That means the Wolves will play five times between tonight and next Sunday night at Portland. There is tonight's game at Phoenix, tomorrow night at the Clip Joint, Wednesday night at home against KG and the team in Green, Friday against Milwaukee and next Sunday at Portland.
Here is what I would like to see: Two victories. And I don't think that is unrealistic, despite the fact that three games are on the road and one of the home games is basically unwinnable.
This is a very different season than a year ago. I acknowledge that. New GM. New Coach. A ton of new players. An actual point guard. And on and on.
That said, I want this team to prove early in the season that things are different. A year ago, the Wolves beat Sacto in the season opener. And then lost eight in a row. It was the beginning of a 4-24 start to the season. It got Randy Wittman fired, but it also made the team largely irrelevant in the Twin Cities. Yes, there was a nice run in January, but the hole was very deep.
Hence, a two-win week would go a long way toward washing away the fear of another brutal start. I don't have outrageous expectations of this team. I know the Wolves won't be going to the playoffs. I know 25 victories would be a good season and 30 wins would be amazing.
Can they get two? I don't think it's impossible.
Tonight at Phoenix: The Suns aren't what they are were. They aren't an elite team and they aren't an automatic playoff team. But they aren't bad. Jason Richardson is back from suspension and Channing Frye has been an interesting addition. When the Wolves won in Phoenix last January, I thought it was one of their best outings of the season. This Suns team is better, but so are the Wolves.
Monday at Clippers: If the Wolves lose at Phoenix, this becomes a very important game. The Clippers are the Clippers (as seen by the fact that Blake Griffin couldn't even make it to the season opener before getting hurt), but they are better. They still have Baron Davis, Eric Gordon and Marcus Camby. Those are three pretty good players. They no longer have knucklehead Zach Randolph and I think that's a good thing. And I'm guessing the Rhino is going to want to play well against his former teammates. I'd like to think the Wolves can win this game, but it does scare me a little bit.
Wednesday vs. Celtics: Not much to say here. I expect this to be a lot like Friday against the Cavs. The Wolves might play hard. They might do some good things. But I expect them to get their asses kicked.
Friday vs. Bucks: This might be the most important game of the week for the Wolves. The Bucks are not significantly better than the Wolves, especially now that Charlie V and Richard Jefferson are gone. Hakim Warrick was a nice pickup and I think that Brandon Jennings will be good, but I do think the Wolves can win this game. This game is also important to me because I would like to see the Wolves make a step this year. To me, that is being able to beat most teams that are equal or a little better at home. A win here would go a long way toward showing that.
Sunday at Portland: There is no non-Wolves team in the NBA that I enjoy watching more than Portland. I love the depth and potential there. I am in the camp that says Greg Oden is going to be a great player. I still hate the Roy-for-Foye trade and think the Wolves would be a very different franchise if that move isn't made. LaMarcus Aldridge is wonderful. I can't believe Steve Blake is as effective as he is. There's the Fake Thug. I could keep going. I do wonder how they are going to keep everybody happy -- especially with Andre Miller there now. While this team might not make as big of a leap forward as some think, this is still a playoff team that plays well at home. I'll be very surprised if the Wolves can win here. If they do, it will be because they played very well.
Summary: Two wins -- including a home win against the Bucks -- would be a big step. I think it can happen. Worst case scenario is that the Wolves win one and hang very close in a couple others. A winless week? That would be a disaster.
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