reading about sports and following sports, agonizing over how many mistakes the Wolves will make and continue to make, and how consistently inconsistent the Wild remain.
There is some good news though: The Twins have been killing it. And killing it. And really, really KILLING IT. The Twins' payroll this year is pushing $100 million, and with the insurance money from Joe Nathan's UCL, the Twins could sign a possible replacement.
Wait, I didn't mention Joe Nathan's impending surgery? Or the Twins complete lack of any other reliable strike-out relievers? Oh. Well I guess you probably know this, but throwing a baseball 93 miles an hour does not strengthen a human arm. It really is too bad that there's so much money in it, because throwing a baseball does not do a body good. Joe Nathan will know this soon enough, because regaining his previous strength and range of motion takes almost a year of painstaking physical therapy. Some twelve million dollars in guaranteed salary will ease pain. Didn't I say we should trade him?
Not that a closer would net a team much. They're important, but only to contenders. They're probably the most important role-player on a baseball team, but should role-players take up more than 10% of a team's payroll? There's bound to be some teams who would trade for an elite closer, and be dumb enough to give up at least one prospect with star-potential. That's too much to give up for a luxury.
That's what Joe Nathan was/is: a luxury. Baseball games have lasted nine innings for a hundred years without much trouble. The Twins have played without the ninth inning for awhile, but they can still win playing it old school. Which they will have to do, because a good replacement isn't going to fall into their lap. Teams will be asking for half the farm, because the Twins will not have enough options to get a favorable price.
So who will end up closing? Don't be surprised if it's Nick Punto.
So I guess that turned out a bit more negative than such great news merits. The Twins are going into this season with a new stadium and a new infield. They're going to be good, even if Nick Punto really does pitch in the ninth. At least his defense would be solid.
Sunday, March 21, 2010
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Inside the Box: Wolves 87 Clippers 91
Watchable Wolves games will not be televised. The Wolves won't win them either, because at this point they're bound to be pretty comfortable with losing.
Jonny Flynn had his best game of the season, with his first 2+ assist:turnover ratio. It had been a tough stretch for the young guard, when he stopped performing his greatest strength: scoring. Defenses were definitely keying in on his dribble-drives because he would look nowhere but the cup. He not only found his scoring touch again, he dished out five assists. You never know with assists, as official scorers tend to give them out for things as dumb as feeding Al in the low post.
Speaking of Al, he sucked in this game. Eight turnovers, six traveling violations, three in the fourth quarter. The Wolves had closed the score to 87-89 with under thirty seconds to go, and got the stop they needed. So needing just a deuce to tie the game, they fed Al in the post. Then Al took a different kind of deuce, traveling yet again to kill whatever momentum the Wolves gained from Ryan Gomes' huge three (which would be the Wolves' last of the night). Nice one, Al.
Hopefully there will be other opportunities to win a close game. Hopefully Big Al won't choke again, but nobody has ever called him or any of the other Wolves winners.
Jonny Flynn had his best game of the season, with his first 2+ assist:turnover ratio. It had been a tough stretch for the young guard, when he stopped performing his greatest strength: scoring. Defenses were definitely keying in on his dribble-drives because he would look nowhere but the cup. He not only found his scoring touch again, he dished out five assists. You never know with assists, as official scorers tend to give them out for things as dumb as feeding Al in the low post.
Speaking of Al, he sucked in this game. Eight turnovers, six traveling violations, three in the fourth quarter. The Wolves had closed the score to 87-89 with under thirty seconds to go, and got the stop they needed. So needing just a deuce to tie the game, they fed Al in the post. Then Al took a different kind of deuce, traveling yet again to kill whatever momentum the Wolves gained from Ryan Gomes' huge three (which would be the Wolves' last of the night). Nice one, Al.
Hopefully there will be other opportunities to win a close game. Hopefully Big Al won't choke again, but nobody has ever called him or any of the other Wolves winners.
Monday, November 23, 2009
The Cowboy delivers
No not the Cowboys. Owen Nolan, the toughest son of a female dog around, took his 37-year-old body to the ice at the X, and nearly left without it. Throughout the game he threw the living corpse of his nineteen year NHL career at the puck, at the Islanders, and at the net. Remember his last target, because the Wild would need him to hit it to avoid overtime.
The entire team played an energetic and fast-paced first period. The New Yorkers couldn't hang on to the puck in any zone, and couldn't deal with the Wild's very improved puck-possession game. More time spent with their line-mates always improves the players sense of timing and positioning, but it's been the break-out of their defensive zone that's allowed the Wild to keep the puck after they've forced a turnover. What's helped has been an extra pass within the defensive zone in order to shake the opposing forecheck. Call it what you will, but playing with patience in their own zone has allowed a much faster and cleaner transition through the neutral zone. That's a good thing. Once they reach the opposing zone, they tend to lose their way, but getting there is half the battle.
Getting the first goal usually wins the game for the Wild, but for all the energy with which they opened the game, they were no properly awarded. Owen Nolan eschewed his body for the puck, hitting the net with a fluky bounce off the goaltender's skate as he fell into the boards. This was after taking numerous shots to the face, none of which were called by the referees. The Islanders got that benefit, but the Wild continued their strong power-play kill. New York went 0 for 6 on the night. The Isle got the equalizer not long into the second period, but were gracious enough to take back-to-back penalties, giving the Wild the dreaded 5-on-3 power play for more than a minute. Dreaded for all of the wrong reasons given the way the Wild have played with extra men in the past few games. Predictably, the Wild collapsed the New York defense, but really only got one good shot before the power-play died, buried side-by-side with the Wild's momentum. The Islanders took it to the Wild, the Wild did not score on their other two power-plays (0/4 in the period), and Josh Bailey took the lead after Backstrom got turned around on the Islanders' puck movement. More often than not this season, game over.
Yet the Wild tied it on Mikko Koivu's, get this, power-play goal in the third period. The play was beautifully skated, beautifully passed, and beautifully finished with a one-time deflection. No standing around, passing back and forth between the points, which inevitably leads to a shot from one of those points. Not the way to score, on a power-play or otherwise. The way to score is to pass the puck from the goal-line, through the crease, and then back across the slot to Koivu's waiting blade. Misdirection that the goaltender cannot handle is the way to create scoring chances. Hopefully they can learn from that power-play.
They'll watch the tape from the end of the third as well. The Cowboy went to the net on Nick Schultz shot, and took a shot of his own from the Islander defense. Erik Belanger hustled to keep the puck in the zone, shooting it high as Nolan picked himself up from the ice in time to catch Belanger's shot, drop it to his stick, and shove in the winner. After the checks around the net, the sticks to his face, and his diving blocked shot (off of his laces no less), the game-winning catch-and-shoot seemed pretty easy. For a fiery Irishman like Owen Nolan, it probably was.
The entire team played an energetic and fast-paced first period. The New Yorkers couldn't hang on to the puck in any zone, and couldn't deal with the Wild's very improved puck-possession game. More time spent with their line-mates always improves the players sense of timing and positioning, but it's been the break-out of their defensive zone that's allowed the Wild to keep the puck after they've forced a turnover. What's helped has been an extra pass within the defensive zone in order to shake the opposing forecheck. Call it what you will, but playing with patience in their own zone has allowed a much faster and cleaner transition through the neutral zone. That's a good thing. Once they reach the opposing zone, they tend to lose their way, but getting there is half the battle.
Getting the first goal usually wins the game for the Wild, but for all the energy with which they opened the game, they were no properly awarded. Owen Nolan eschewed his body for the puck, hitting the net with a fluky bounce off the goaltender's skate as he fell into the boards. This was after taking numerous shots to the face, none of which were called by the referees. The Islanders got that benefit, but the Wild continued their strong power-play kill. New York went 0 for 6 on the night. The Isle got the equalizer not long into the second period, but were gracious enough to take back-to-back penalties, giving the Wild the dreaded 5-on-3 power play for more than a minute. Dreaded for all of the wrong reasons given the way the Wild have played with extra men in the past few games. Predictably, the Wild collapsed the New York defense, but really only got one good shot before the power-play died, buried side-by-side with the Wild's momentum. The Islanders took it to the Wild, the Wild did not score on their other two power-plays (0/4 in the period), and Josh Bailey took the lead after Backstrom got turned around on the Islanders' puck movement. More often than not this season, game over.
Yet the Wild tied it on Mikko Koivu's, get this, power-play goal in the third period. The play was beautifully skated, beautifully passed, and beautifully finished with a one-time deflection. No standing around, passing back and forth between the points, which inevitably leads to a shot from one of those points. Not the way to score, on a power-play or otherwise. The way to score is to pass the puck from the goal-line, through the crease, and then back across the slot to Koivu's waiting blade. Misdirection that the goaltender cannot handle is the way to create scoring chances. Hopefully they can learn from that power-play.
They'll watch the tape from the end of the third as well. The Cowboy went to the net on Nick Schultz shot, and took a shot of his own from the Islander defense. Erik Belanger hustled to keep the puck in the zone, shooting it high as Nolan picked himself up from the ice in time to catch Belanger's shot, drop it to his stick, and shove in the winner. After the checks around the net, the sticks to his face, and his diving blocked shot (off of his laces no less), the game-winning catch-and-shoot seemed pretty easy. For a fiery Irishman like Owen Nolan, it probably was.
Lukewarm water: Coyotes 3 Wild 2
The Wild hit the ice skating, and promptly took a penalty. They killed it without much trouble, but did not seem to realize it. They remained on their heels for the rest of the first period, though it remained scoreless throughout. It was actually a mistake they didn't make that cost them. Owen Nolan's phantom slash (a light tap on the knee as Sami Lepasto's stick snapped in two from a relatively weak pass) gave Phoenix the power-play needed to open the scoring.
The Wild's top line tried their best to keep the Wild in the game, but a complete lack of secondary scoring from Marty Havenot and his linemates ultimately doomed the Wild. Andrew Brunette, Antti Miettenen, and Mikko Koivu? A combined +6. Every other Wild forward? A combined -6. Not winning numbers.
As far as winning plays go, surrendering another goal nineteen seconds after tying the game is quite the opposite. No movement from the defense as Backstrom allowed his only rebound of the night, after which Scottie Upshall's gliding shot slipped under Nik's pad from a sharp angle. Inexplicable and inexcusable, from both Backs and the defense. We all hoped that these kinds of lapses disappeared. We were wrong. This team is still growing within the little talent they have.
The Wild's top line tried their best to keep the Wild in the game, but a complete lack of secondary scoring from Marty Havenot and his linemates ultimately doomed the Wild. Andrew Brunette, Antti Miettenen, and Mikko Koivu? A combined +6. Every other Wild forward? A combined -6. Not winning numbers.
As far as winning plays go, surrendering another goal nineteen seconds after tying the game is quite the opposite. No movement from the defense as Backstrom allowed his only rebound of the night, after which Scottie Upshall's gliding shot slipped under Nik's pad from a sharp angle. Inexplicable and inexcusable, from both Backs and the defense. We all hoped that these kinds of lapses disappeared. We were wrong. This team is still growing within the little talent they have.
Sunday, November 22, 2009
Inside the Box: Timberwolves @ Trail Blazers
The Wolves played a basketball game and lost, because they suck, and will continue to suck for fore and unforeseeable future. They suck enough to lose their only national TV game (or any TV broadcast that night for that matter). They've lost just about everything but their bladder-control, but will probably lose that by the time the season's over. If they're even on TV when it finally happens, watching every miserable moment of basketball will be worth it.
A little too easy
So after two weeks off, the Vikings are finally back to playing NFL football. It's good to have them back, too, because Sunday just isn't the same without the boys in purple. Though it remains to be seen whether any remaining opponent will put up any fight. I don't feel like the Vikings have really been tested, except for their only loss of the season.
There's plenty to like about the details. Except for some big plays, the defense shut down the Seahawks, both through the air and the ground. Not a lot of sacks, but except for the mentioned plays, most of the completions were short, underneath, and harmless. Those big plays came during garbage time, but they ruined several things for the Vikes:
1. The shutout, which they haven't had all season.
2. Every improvement that their pass defense seemed to show against the Steelers
3. Their season-long redzone rushing shutout. To a guy weighing less than 200.
All of these, against an awful Seahawk O-line, pretty much spells out what's been true all season: the Vikings defense is not dominant. They'll show flashes of dominant play, but when the sacks aren't coming, receivers are going to get open. Wide open. For big gains. Tyrell Johnson and Madieu Williams don't do anything from their safety positions. Karl Paymah couldn't cover a guy in a wheelchair, and Cedric Griffin seems invisible. Have you heard of or seen Griffin making a play in the past month? Me neither. I'll give him a pass (ha), since teams haven't thrown one his way since Antoine Winfield went down. I don't think Winfield being out is the main problem though.
Even Darren Sharper, he of 7 interceptions this season, never made a large amount of plays for the Vikings under Leslie Frazier. Not that I completely blame Frazier's scheme or believe Sharper's derogatory comments towards it. It's a combination of poor play and a passive two-deep scheme. Ed Reed isn't the best safety in the league because he sits back in prevent mode. He takes risks, and thrives by being allowed to do so. The Vikings safeties don't take risks, whether it's their decision or Leslie Frazier's. Either way, the corners can't do it by themselves, because they just aren't that good. Asher Allen in the starting line-up would definitely be an upgrade though. The kid can play, let him.
The special teams didn't generate any touchdowns, but didn't allow any and forced a fumble. The offense shook off the rust from their bye weeks and started to cruise in the second quarter through some good short-passing before the Seahawks' weariness opened up the route-tree. The Vikings have three legitimate weapons for Favre to use, and that excludes Adrian Peterson. If defenses take away one or two, like they did to Sidney Rice and Peterson in the first quarter, then Percy Harvin, Visanthe Shiancoe, and even Bernard Berrian can make them pay.
Of course, it all depends on Favre, who has played nothing short of spectacularly. That's what I'm still getting used to: the dependency of my team's success on an elite quarterback, and the knowledge that a one-two year rental will get credit for every win. It won't be our championship, it will be Favre's, because he'll have earned it.
There's plenty to like about the details. Except for some big plays, the defense shut down the Seahawks, both through the air and the ground. Not a lot of sacks, but except for the mentioned plays, most of the completions were short, underneath, and harmless. Those big plays came during garbage time, but they ruined several things for the Vikes:
1. The shutout, which they haven't had all season.
2. Every improvement that their pass defense seemed to show against the Steelers
3. Their season-long redzone rushing shutout. To a guy weighing less than 200.
All of these, against an awful Seahawk O-line, pretty much spells out what's been true all season: the Vikings defense is not dominant. They'll show flashes of dominant play, but when the sacks aren't coming, receivers are going to get open. Wide open. For big gains. Tyrell Johnson and Madieu Williams don't do anything from their safety positions. Karl Paymah couldn't cover a guy in a wheelchair, and Cedric Griffin seems invisible. Have you heard of or seen Griffin making a play in the past month? Me neither. I'll give him a pass (ha), since teams haven't thrown one his way since Antoine Winfield went down. I don't think Winfield being out is the main problem though.
Even Darren Sharper, he of 7 interceptions this season, never made a large amount of plays for the Vikings under Leslie Frazier. Not that I completely blame Frazier's scheme or believe Sharper's derogatory comments towards it. It's a combination of poor play and a passive two-deep scheme. Ed Reed isn't the best safety in the league because he sits back in prevent mode. He takes risks, and thrives by being allowed to do so. The Vikings safeties don't take risks, whether it's their decision or Leslie Frazier's. Either way, the corners can't do it by themselves, because they just aren't that good. Asher Allen in the starting line-up would definitely be an upgrade though. The kid can play, let him.
The special teams didn't generate any touchdowns, but didn't allow any and forced a fumble. The offense shook off the rust from their bye weeks and started to cruise in the second quarter through some good short-passing before the Seahawks' weariness opened up the route-tree. The Vikings have three legitimate weapons for Favre to use, and that excludes Adrian Peterson. If defenses take away one or two, like they did to Sidney Rice and Peterson in the first quarter, then Percy Harvin, Visanthe Shiancoe, and even Bernard Berrian can make them pay.
Of course, it all depends on Favre, who has played nothing short of spectacularly. That's what I'm still getting used to: the dependency of my team's success on an elite quarterback, and the knowledge that a one-two year rental will get credit for every win. It won't be our championship, it will be Favre's, because he'll have earned it.
Thursday, November 19, 2009
Look, They're on TV
The Wolves were going to be bad this year. There's no getting around it. David Kahn tries to tell us that he will not accept the lack of effort and wins, but what can he do? Only three competent players returned from last year's bottom-feeder squad, and even they have never played a prominent role on a winning NBA squad.
Jonny Flynn started hot, but has cooled since and never really played like a point-guard should. Hopefully he'll learn that you can and should pass it when three defenders follow you to the rim. His strength is driving to the hoop, but the league has caught on to that, sending plenty of help to prevent easy lay-ups. Jonny makes some low-percentage shots, but that doesn't mean he should keep taking them. All of Bill Belicheck's non-sense has one great defense: the right decision doesn't always create the best outcome, and the best outcome doesn't always follow the right decision. Flynn will learn, as more and more of his minutes go to the much more polished Ramon Sessions. Though Flynn is not the only Wolf in need of some schooling.
If Kurt Rambis wants to come out and say that he's designing his offense to take mid-to-long-range jumpers, then I'll figuratively table my complaint, but for the moment the Timberwolves, one of the worst shooting teams in the NBA, are taking too many long two-point shots. The long two has all the difficulty of the three without any of the reward. It's the most inefficient shot in basketball (besides the desperation-heave), and most teams design their defense to force an offense into that kind of look. It's only open because the defense is inviting you to take a low-percentage, inefficient shot, keep looking. Not that the Wolves should start jacking up threes either. The only way the Wolves will break this losing streak is through the lay-up, which all of that ball-movement should create. I'm not enough of a strategist to see any easy passing lanes into the paint, but Kurt Rambis should be, and hopefully he'll pass that along to every big that's taking a 15-footer and every guard who's choosing the 18-foot stepback instead of driving the ball. In that respect, Jonny Flynn is doing something right: most of his jumpers are three-point attempts, and everything else happens near the basket, triple-teamed or not.
All in all, the Wolves are just playing too tight. NBA players have been making lay-ups all their life, yet several fast-break attempts turned into games of Tip-In as the first, second, and sometimes third player would miss the easiest shot in basketball. Fangraphs had an article today about the nature of choking. In short: consciously controlling an action that relies on muscle memory (such as shooting a lay-up) messes with the way the brain normally processes that action. So Corey Brewer and Pesch says to himself, "I have to make this lay-up," instead of just letting his muscle memory do what it's meant to do. How does that stop? Who knows. Maybe making lay-ups is a talent the Wolves lack, just like most other conceivable basketball talents.
Jonny Flynn started hot, but has cooled since and never really played like a point-guard should. Hopefully he'll learn that you can and should pass it when three defenders follow you to the rim. His strength is driving to the hoop, but the league has caught on to that, sending plenty of help to prevent easy lay-ups. Jonny makes some low-percentage shots, but that doesn't mean he should keep taking them. All of Bill Belicheck's non-sense has one great defense: the right decision doesn't always create the best outcome, and the best outcome doesn't always follow the right decision. Flynn will learn, as more and more of his minutes go to the much more polished Ramon Sessions. Though Flynn is not the only Wolf in need of some schooling.
If Kurt Rambis wants to come out and say that he's designing his offense to take mid-to-long-range jumpers, then I'll figuratively table my complaint, but for the moment the Timberwolves, one of the worst shooting teams in the NBA, are taking too many long two-point shots. The long two has all the difficulty of the three without any of the reward. It's the most inefficient shot in basketball (besides the desperation-heave), and most teams design their defense to force an offense into that kind of look. It's only open because the defense is inviting you to take a low-percentage, inefficient shot, keep looking. Not that the Wolves should start jacking up threes either. The only way the Wolves will break this losing streak is through the lay-up, which all of that ball-movement should create. I'm not enough of a strategist to see any easy passing lanes into the paint, but Kurt Rambis should be, and hopefully he'll pass that along to every big that's taking a 15-footer and every guard who's choosing the 18-foot stepback instead of driving the ball. In that respect, Jonny Flynn is doing something right: most of his jumpers are three-point attempts, and everything else happens near the basket, triple-teamed or not.
All in all, the Wolves are just playing too tight. NBA players have been making lay-ups all their life, yet several fast-break attempts turned into games of Tip-In as the first, second, and sometimes third player would miss the easiest shot in basketball. Fangraphs had an article today about the nature of choking. In short: consciously controlling an action that relies on muscle memory (such as shooting a lay-up) messes with the way the brain normally processes that action. So Corey Brewer and Pesch says to himself, "I have to make this lay-up," instead of just letting his muscle memory do what it's meant to do. How does that stop? Who knows. Maybe making lay-ups is a talent the Wolves lack, just like most other conceivable basketball talents.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)