Beasley 34 points off the bench
But I agree he is probably better as a 6th man in Minnesota, I think they really need him scoring off the bench right now...I am a closet Timberwolve fan and I want them to make a few moves at the deadline...1 move I would make is getting an elite defender at Small Forward, I'd target guys like Iguadola,Mbah Moute and Ariza...My second move would be to get a young shooting guard, players like Mayo and Derezon are at the top of my short list, I'd add Affalo and Harden too...basically I'd get rid of every one not named Rubio, Love, Williams and Beasley to add Mayo and Mbah Moute, if I were to make 1 final move I'd try to get Hill and Budinger from Houston...I think Memphis would part with Mayo if the Wolves offered Johnson and Tolliver... The Bucks would likely give up Luc Ricard Mbah Moute for Pekovic and Ellington... Houston would likely give up Hill and Budinger for Randolph and picks...I'll end with saying Michael Beasley and Kevin Love are key free agents and if they resign the two the Wolves have a very bright future, they need other players around them and the rookies Rubio and Williams but the pieces are in place...
Beasely is more than a bench player.. The Rockets may not be the leagues best defensive team, but he was a go to threat down the stretch and all the Rockets could do was cling to his shoulders.. He will start at the 3 for sure at some point this season. I wouldn't be surprised if he's starting from here on out. Wes hasn't done enough in his time and having Rubio, Beasely and Love in the starting lineup, sounds like a poor man's "big three"... And if all three of these guys play the rest of the season even close to how they did tonight, they will be a "big three" to be reckoned with.. If only they had a passable excuse for a 2 guard and C to go along with them...
Wes Johnson has been garbage this year. He is not making any progress.
kinda off topic, but the wolves have really good bench right now. Look at this bench over the past few games
SF/PF Beasley
PF Randolph
SG/SF Webster
C Brad Miller
PF/SF Tolliver
SG Ellington
SG/PG Barea
SF/PF Derrick Williams
C Nikola Pekovic
Minn should have tried to deal that pick harder. The team only has 4 good players and 3 of them are forwards. If they were set on keeping the pick, they should have taken Kanter, who looks like a lock to be a long-term productive big. Even as a rookie his D is strong vs. top bigs and he's one of the best rebounders on a per-minute basis in the NBA already. His O needs work, but he appears to have the tools to get there.
That said, I think Williams will be a very good player--possibly even an all star at some point. But he's not a franchise maker and Minn needs more power in the post, not another combo forward.
Wes simply is not nearly aggressive enough to be a starter. He is an athlete. He needs to be in attack mode and drive to the rim. More often than not he is settling for outside Js, which is not what his game should be. It is not a lack of ability. I think its a lack of confidence and leadership, possibly some bball IQ problem as well.
Yeah Dwill has looked lost at times and his Jumper has been non existant in alot of games, but he has had spurts where he looks like a superstar. I am sure he will put it all together in the future.... haha well at least i hope he does.
Minny is a nice team and would be better if Kahn did not take Wesley and then trade for Beasley and Webster. Two or their small forwards need to be moved for a true shooting guard. Wesley and Webster need to go. Beasley and Williams is a solid combo. Ellington is a nice bk shooting guard. Ridnour and Rubio got point on lock. Love/Tolliver/Randolph got the pf on lock. Last but least lol Darko and Niko with a small portion of Brad Miller have center.
If they can get some chemistry and move some unneccessary player Minny have a team that could take off like OKC. I can just imagine if they move Webster or Wes for another 1st rounder and took Marshon Brooks. They would have some much fire power it would be insane.
Beasley's scoring since coming back isnt even the most impressive thing in my opinion. Tonight he was unstoppable, but in the 3 games since coming back, he looks like he is consistently putting forth a genuine effort defensively. He is communicating, rotating, helping guys, helping the helpers, and rebounding. We all know that he has the ability to be a big time scorer, but if he consistently starts doing the little things, he has a chance to be what People want Melo to be.
If Beasley can average 16-22 ppg on 15 quality shot attempts, along with 4-6 rebounds, he could make the Wolves a legitimate pain in the ass to play against every night. If the Wolves can somehow package a combination built around Johnson, Webster, Williams, and Randolph and come away with either a potential top 10 pick next season or a solid SG, the Wolves could be making some noise.
Is there a way the Wolves could steal Eric Gordon or Mayo without giving up Beasley? Would Courtney Lee be an upgrade at the 2? I'm curious as to what people think the Wolves could attempt to acquire.
Trade Beasley immediately. This is as high as his stock will ever be. I'm sure the TWolves would love if some of you guys were GM's. 1 game does not a superstar make. He is a mediocre overall player who does one thing really well, but hurts you with decision-making and defense. To me, he is nothing more than a poor man's Stephen Jackson.
Let the negative points fly...
Beasley and Mayo are just very similar to me. Both players are stuck in between positions. Both played alpha dogs roles throughout high school and college, but it's not translating to the NBA. Both players don't really do much else other than shoot the ball.
I think they'd both be good as 6th man/offensive sparks off the bench. Beasley has great mismatch offense ability. Too quick for power forwards and he's slightly bigger than some small forwards.
Not saying they can't start or aren't starting caliber, but I think they'd be great in 6th man/offensive spark roles where they come in and just worry about putting up points.
Until he develops at least minimal interest in playing D, he's best as a bench player. I do think he'd easily win 6th man of the year if he embraces the role, kind of like a Ginobili or Terry kind of guy. If he's given free reign to do whatever he wants on offense, he can be a deadly weapon.
Let me just say something really crazy here just to get it out of my skin. Within the next two years I see Beasely becoming THE go-to option down the stretch for the Wolves, they have a pair of 23 year old gems at forward between him and Love and their styles have the potential to mesh superbly well. Love plays a style of game where he can play off the ball and float around and hit jumpers, that is when he is at his best. Beasely has proven that he can score on isolation consistently when presented with a matchup with a SF, his length is a tremendous weapon at the 3. Not to mention they shoot almost identical percentages from the field and from three they are both deadly threats shooting above 35% for thier careers both of them and so far this year even better(!), Love is putting them in at a rate of 40.2% and Beasely (though a lower sample size) 42.1%. Those are incredible for 6'10'' players on the same team. Now with Rubio running the point they are getting more open looks then ever, I wouldn't be surprised if those percentages don't dip very much over the course of the year. They both have to work on their passing (1.5 apg career Beasely, 1.9 apg career Love), but being young guns those numbers aren't surprising, and with the open looks they are getting I won't be the one to tell them to stop shooting..
And anyone who watched todays game cannot put the blame on the defensive effort on Beasely's shoulders (watching him play I thought he did well), the wolves as a team have improved incredibly on defense compared to previous years (the biggest problem was the fact that no 2 guard the wolves had could keep up with kevin martin... and the day before that... Kobe Bryant...).
I think the Wolves need an upgrade at shooting guard and fast...I don't see why the Grizzlies or Raptors wouldn't at least think about moving their young shooting guards, The Raptors can draft Barnes or Jeremy Lamb to play next to Johnson on the wing, same goes for The Hornets as they will be drafting high this year too, The Grizzlies are not going to keep Mayo so they could swap he and Johnson and maybe add Randolph or Tolliver too...I still think they need a perimeter defender as well as a SG, a stopper at SF to defend Durant and Company...
It would be foolish at this point to overspend on a shooting guard. The Wolves aren't winning anything this season anyway. They need to stick with who they have at this point and hope Utah makes the playoffs so they can use their #1 pick to on a SG. TheWolves have only been at this winning games deal since Christmas... no need to rush things because their current roster needs stability and time to develope as a unit.
34 points on 10/14 shooting and 12/12 from the line in 32 minutes off the bench tonight.
This was the best I have ever seen him. I think a 6th man role for him might be the best option right now. Lets go wolves!