They sure missed Jimmy Buckets tonight.

Deng with the massive game tonight. He is back!

They thumped the Spurs. Wiggins was the only player who played like shit. That's not a surprise to anyone. Neither should their 7-2 record without your boy be a surprise.

Bad teams always go on small runs when there are midseason coaching changes. The Wolves are worse without Butler but Covington and Saric are decent and Rose is still playing very well. And Thibodeau is obviously a great coach.

I think Butler was holding them back with his antics. The team looks better in pretty much every way besides Wiggins. Obviously the resurgence of Rose with an outside shot doesn't hurt.

What happened to Rose? Why only 4 shot attempts?

What happened to Rose? Why only 4 shot attempts?

This all just sounds like Towns was pouting like a baby when Butler was here.

Zack Lowe hyping your boy up:

1. Karl-Anthony Towns, beasting
Remember Towns slinking to the corners even with James Harden on him during last season's first round? Yeah, those days ended with the Jimmy Butler trade. Towns is absolutely beasting -- sealing defenders early in the shot clock, and hooking nifty passes all over the floor when opponents send help:


Since the Butler trade, Towns has posted up 19 times per 100 possessions -- the most in the league over that span, and a huge jump from his pre-trade number (12.5), per Second Spectrum tracking data. His efficiency on the block has skyrocketed; Minnesota is averaging almost 1.2 points per possession on any trip featuring a Towns post-up, typically a top-20-ish mark, per Second Spectrum.

There are still wrinkles to iron out. Towns settles for blah position outside the paint now and then. He commits a lot of turnovers, including push-offs and other bulldozing offensive fouls when he starts too far from the hoop.


But the raw material of an unstoppable inside-out force is here. Towns can face up bulkier defenders, blow by them, or loft jumpers from anywhere. He can bully smaller dudes. He's a skilled passer when he decides to be. He has one silky go-to move -- his jump hook -- and some counters.

He's trying on defense now too, and you might be shocked to hear this, but trying really helps! Opponents are shooting just 49.5 percent at the rim with Towns nearby since the trade, a Gobertian number. He's grabbing more boards and boxing out instead of chasing every potential blocked shot like a cat swatting at birds; Minnesota's once-pathetic defensive rebounding rate has crept close to league average since the deal -- including with Towns on the floor.

This version of Towns can anchor a franchise, and develop into a top-five overall player.

Thibodeau working his magic

This all just sounds like Towns was pouting like a baby when Butler was here.

Of course. It takes elite coaches to get bad character guys like that to hustle though.

Its hard to play with Jimmy Butler. He is a ball stopper that is only effective on clear outs. And you have to run screen roll in order for him to be effective.

Butler told the franchise he was going to play when he felt like it.

Thanks for the signature.

Derrick Rose: "I have a lot of confidence in myself. Thibs was just the coach that believed in me. He jump-started my career again and for that I'll always be thankful, but for everybody that think that it's going to stop, kill yourself."

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