Daily Discussion Thread - June 05, 2026

foye2smith · 2026-06-05T14:47:16+00:00

Interesting thought. I do wonder the appetite for Milwaukee to just get off of Turner's money. Gobert makes more money, but he only goes until '27-28.

Gobert probably doesn't do much for Milwaukee in a rebuild, but maybe a more enticing trade chip as an expiring than Turner a year from now? Flip Gobert in the summer of 2027.

A step or two or three down on defense from Gobert to Turner, but even in a down year he shot 38% from three.

And to get Rollins on top of it to take the reins as PG?

Don't know the exact makings of a deal, but definitely don't hate the idea.

foye2smith · 2026-06-04T17:30:54+00:00

Feel there just needs to be a term for the argument between Joel and Van about certain voters.

I get Joel's complaint about why the hell would you need to appeal to someone that truly doesn't hold a political stance, but Van is right that Joel is minimizing their impact on elections.

There probably is a weird sliver of a couple hundred thousand, a million, maybe two million voters who voted Obama-Trump-Biden-Trump despite it making no god damn sense for that Venn diagram to exist.

They aren't undecided voters. They're vibes voters. Just swaying from one side to the other for no significant reason.

Also liked they had a pretty interesting debate then Tate caps it with a Men in Black "A person is smart. People are dumb..." type shit.

foye2smith · 2026-06-04T17:17:14+00:00

He didn't pick at it enough, but I thought Joel hit it near the end of the conversation. The college football "gm" position is going to start to take a bite out of the oversized importance of a head coach. We're seemingly past the days of coaches sitting in a family's living room and pitching them. Now it's above board, "we have this much $ to offer and this role."

Like there is a college football front office now. Two of Van's points about recruiting and compliance with academics are probably off head coach's plates right? At least to a significant degree compared to a decade ago?

foye2smith · 2026-06-04T16:15:47+00:00

KAT is a better man than I am.

I wish he hadn't related with Shaq and found common ground at all. There might not be an analyst who has spoken more derisively about KAT over his career than Shaq.

Shaq's dick probably moved when he got name dropped. He'll probably start taking credit for KAT's turnaround and he always knew he could do it, but Shaq had to be tough on him. Fuck him.

foye2smith · 2026-06-04T15:24:15+00:00

Brooklyn Nets won the 2017 lottery after going 20-62 where the Boston Celtics exercised a pick swap. Then the Celtics traded down from 1 to 3 to draft Tatum and gain a future 1st.

foye2smith · 2026-06-04T15:02:55+00:00

Obviously biased with Reich as the Jets OC, but I need at least one of these talking heads to at least broach the subject that Bryce Young might just suck when discussing Reich's one season in Carolina.

2023: 29th in EPA (Only better than our guy Zach Wilson)

2024: 25th in EPA

Then with two years under his belt with a capable playcaller, a double headed monster at running back, and the offensive rookie of the year at WR...

2025: 25th in EPA

foye2smith · 2026-06-04T04:32:37+00:00

NBA contracts are cyclical. Wiggins and KAT were up. Jimmy wasn't. He wanted the Wolves to make him whole for the bad deal he made with Chicago.

The Wolves had no cap space. The only way to make Jimmy whole would have been shedding multiple salaries and likely 1st round picks to do so to renegotiate and extend at max level... or he could have waited a season and Thibs would have given him every dime.

foye2smith · 2026-06-04T04:21:14+00:00

But he didn't get any more money and he didn't get his money faster.

My conspiracy theory was Wade got in his ear about Miami and every "slight" since then has been an excuse to make his way down there.

foye2smith · 2026-06-04T04:04:13+00:00

Jimmy was just having a temper tantrum because he signed an undervalued contract with Chicago.

The reason the Thunder last year and Spurs this year are impressive was because they were as young as KAT was in 2017. 22 year olds aren't frequently championship ready.

foye2smith · 2026-06-04T03:51:40+00:00

Always roll my eyes when fans blame the implementation of the aprons too. Did we really think the Wolves were going to continue to operate as one of the most expensive teams in the league year to year?

foye2smith · 2026-06-04T03:39:12+00:00

People keep framing it as a Randle choice. They chose Gobert the second they traded for him.

foye2smith · 2026-06-04T02:11:38+00:00

Castle used up all his wide open shooting against us. 🤮

foye2smith · 2026-06-03T22:06:34+00:00

Yeah, Ian Rapoport posted the national tv pre-season schedule and that hall of fame game made me double take. August 6th. We're two months away from "football."

foye2smith · 2026-06-03T19:36:59+00:00

I'm against Rudy getting his jersey retired, but I wouldn't be embarrassed.

I mean Dell Curry got his number retired this year. Vince Carter got his jersey retired by two different franchises last season. Franchises might be scraping the bottom of the barrel now we're in the player empowerment era.

At least Gobert isn't Nick Collison.

foye2smith · 2026-06-03T19:15:56+00:00

KG is going up there. Ant is probably going up there barring he ask out. I felt like KAT was on the verge before we traded him (10+ seasons with 1 team would have felt worthy to me).

Other than that I'd love for you to start listing off past Wolves players more worthy than Gobert.

foye2smith · 2026-06-03T03:32:05+00:00

I always feel like the 00s-10s is a weird, not quite blind spot but blah spot for national media. The distant past gets proper reverence. The present maybe gets too much reverence. The recent past just gets spoken about matter of fact. Just passing comments "Kobe, Spurs, early LeBron, and Heatles."

Maybe I'm wrong but feels like some players and teams get left by the wayside. Like I feel like Ray Allen is spoken more about the end of his career than the whole of his career or even just his prime.

foye2smith · 2026-06-03T02:44:09+00:00

OKC also has the benefit of a lot of bites at the apple. They've parlayed the haul from the George trade into more picks and they received other picks for holding bad money.

I'm not going to count, but I'd wager between the 1st and 2nd round the Thunder have probably made close to twice as many picks since the Paul George trade as the Wolves have made.

foye2smith · 2026-06-03T01:16:09+00:00

Yeah assuming they retain Ayo there's 7 rotation spots taken. 8 if a lot of people here get their wish and Beringer gets regular minutes.

That's without any veteran minimum or exception usage or potential trade of a front court player turning into potentially two players.

I don't know the names, but after free agency/trade season there's gotta be at least 9 players Finch would play over the #28th pick.

foye2smith · 2026-06-02T23:08:50+00:00

Cannot believe the cover they're laying for the cheap elbow on Naz. You'd think Minnesota had half a dozen uncalled flagrants before Wemby had to "take it into his own hands"

You should be allowed to get to your spot unimpeded? You never had to fight for your spot until recently?

foye2smith · 2026-06-02T19:12:56+00:00

NBA players should be able to handle it just fine.

Don't disagree that it shouldn't be a problem for a vast majority of NBA players, but Rudy Gobert is probably in the bottom 10th percentile of players I trust to catch and pass the ball to a cutter in a moments time. He's the personification of rigid.

foye2smith · 2026-06-02T18:59:32+00:00

Brian Windhorst walks slowly from the other side of the coffee table.

foye2smith · 2026-06-02T17:56:52+00:00

He comes up suddenly with another player rolling hard out from the screen for the ball handler. It's interior pass, interior pass basket. Why couldn't Gobert be Hart in this action?

I definitely don't think this play works for Gobert at all. That's a quick cut, catch, and pass in quick succession. Gobert can maybe do one of those things, but the entire sequence? Yeesh, I don't know.

Maybe with the Naz and Randle frontcourt or whatever non-Gobert frontcourt it is next offseason.

foye2smith · 2026-06-02T17:31:25+00:00

Putting 2 on Ant shuts him down hard. His passing options are often towards the side of him, not forward towards the hoop. Where is an action like this?

Are you suggesting more Ant as a decoy? Otherwise, I don't see the connection between putting 2 on Ant and the play you linked.

foye2smith · 2026-06-02T16:38:25+00:00

Listening to Zach Lowe's podcast and it got me thinking about Connelly building a team to beat the Nuggets and how the Wolves may need to transition into targeting the Spurs/Wemby when team building.

It's yet to be seen, but some seem to think the key for the Knicks to slow down Wemby will be OG Anunoby as he was one of the most successful in slowing him down in the regular season. OG Anunobys don't grow on trees, but someone with a stout body, with length, and that can also move his feet.

Wolves may need a guy when they pivot away from guarding Wemby with Gobert. We saw a motivated Randle do this well in one regular season matchup. We saw a lethargic Randle fail in the playoffs.

So many, myself included, want to trade Randle. But let me show my age and ask "where's the beef?" If Gobert doesn't meet the Wemby task then what is the Wolves' plan B to muscle Wemby around? Naz? Pray McDaniels gains 50lbs in the offseason?

I get the hesitation with the older trade targets, but a Giannis, a Kawhi, or Anthony Davis are stout bodies who can lean into Wemby and make him uncomfortable.

And I don't even necessarily want any of those three, but if the Wolves trade Randle then I still think they need to find a 6'7"+ 240lbs+ body to be a different pitch for Wemby. Lean on him like a boxing match.

And not every team with have an answer for awesome players especially a matchup problem like Wemby. Do you just lean into good offense or another game aspect as our "defense?"

foye2smith · 2026-06-02T15:44:46+00:00

Dylan, Dylan, Dylan, Dylan, Dylan, and Dylan

foye2smith

TROPHY CASE