Tom Thibodeau must be stopped
Tom Thibodeau must be stopped before he ruins Karl Towns, Andrew Wiggins and Jimmy Butler's careers.
The three cornerstone players fueling the Wolves' first legitimate playoff push in 14 years are going to break down under the burden Thibs is currently heaping on them, and there are signs of cracks already.
Towns (35.4 mpg), Wiggins (37 mpg) and Butler (37.4 mpg) are all among the top 15 in minutes played this season, according to ESPN.com. Jeff Teague and Taj Gibson, the remaining two starters, aren't exactly getting a breather, as they are both averaging well above 30 minutes per game.
With the NBA becoming more aware each season of, not only the importance of advanced nutrition but the crucial need for rest, it has become commonplace for stars to take multiple games off over the course of the season in order to rest.
It's a trend started by the San Antonio Spurs (shocker) and has been adopted by almost every organization since. Coaches, while reluctant to sit capable stars and increase the chance of picking up a loss, have all come to understand the long-term health benefits for the players.
Except for Tom Thibodeau.
The insane number of minutes Thibs is current subjecting his starters to is cruel, ill-advised, and unfortunately, not a new development for the old-school Thibodeau.
When he was the coach of the Bulls, Thibs absolutely drained his players until they had nothing left. His reign of terror from 2011-2015 in Chicago saw poor Luol Deng average 38.6 minutes per game, Jimmy Butler average 38 minutes per game and Joakim Noah average a measly 33 minutes per game.
Three out of Thibs' last six coaching seasons has seen one of his players lead the league in minutes. As for the three seasons that did not occur, Deng was second in minutes, Towns fourth and Butler second. This is malpractice.
Thibs' insistence on overtaxing his starters was the main reason for friction between him and the front office, which ultimately led to his parting of the ways with the franchise (basically a fancy way of saying fired).
By the time new Bulls head coach Fred Hoiberg jumped on board, the damage had already been done. Noah and Deng are now shells of their former selves. The sad thing is that each is only 32 years old, an age where players may have lost some of their athleticism but should still be competent. Well, thanks to years of emptying the tank, Deng and Noah look like walking corpses whenever they do come on the floor, which is a rare occurrence these days since coaches know they have nothing left to give.
As for the Wolves, their stars are still young. Butler just turned 28, and Towns and Wiggins are babies at only 22 years old, but some ominous signs are already emerging.
Check out what Butler said to Fox Sports North sideline reporter Marney Gellne after a recent victory where he again played north of 40 minutes:
"Yeah, we've got to talk to Thibs. These 40-minute games are starting to add up."
Wiggins also admitted the minutes load was getting to be "a lot."
"I don't really get tired. I'm only 22, so I could run forever - for now."
When a player who is only 22 years old is complaining about the minutes load, that's when you know things are getting out of hand.
Not only do the insane minutes speak for themselves, but the Wolves' on-court product severely deteriorates throughout the course of the game. Their sharp decline is truly staggering.
Throughout the first 3 quarters of a game, the Wolves are excellent, outscoring their opponents by an impressive 13 points per 100 possessions. But in 4th quarters, the team completely implodes, getting outscored by more than 11 points per 100 possessions, making them the worst 4th quarter team in the league by a mile.
That steep dip in production is staggering, but it's not entirely surprising when all of the Wolves players are out of gas physically. Seeing 32-year-old Taj Gibson struggle to even make it past half court is tough to watch, not to mention the whole team looking completely drained during the most important time in a game.
Sure, the Wolves bench isn't doing them any favors, but that is Thibs' fault to begin with since he also holds the title of President of Basketball Operations. That means he serves as the team's de-facto decision maker on top of his duties as head coach, so there is no one to really stop him from subjecting his players to so many minutes.
And while the bench is subpar, Thibs has got to try something. Stagger his starters minutes more. Give Tyus Jones and Gorgui Dieng more run. Give Marcus Georges-Hunt, a wing with 3-and-D potential, a spin. Sure, the options are not appealing, but try SOMETHING.
Bottom line: his players are already breaking down and it's not even halfway through the season yet. Somebody has to stop Thibs from ruining a promising core, but who will that be?
The three cornerstone players fueling the Wolves' first legitimate playoff push in 14 years are going to break down under the burden Thibs is currently heaping on them, and there are signs of cracks already.
Towns (35.4 mpg), Wiggins (37 mpg) and Butler (37.4 mpg) are all among the top 15 in minutes played this season, according to ESPN.com. Jeff Teague and Taj Gibson, the remaining two starters, aren't exactly getting a breather, as they are both averaging well above 30 minutes per game.
With the NBA becoming more aware each season of, not only the importance of advanced nutrition but the crucial need for rest, it has become commonplace for stars to take multiple games off over the course of the season in order to rest.
It's a trend started by the San Antonio Spurs (shocker) and has been adopted by almost every organization since. Coaches, while reluctant to sit capable stars and increase the chance of picking up a loss, have all come to understand the long-term health benefits for the players.
Except for Tom Thibodeau.
The insane number of minutes Thibs is current subjecting his starters to is cruel, ill-advised, and unfortunately, not a new development for the old-school Thibodeau.
When he was the coach of the Bulls, Thibs absolutely drained his players until they had nothing left. His reign of terror from 2011-2015 in Chicago saw poor Luol Deng average 38.6 minutes per game, Jimmy Butler average 38 minutes per game and Joakim Noah average a measly 33 minutes per game.
Three out of Thibs' last six coaching seasons has seen one of his players lead the league in minutes. As for the three seasons that did not occur, Deng was second in minutes, Towns fourth and Butler second. This is malpractice.
Thibs' insistence on overtaxing his starters was the main reason for friction between him and the front office, which ultimately led to his parting of the ways with the franchise (basically a fancy way of saying fired).
By the time new Bulls head coach Fred Hoiberg jumped on board, the damage had already been done. Noah and Deng are now shells of their former selves. The sad thing is that each is only 32 years old, an age where players may have lost some of their athleticism but should still be competent. Well, thanks to years of emptying the tank, Deng and Noah look like walking corpses whenever they do come on the floor, which is a rare occurrence these days since coaches know they have nothing left to give.
As for the Wolves, their stars are still young. Butler just turned 28, and Towns and Wiggins are babies at only 22 years old, but some ominous signs are already emerging.
Check out what Butler said to Fox Sports North sideline reporter Marney Gellne after a recent victory where he again played north of 40 minutes:
"Yeah, we've got to talk to Thibs. These 40-minute games are starting to add up."
Wiggins also admitted the minutes load was getting to be "a lot."
"I don't really get tired. I'm only 22, so I could run forever - for now."
When a player who is only 22 years old is complaining about the minutes load, that's when you know things are getting out of hand.
Not only do the insane minutes speak for themselves, but the Wolves' on-court product severely deteriorates throughout the course of the game. Their sharp decline is truly staggering.
Throughout the first 3 quarters of a game, the Wolves are excellent, outscoring their opponents by an impressive 13 points per 100 possessions. But in 4th quarters, the team completely implodes, getting outscored by more than 11 points per 100 possessions, making them the worst 4th quarter team in the league by a mile.
That steep dip in production is staggering, but it's not entirely surprising when all of the Wolves players are out of gas physically. Seeing 32-year-old Taj Gibson struggle to even make it past half court is tough to watch, not to mention the whole team looking completely drained during the most important time in a game.
Sure, the Wolves bench isn't doing them any favors, but that is Thibs' fault to begin with since he also holds the title of President of Basketball Operations. That means he serves as the team's de-facto decision maker on top of his duties as head coach, so there is no one to really stop him from subjecting his players to so many minutes.
And while the bench is subpar, Thibs has got to try something. Stagger his starters minutes more. Give Tyus Jones and Gorgui Dieng more run. Give Marcus Georges-Hunt, a wing with 3-and-D potential, a spin. Sure, the options are not appealing, but try SOMETHING.
Bottom line: his players are already breaking down and it's not even halfway through the season yet. Somebody has to stop Thibs from ruining a promising core, but who will that be?
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