RIP Flip Saunders.

I’ve been doing a lousy job of updating this blog. Life got in the way I guess. I’m not happy about it exactly, but there’s nothing to do now but try and get better.

I was at the Bulls game on Saturday. My seat was incredible.

There were at least ten TPups fans there. I even saw a Tyus Jones shirsey on a kid that was 10 or so.

I wanted to sit behind the Pups’ bench because I wanted to be able to pay attention to the team during breaks. I thought KAT seemed a little bit removed from what was going on. I’m not Bill Simmons. I’m not an “expert” on these things, but KG was definitely trying to work with and talk to Dieng and KAT on breaks, and KAT was paying attention for the most part, but not as enthusiastically as I would’ve liked. I’m not saying he should be jumping around, and nobody is as intense as “Da Kid”, but all the same, he had his eyes on the video board more than I wanted. That said, he had a helluva game, so whatever. Do you big man.

The defense was awesome. Holding Chicago to 4 points over the last 6 minutes and zero points in overtime is no small thing for the club. I think that that is especially true given who was on the court. Like in the Laker game it was the young guns again. I’m happy with Sam Mitchell for sticking with that plan. Let the kids figure out how to win on their own. KG came in for the last defensive possession, but other than that it was young guys getting stops.

——— Pregame Thoughts ——-

On tap tonight, the Hawks have the best DJ in the League. Too bad all of the commercials on League Pass mean that I am SOL for most of the good stuff. I guess I’ll have to settle for Wiggins vs Bazemore and KAT vs Horford. I think I’ll be able to manage.

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The young pups built a 30 point first half lead on the back of some decent defense and some good bounces, as ATL missed a bunch of open looks. The Wolves shot lots of long 2s, and although that style of basketball is going to be unsustainable over the course of the season, the team was sharing the ball, playing hard, and playing like a team #WeOverMe . They were uptempo, and doing intelligent basketball things, like pressing their advantage in the post before the Hawks defense had time to get set up.

Meanwhile Andrew Wiggins was everywhere. He was active on defense, using his size advantage to compensate for being slightly slower than Kent Bazemore.

22’s athleticism was on display on both sides of the floor.

It was an incredible half of offensive basketball.

The second half started like fans should believe in this team. They moved the ball and created wide open shots like a team playing as though they knew they deserved a 30 point halftime lead.

KAT and Wiggins threw in a sweet little give and go for good measure.

And then… All of a sudden…. everything that worked in the first half was for shit in the second half. Open shots were clanging off the iron. The ball was still moving, but it was moving into the hands of Atlanta defenders. It wasn’t really a surprise to me. I didn’t expect the Pups to win by 30. Atlanta has professionals on their team. This is a playoff tested group that has fought a lot tougher battles than their 9th game of the season at home.

The comeback was multifaceted. Horford hit 3s, Millsap hit 3s and had a nice spinning dribble drive, and the speed of the backcourt was shutting down passing lanes and totally disrupting the Pups’ offense. A 34 point lead shrunk to 23. It felt like less. The Hawks backcourt can be electric. Bazemore, Teague, and Schroeder are quick smart players. Those three, along with Thabo Sefalosha are a legitmately scary defensive backcourt.

Meanwhile, the crowd was willing their team back into the game. Pretty soon there were 2 minutes to go in the 3rd and everyone was standing at Phillips Arena. Bad turnovers and missed open jumpers had the lead down to single digits going into the 4th. I was ready to chalk it up as a learning experience. Growing pains for a young team on the road letting the home crowd into it with some sloppy play, and shoddy defense.

Atlanta tied the game in the 4th quarter, and Sam Mitchell did the only thing that made sense. He went back to the franchise. He put the ball in the hands of 22. Wiggins delivered. He drove to the rim, took contact and finished through traffic.

He also punished the Hawks for daring to put smaller defenders on him. He played like a star.

Wiggins is going to be deadly when he starts getting calls…. @TWolvesArmy — Chris Buechler (@buechlerchris) November 10, 2015

Not to be outdone, Karl-Anthony Towns held it down on the defensive end. Playing expert level help defense and swatting smaller players that dared enter the lane.

Atlanta missed their last 8 shots.

I think I love the fist pump as much as the block. The kid was fired up. So much for being disengaged. What moron said that earlier in this post?

A 117-107 win on the road is an awesome result. Two wins in a row versus Eastern Conference playoff teams is an accomplishment. I know that there are going to be growing pains, but this victory felt like a big step in the right direction.

———– Post game notes and such ————-

The second team defense was an abomination.

Zach LaVine looked like a point guard tonight. He did not look like a point guard against Chicago. It makes me think that he favors playing against smaller guards. He needs to improve defensively. I think he should try to be more physical, use his size to his advantage on both sides of the court.

Bjelica!!! I love this dude. Might have to think of a nickname for him. He showed his mettle as a professional tonight. He hit 2 big 3 piont baskets that seemed to settle the kids down a bit, especially as the lead was dwindling. He got taken advantage of on defense, especially against Paul Millsap, but there is no shame in that. Millsap is a tough cover.

Nice to have Kevin Martin back. It’s frustrating how long it takes for him to load up a jumper, but he hit a tough runner, and some open 3s, creating some space for the young pups.

Rubio was aggressive early again. He didn’t have a great shooting night ultimately, but he doesn’t have to be great. He has to be good enough to keep teams honest. He was that tonight on 4-10 shooting.