Be sure to come back tomorrow for Checking In With Coach Ociepka-Los Angeles for his thoughts and analysis from this game.
The most important thing that new head coach Randy Wittman has begun to accomplish is instilling new life and confidence into Mike James. With “bust” talk lingering over his head lately, James has been aggressive on both ends of the court and his three-point shooting has also improved. This began in the Portland game when Coach stayed with James in the fourth quarter, even though his play through the first three quarters did not warrant it. As stated then, Coach seemed to be telling James from game one that “I have faith in you.” Hopefully, that will continue.
No Timberwolves player is looking forward to coming home more than Randy Foye. He has had a rough trip offensively, but he is still getting starter minutes, learning from each game. His playmaking ability has also shown signs of improving, which was one of the biggest weaknesses in his game to start the season. Foye did have a few big shots in the fourth quarter, he needs some love from the hometown fans.
What many will be watching for will be which guard Coach Wittman will go with in the fourth quarter. On a rare night like this when Mike James has it going for the most part, does James stay in or does the clutch rookie, Randy Foye, get the nod? Or, in the best of both worlds, do both of them play alongside Hassell, sitting Davis in the fourth as his defense can not always be trusted?
In true superstar form, Kevin Garnett set the tone early for the Wolves. He was not going to allow his team to lose tonight. It is on nights like these where Garnett is rolling, Mike James is aggressive and the team is playing defense that makes one wish for that consistency that we have heard about all season. Play like this on most nights will lead to more checks in the win column.
Coach Wittman showed in this game that he is able to make on the fly decision-making, which, to some, was a weakness of Dwane Casey’s. By changing the substitution pattern in the second half, bringing Smith instead of Madsen off the bench, he showed that a player can earn more minutes through solid play. Although Mark Blount was in foul trouble, it is still scary when Smith and Madsen are on the floor together, but Garnett had to get rest for the fourth quarter.
The biggest downside to this game was the lack of production out of Ricky Davis. Although Coach Wittman is doing exactly as needed by sitting Davis when he is playing poorly. Marko Jaric certainly can be a liability at times with his turnovers seemingly coming in bunches, but when Jaric is playing well he is the Wolves X factor. Both positively and negatively, Marko Jaric’s play off the bench is a determining factor in each and every game.
Minnesota took a punch in the mouth from the Clippers, losing the lead after being up ten points. As was stated at the half, were the Clippers turnovers due to Minnesota’s defense or LA’s bad play? Starting the season off well in close games, Minnesota has faltered recently in that department. Hopefully, a win like this against the Clippers can get them back on track.
On an off-note, Craig Smith is quickly gaining on Troy Hudson for the worst hairdo on the team.
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