It’s the starters that have been disappointing at Wolves

Eight games, a record, two sluggish wins against the Thunder and losses against the Jazz and Spurs (twice). Two weeks into this new season, it doesn’t seem unreasonable to admit that the face Wolves have put on has clearly not been the most reassuring.

After a successful 2021/22 financial year and a tumultuous summer that signaled continued progress, Minnesota’s squad is indeed not at the level expected at the start of this 2022/23 season.

There are five large Wolves primarily within the radius of the frustrations. A quintet rocked by the arrival of Rudy Gobert midway through this season and showing all the hardships in the world in two weeks to reach optimal levels. The latest example: last night’s game loss against the Suns, it was the substitutes who offered the best passes during the game. All five incumbents end with negative “+/-”…

Owners who don’t know how to play together yet

” I would just say that we haven’t seen any progress from this group yet. said Chris Finch firmly. ” To summarize, when do we get into trouble [les titulaires] is on the pitch and we have a better chance of winning when the substitutes play Anthony Edwards was solid against the Suns with 24 points and 6 rebounds, despite a “+/-” -12.

Into box account One line from the matchup against the Suns sums up the five majors’ struggles to hit the right note on a collective level: Rudy Gobert’s only one shot. The French pivot is clearly not the first choice in attack, but since the start of the season he has averaged more than 8 shots per game. His team’s starving performance in the attacking stages against the Suns clearly reflects the lack of consistency and unity among the owners.

” They share the skin, they don’t care who marks then noted “Ant” about substitutes. The Wolves’ back also highlighted a more structural problem: the lack of “range” inherent in the “high ball” association between Karl-Anthony Towns and Rudy Gobert.

On a personal level, it requires him to readjust his game, as he already mentioned earlier in the season, because he no longer has much room to work with. ” Once inside, I have no way to go up to the circle » adds the young Wolves star, who has yet to record the smallest dunk this season. ” Everyone is in the paint, so I have to improvise to get a layup. I can’t jump over everybody, I’m not a giant like Giannis [Antetokounmpo]. »

After the personnel changes made over the summer, the automaticity that the five majors acquired last season appears to be gone.

There is no miracle solution: incumbents must do better

Like D’Angelo Russell, who struggled early in the season (14 points on 39.4% and 27.4% from 3-pointers, 5.8 assists for 3.1 turnovers), the Wolves’ owners are collectively broken.

The good news is that the season is still very long and Chris Finch isn’t going to shake things up just yet. Against the Suns, even if he fails, the coach confirms that he will indeed continue to finish games with his hosts, who will have to find a solution to their ailments.

” Listen, these guys are on duty, I’m going to call them back. I’m not going to sit on my bench asking if every change was correct for the last five minutes. he claimed. ” Big five, we’ll get through this. All five are negative, crazy, serious… I don’t like it, we’ll find a solution. “Joining his coach, Anthony Edwards concludes with the owners’ commitment to finding solutions.