Wolves Preseason Presser

[JNR]

We arrive to the media room to find The JNR standing in front of the media, his fingers tracing the edge of the podium. Sitting on the podium is a comically large red button. It's one of those buttons that sometimes say PANIC or SNACKS that you get at an office supply store. The one says RESET.

The JNR: The Button.

We all have access to The Button. And as we do our jobs every day, putting teams together, making gameplan decisions, discussing with each other about potential trades, we have to make the decision whether to press the button or continue with what we have. This may be a controversial opinion, but pressing the button is easy to me, even perhaps formulaic. It's harder to keep and sustain a winning team, and nearly impossible (for me, at least) to take that team over the top. It's why my playoff record is so putrid, and why there is only one banner in the Target Center.

But the Button? I've become a Button connoisseur.

He rests his hand on the button.

The JNR: This is my fifth time pressing the button. The first turned into my first successful team, with Webber, Hill, and Pack. We made two conference finals and won the division for the first time. The second time, I received Chris Bosh with the 4th pick (THANK YOU SNUGGY) and once again had several successful seasons, including two MVP years for Bosh. The third time I ended up with Andrew Wiggins with the 2nd pick and he led us to our only title. The fourth time was clearly my least successful rebuild. It was focused around Luka Doncic, Ja Morant, and Modestine Degrimonpon. We never achieved as much success as we've enjoyed in the past, and I traded both Ja and Luka this offseason.

What made this rebuild as unsuccessful as it was? Honestly, part of me thinks it's the new landscape of the league, with players being different from what they were from 1990-2014. Which doesn't make this most recent rebuild feel promising for me, but we're in it, so not much to do about it.

I do feel good about what we accomplished this offseason. We got good return for Luka and Ja, signed Odell Raspberry in free agency, and had a successful training camp. We also got an A grade in a highly respected article, which I definitely appreciate. We have three young players with good potential to pair with Odell, as well as a leader in Simon Pheonix who will teach everyone to play the right way. We also brought back Kane Jacobs, Nicolas Posner, and Richard Voelker.

As of right now, I see our starting lineup as

C: Kane Jacobs
PF: Simon Pheonix (WHY DID YOU MISSPELL HIS NAME, WHOEVER RENAMED HIM? I HATE IT)
SF: Dennis Williams
SG: Nicolas Posner
PG: Odell Raspberry

With Voelker, Daniels, Roderick, and our Timerpups providing minutes off the bench. I don't see many wins for us this season, but I'm excited for the next few seasons of growth.

Any questions?

[garbageman]

Sham Smith, Bulls.com: It's too early to say anything for sure, but between Harker, Cheatham, and Anunoby, who do you think is going to have the brightest future as a Timberwolf?

[IamQuailman]

Any truth to OG Anunoby reaching out to Webber and Bosh for advice on his game?

[TheSyndicate]

Obviously you're in a bit of a wait, see, grow mode with most of the roster. Are there any moves you ARE considering? Anyone on the block?

[JNR]

Sham Smith, Bulls.com: It's too early to say anything for sure, but between Harker, Cheatham, and Anunoby, who do you think is going to have the brightest future as a Timberwolf?

It's a tough question. Right now on pure potential grades, OG has the edge. But I really like all three.

[JNR]

Any truth to OG Anunoby reaching out to Webber and Bosh for advice on his game?

Webber was unavailable to him, but as you may know, Chris Bosh is on retainer here in Minnesota and was one of the main reasons Sabonis and Hughes flourished in camps here. As you can tell, his help with OG has been tremendous.

[JNR]

Obviously you're in a bit of a wait, see, grow mode with most of the roster. Are there any moves you ARE considering? Anyone on the block?

As the season goes on, I will probably explore the market for more of my players that could contribute to a winning roster.

[greepleairport]

Since this is a growth year, what are your main goals? Projected number of wins, stat leaders, etc?

[JNR]

Since this is a growth year, what are your main goals? Projected number of wins, stat leaders, etc?

I expect 15-20 wins. I expect Simon Pheonix to average about 21 and 11. I expected Raspberry to be second in scoring. I expect the three rookies to look rough and show lots of room for improvement.

[false9]

I remember when you drafted him, you wanted to "Boban" Luka. Having dealt him away, was it a disappointment to not hit those levels of production with Luka?

[JNR]

I remember when you drafted him, you wanted to "Boban" Luka. Having dealt him away, was it a disappointment to not hit those levels of production with Luka?

When it came down to it, I didn't have the points or patience to Boban him. It was a failing on my part.