With the return to full time of Karl-Anthony Towns, the Wolves start this season with all their strength. But while one might think that Chris Finch’s priority is to make the KAT/Gobert duo work offensively, the team having only been the 23rd offense in the NBA last year (113.3 points scored on 100 possessions), on the contrary, the head coach assured that the team’s success would come first in defense…
“It has to be. This absolutely has to be the case. I say that because we have the players to do it, on the ball, away from the ball and at the rim.” he assures The Athletic.
It is true that with Rudy Gobertthe triple best defender of the year, on coverage, but also Mike Conley, Anthony Edwards And Jaden McDaniels in the first curtain, Nickeil Alexander-Walker can also help off the bench in the area, the franchise seems well equipped to disrupt opponents.
“You have to be in the Top 10 in defense to win the title. It’s pretty constant.”explains Tim Connelly, the club’s sporting boss. “There are several ways to achieve this. You can have a group of elite defenders on the outside. We have a few. The easiest way to do this is circle protection. »
This is why the former architect of the Nuggets paid dearly to get his hands on the Frenchman last year.
“It’s the habits we haven’t yet acquired that will make the difference between a team that wins 40/45 games and a team that wins 50/55 games”
The Wolves were also the 10th defense in the NBA last season (113.1 points conceded on 100 possessions) but, for Anthony Edwards, the general size of the team can allow him to do even better.
“We are really big. Jaden (McDaniels) is 2m08 (2m06 in fact), KAT is 2m13 (2m11), Rudy too (2m16), so it should be difficult to get to the rim and be able to shoot in the paint. The opponents will therefore have to be very, very skillful at 3-points. I am proud to keep my player. Jaden too. Rudy doesn’t want to get tagged on. So I think our starting five should be very good defensively. »
But as in attack, it is undoubtedly the association between Karl-Anthony Towns and Rudy Gobert which will determine the success of the group in defense. The Frenchman preaching for both men to build good habits.
“I think it’s about understanding and starting to do things that maybe aren’t really cool, things that people watching games maybe don’t talk about, like dropping back, blocking on the rebound, that kind of stuff”explains Rudy Gobert. ” Communication. You have to make it a habit. Once we have acquired these habits, we can focus on the rest… Because in reality, it is the habits that we have not yet acquired that will make the difference between a team that wins 40/45 games and a team that wins 50/55 matches and can possibly play for something bigger.”
