We discuss how the Minnesota Lynx aced the 2023 WNBA Draft, the Timberwolves' wild end to the regular season, and why the Gopher men's hockey team needs to change its approach.
Lynx Ace the 2023 WNBA Draft
Round 1, Pick 2: Diamond Miller, Maryland
Potential to play point guard in the WNBA, especially with Cheryl Reeve as her coach
Reeve made me look a fool when she turned Moriah Jefferson into a competent point guard
She’s no longer with the team
Can shoot over almost any guard at 6’3”
Averaged 19.8 PPG in the tourney and had 24 against South Carolina
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Round 1, Pick 12: Maïa Hirsch, France
6’5” 19-year-old paint presence
Help replace rebounding gap left by Sylvia Fowles
Not expected to play this year, which is a smart pick because…
The Lynx have 14 players on the roster
Kiana Williams, Stephanie Watts, Maya Dodson are all signed to training camp contracts, but those cuts leave room for just one draft pick to make the team
Not an uncommon occurrence
The Lynx got their expected pick, Dorka Juhász, at #12 early in the second round
6'5" paint presence from Hungary who can rebound and score
Nearly averaged a double-double with UCONN
Brea Beal, shooting guard out of South Carolina, fell to 24th, where the Lynx nabbed her thanks to a trade with Las Vegas
Rated the 13th-best player available in the 2023 WNBA Draft
Best perimeter defender and maybe the best all-around defender available in the draft
Held the players she's defended to 28-percent shooting, per Holly Rowe, to whom she called herself "a dog"
Anthony's favorite draft pick
Improved three-point shooting significantly this season
Much more likely a veteran Lynx player is released to retain her
In other WNBA news, there will be more chartered flights per The GIST
Regular season games where teams play back-to-backs and all playoff games will be chartered
Timberwolves End Regular Season as Only They Can
Likely lost their two best defenders for the playoffs
Jaden McDaniels lost his shit and broke his hand punching a wall after being called for a second phantom foul early in the finale against the Pelicans
Rudy Gobert threw a punch at Kyle Anderson after being called the B-word
Team suspended him for Lakers’ game
Can men just stop using the B-word as an insult already?!
If it came down to it, would you rather have Anderson or Gobert play for you?
“I’m not so used to Kyle’s approach from a veteran standpoint,” Nickeil Alexander-Walker said in March. “He’s very blunt. I think in today’s NBA, a lot of guys tiptoe and he doesn’t at all with anybody, so that’s respectable. I think it’s needed because the accountability part that he provides for us, outside of Mike, being that older guy that has to lead, it’s good to have him.”
Timberwolves will play at the Lakers on Tuesday at 9 p.m. CST
Wolves are seven-point underdogs
Minnesota won two of three in the regular season but most recently lost 123-111 on March 31
Anthony Edwards was just returning from injury
If they win, they’ll play Memphis
If they lose, they’ll host the winner of Wednesday’s game between Oklahoma City and New Orleans
If they win they’ll play Denver
Gophers Lose NCAA Men’s Hockey Championship Game
It’ll be at least 21 years between titles for the Golden Gophers
As a former ice maintenance technician and Zamboni pilot, Anthony can confirm that if these games are going to be played in the afternoon, they CANNOT be played in Florida
Ice gets too soft too fast, slowing the skaters and putting the puck on edge
Disadvantage for fast teams who rely on breakaways like the Gophers
But that’s not why Minnesota lost
Minnesota was outcoached and outplayed
Quinnipiac coach Rand Pecknold, in his 30th season, assembled a better team and employed a better style for tournament play
He was hired in 1994 for $6,700 per year and taught high school to earn extra money, according to Front Office Sports
The Gophers couldn’t win a faceoff, and when it comes down to one game for your life against an equally desperate opponent that’s almost as skilled, faceoffs and fitness can decide games
The Bobcats were better conditioned, as indicated by their puck possession in the third period
Minnesota needs to get back to playing the Minnesota style of hockey that the University of Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs employ
Defense. Goaltending. Faceoff specialists. Dump and chase, physical Minnesota hockey.
Fewer NHL Draft picks and more glue guys
Fewer scoring defensemen and more possession players
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