[Copper]

yes I was also pissed at the exit the cameraman took from the game, after the block he stayed at our end while the ball was gone and Evans was apparently throwin it down....all I saw was the tech for rim hangin. It was good to see some energy from the bench and to see the bench tryin to play D instead of just takin it outta the basket and inbounding each time.

[arenas809]

Nice poke from Amir Johnson tonight...

[ChrisWoj]

Originally Posted by arenas809

Nice poke from Amir Johnson tonight...

I was rather a fan of the hustle steal and quick long pass that made it possible from #31.


-Chris.

[JoeD]

I didn't get to see the second half very well because I watched that from the gym imbetween sets so maybe I'm missing something, but it seemed like Dupree was excellent with every opprotunity he had. From time to time I check out how he is doing and it usually seems he gets a DNP, or he is in a combined 2 minutes in 20 second gaps where his expectations include inbounding the ball and playing defense.
How does a team like the timberwolves play him less than we did under Brown last year? IMO he could be starting instead of Hassell, or atleast a often used backup to him or Wally. Averaging 6.1 mpg and playing in only 21 games seems very unfair. Is there some injury I don't know about?

I thought getting traded to Minnesota was unfair to Dupree although I understand why we did it. I thought it might actually be better for his career, but if he isn't even getting a shot in Minnesota no one will ever give him a shot again.

Last year under Brown when Delfino came out, he went in. After his role was adjusted he started getting better and better. He supposedly stayed later after practices than anyone else last year, every night. Then Delfino returns and he goes to the IR.
Then Dumars decides to put him on the playoff roster and keep Delfino out, and he is activated against the Bucks. He scores 20 points in 18 minutes to lead the Pistons, being efficient in the extreme. I think he had a block and a good share of rebounds too, but the pistons site isn't loading the 2004-05 schedules and scores for me atm so I can't check.
So Dumars makes the decisions on Dupree, he proves himself worthy ATLEAST a chance to see if it was a fluke but Brown never played him again. Dupree keeps a incredibly good attitude through out, and is the teams biggest supporter from the bench.
So the next we see him is in the preseason. Before we get to see him there is speculation that he is the odd man out. He surprises many with his play and to quote Laimbeer "That's the last we should see of him in the paper regarding trades or cuts" (or something similar, but that was the gist). Still he doesn't get to play every game even though it's the preseason. He was being efficient on offense. He wasn't even bad at getting his own shot although that isn't really what he was needed for. He was excellent as a second option on offense and getting the same type of hustle plays that we get from Mo Evans. His defense was even better. He was starting to rack up blocks in the preseason and led us from his respective position in that category.
The last game he plays with us he plays 14 minutes, goes 3-3, gets 5 rebounds (2 offensive) and had a blocked shot on Josh Howard after frustrating him with his defense while he was in. Dupree performed in my mind better than Delfino and Evans in the preseason, and although Evans had better numbers, IMO what Dupree did was not preseason fluff but something that he'd be just as capable of in real games, where as Evans was inflated stat-wise in the preseason.

He seems like a perfect role player to me. But since he ran into bad luck under Brown, and then we were inflated in his position and traded him to a team that apparently doesn't want to give him a shot he may struggle to stay in the league.

[Austin Kent]

MINNEAPOLIS -- The night started with a few simple waves and nods of acknowledgement.

But when Flip Saunders was announced as the head coach for the opposing team Tuesday night, the Target Center crowd rose to its feet and gave him a standing ovation, the closest resemblance of a sendoff for Saunders, who was fired almost a year ago after 10 years as head coach.

Minnesota's Kevin Garnett, like a long-lost son to Saunders, capped the moment when he jogged across the court, slapped hands and embraced Saunders.

Free Press

What a quiet reuinion.

[MLKG]

Dupree did the best thing for himself and for us. He played well enough in the preseason that he developed some trade value.

Now we have a nice mid second round pick out of it. I don't know, to me, a shot at getting someone like Dee Brown, James White, Taquan Dean, or Allen Ray sounds a hell of a lot more appealing than seeing what suit Dupree is going to where to the next game.

[JoeD]

I don't really watch those guys you mentioned. I assume though that whoever we draft next year is someone for 2-3 years after drafting them, and I assume we will be keeping Maxiell and Johnson atleast, so we will have practically no roster space.

I said I understand why we made the move on Dupree, but that doesn't mean I can't consider it unfair at the same time. The thing we did that bothers me is not give him a chance to prove himself last year. If what he did after being activated (efficient 20 pts off the bench etc, along with practicing very hard) isn't enough to make yourself worth further chances to prove yourself I don't know what is. Because Brown never played him again (not counting 20 second stints...) Dumars could not evaluate him properly, like Delfino. Delfino did less to prove himself but I guess he has more potential. If Dupree could of proved himself last year we probably wouldn't of signed Mo Evans and we would of spent our money on something else. I don't know what that would of ended on but there is no doubt things went great. I love Evans and Delfino and wouldn't want Finley taking a lot of shots for us.

I thought going to Minnesota would be a good thing for him too, but they are very keen on not playing him which is what blows my mind. I'm sure he is better than what Hassell gives in his 31 minutes (9-2-2). He's better than most of their bench and the only true small forward other than Wally. In the tiny minutes he is on the floor he is not included. It seems like they have zero faith in him. I thought Brown really had no faith in him, but by comparison he had plenty. I hope he finds a more suitable team.

[slyder]

Originally Posted by JoeD

I thought going to Minnesota would be a good thing for him too, but they are very keen on not playing him which is what blows my mind. I'm sure he is better than what Hassell gives in his 31 minutes (9-2-2). He's better than most of their bench and the only true small forward other than Wally. In the tiny minutes he is on the floor he is not included. It seems like they have zero faith in him. I thought Brown really had no faith in him, but by comparison he had plenty. I hope he finds a more suitable team.

Granted, I don't watch the TWolves much. But, from what I have read over the past few years Hassell is a superb defensive player. Maybe that is overstated on the internet, and I would like to get more of an opportunity to watch the guy play before making a judgment, but that seems to be the prevailing sentiment. Obviously, his defense will not show up as clearly in the typical statistics.

I suppose I could look up his 82games statistics and analyze those, but I have a life (just kidding all you statistical junkies!)