Monday, February 22 - Celtics at Timberwolves
Pregame - Stevens is in Awe of T'Wolves' Talent; Talks Roster Spot
MINNEAPOLIS – If you’re a Minnesota Timberwolves fan, drop everything. Brad Stevens just made comments about your young roster that may be a sign of things to come.
“This is Oklahoma City revisited,” Stevens said ahead of tonight’s game at the Target Center, referencing the Thunder’s core of Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and Serge Ibaka, who were all homegrown through the Draft. “When you look at the talent, when you look at the people that are being built with, when you look at the (Karl-Anthony) Towns and the (Andrew) Wiggins and obviously (Zach) LaVine… that’s ultimate talent.”
Lean back, kick your feet up and have a cold one to cheers to those comments. It doesn’t get any better than that from an opposing coach who is talking about a young and building team.
The trio of Towns, Wiggins and LaVine seems to be the real deal.
Towns, the first overall pick of the 2015 Draft, is having one of the best rookie seasons in recent memory, as he enters tonight’s game with averages of 17.1 points, 10.2 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per game. His player efficiency rating is at an impressive mark of 22.9.
Wiggins, who was drafted first overall in 2014, is Minnesota’s leading scorer with an average of 20.8 points per game. That’s a spike of nearly four points from last season’s average of 16.9 per game.
LaVine, meanwhile, hasn’t put up numbers comparable to his teammates, but the world knows all about his athleticism. He wowed onlookers two seasons in a row at the All-Star dunk contest, taking home the trophy in both instances. During game action, he’s making a difference, too. He is averaging 13.0 points, 3.1 assists and 3.0 rebounds per game for the Timberwolves.
Stevens turned his mind back to Dec. 21, when these teams met at TD Garden, and he didn’t enjoy the memories that he found.
“Towns and Wiggins and LaVine all did things last time they were in Boston that just kind of made your head spin,” he said with astonishment.
Fortunately for Stevens, his players were still able to down the up-and-coming Wolves. Boston pulled out a 113-99 win as six C’s scored in double-figures.
Those on Boston’s side will hope for a similar result tonight at the Target Center. Regardless of whether the C’s win or lose, however, Timberwolves fans have a lot to be excited about thanks to Stevens’ comments.
Stevens Touches on Open Roster Spot
Boston has an open roster spot now that David Lee has been waived and moved on to the Dallas Mavericks. Stevens talked in generalities Friday evening in regard to that spot, but dove into a bit more detail this evening.
Asked what the Celtics may look to add via that open spot, Stevens responded, “I think that we’ll continue to look for versatility and we’ll continue to look for shooting if the right people become available that we think is a great fit for our team, or if we need them based on injuries or whatever the case may be.”
The coach said yet again that he has had no conversations with Danny Ainge and his crew regarding the open roster spot. However, this tidbit at least gives a view into what the C’s will look to add should they choose to fill out their roster before the March 1 deadline for postseason eligibility.
- Marc D'Amico