Tag Archives: Corey Brewer

by | January 6, 2015 · 2:26 PM

Checking in with Corey Brewer as a Houston Rocket

Corey Brewer offers new teammate Dwight Howard a five

Corey Brewer offers new teammate Dwight Howard a five

Corey Brewer was always a PDW favorite. Since the Wolves traded him, they haven’t won a game. (Eds. Note: This is just an observation. The Wolves were already bad when Flip Saunders traded Brewer.) Suffice it to say, however, that some of the franchise’s few hardcore fans miss the goofiest backup point guard in Wolves history.

I haven’t followed Brewer’s performance as a member of the Houston Rockets closely he was traded on December 19th. So I decided to take a quick look and see how Brew’s transition is looking.

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by | December 19, 2014 · 2:32 PM

In Memoriam: Timberwolves Trade Corey Brewer to the Houston Rockets

brew100

It’s official: my favorite Timberwolf of all-time is gone: on Friday, the Wolves traded Corey Brewer and Ronny Turiaf to Houston for guard Troy Daniels and two second-round picks, per Yahoo! Sports.

Woj had the beat, of course:

Brewer became famous last season for receiving and dunking Kevin Love’s outlet passes and for scoring 51 points in a game in Love’s absence.

Let us briefly appreciate this Bizarre Brewer Moment in history.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vC1srGqOrK4]

But Brewer was incompatible with Wolves POBO-Coach Flip Saunders’ rebuilding plan, which is focused on shedding age and salary and acquiring young talent and assets for future trades. (Eds. Note: Brewer is also famous for owning a pet goat named Billy.)

What does the Brewer trade mean?

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by | November 29, 2014 · 1:10 PM

Jottings from the Wolves Win over the Lakers

Zach Lavine

Zach Lavine

The Wolves defeated the Lakers last night in a 120-119 barnburner at Staples Center. Kobe Bryant missed a wide-open three point shot that would’ve won the game at the buzzer.

  • Zach Lavine: Lavine made shots. The media made a lot out of his psychology in this game because he was squaring off against his childhood hero, Kobe Bryant. Lavine played by far his best game as a pro. He had 18 points in the second quarter alone (28 for the game), and shot 11-14 from the floor. He and Jeremy Lin were locked up against each other for much of this quarter, and Lavine looked confident that he could get any shot he wanted against Lin.  Lavine’s shot selection leaves plenty to be desired and maybe always will — a lot of his makes last night were of the “dribble jumper with plenty of time on the shot clock” variety — but you feel a lot better about it when the shots actually fall, and he doesn’t look surprised by the result.

A lot of times before last night, it looked like Lavine simply shoots to try to get his self going, but doesn’t really expect the ball to go in. Last night was a different story. As athletic as Lavine is, it goes to show how important timing and rhythm are for his offensive game. He was well within the flow of what was a very fast-paced game last night. Hopefully he can take away some lessons about why he was so successful last night and has looked so poorly on other nights.

But it bears emphasis: Lavine put together one of the best games that any rookie plays this season.

More below the fold…

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by | April 12, 2014 · 9:52 AM

Brewer 51

brew100

“Obviously Corey was incredible, unbelievable game. I don’t know where he works up the energy he has. I mean 45 minutes in and he’s still going strong at the end…

Really he’s just a guy who has just done his role in everything else. I don’t think they knew what to do with him. I don’t think we knew what to do with them. He’s just scoring and flying around and squeezing. Using his body leading us to get through those gaps then he hits a three at the end of the first half, just banks it in. It was his night. I give him credit. He set the tone for the whole night.”

–Rick Adelman

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by | April 5, 2014 · 12:21 PM

ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE!!! (Wolves Beat LeBron, INBOX Edition)

Andy G: The Wolves took on LeBron James and the two-time defending champion Miami Heat last night, so they must’ve lost, right?

No!

For the first time in approximately forever the Wolves were victors over a team with LeBron James on it. (Eds note: I think Dave or Jim on the broadcast said the last time was 2005, back about when ‘Bron was going to war with Agent Zero and Caron Butler’s Wizards in the Playoffs. How long ago does that seem?) It took a pair of overtimes, some Kevin Love and even Chase Budinger heroics (!) and every ounce of Ricky Rubio’s floor-generaling stamina, but they eked it out.

They eked it out, of course, on a missed Corey Brewer backwards alley-oop layup attempt… in which he was fouled for some reason! He made one of the free throws. Crazy ending to a crazy game.

I enjoyed it tremendously.

Your thoughts?

Patrick J: The Brewer “shot” (at about 3:20 in those highlights) was one of the most amazing I’ve ever seen that didn’t go in. You know how Corey does inexplicable stuff all the time and it’s sort of endearing and sort of grating? This was one of those times. I still don’t know (1) how he even got in position to get that shot, (2) how he formulated the idea that the shot could look like that, (3) how he managed to draw a foul call on such an ill-advised shot. But that’s just Brew. Continue reading →

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by | February 10, 2014 · 8:00 AM

Wheelman Presents: The Punch-Drunk Podcast (PDP), Vol. 1

In which we discuss Timberwolves injuries and their implications; the upcoming schedule; and longer term implications (TRADE DEADLINE). (!)

[Recorded 2/9/2014]

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Video

Wolves 113, LAKERS 90

I spilled a lot of virtual ink yesterday about the Wolves season to date. They went on to pummel the Lakers, defeating LAL by the most points in franchise history and for the first time in years. Three pointers by the Kevins, Outlet bombs to Brewer, pesky backcourt defense, and a Ricky Rubio triple double all factored into the win. Oh, and Nick Young’s shot selection.

Another big one tonight at the same arena, against a much better Clippers team.

***

Update (11:05 A.M. CST): It’s a cliche , but we’d be remiss not to honor Ricky’s triple-double (highlights here) by giving it the proper Ice Cube  treatment (see 1:18) – Patrick J

It Was A Good Day (NSFW, depending where you W)

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by | November 11, 2013 · 9:21 AM
by | November 1, 2013 · 12:27 PM

INTEL REPORT: Thunder vs. Timberwolves

If you see this man in Minneapolis tonight, don't look directly at his shirt or you might go blind.

If you see this man in Minneapolis tonight, don’t look directly at his shirt or you might go blind.

The undefeated Minnesota Timberwolves, fresh off of a season-opening victory in overtime against the Orlando Magic, take on a more formidable opponent in the Oklahoma City Thunder tonight at Target Center.

You should watch it if you want to see how the team responds to the trouble it had putting away a lesser opponent, and to see how they stack up against one of the better teams in the Western Conference.

No, Russell Westbrook won’t be walking through that door–check that, maybe he’ll be walking through that door (I’m not sure if he’s traveling with the team, but if he is, just look for the athletic-looking guy limping around in borderline absurd technicolor hipster garb–you can’t miss him.)

A few quick dashes about tonight’s tilt before my lunch break ends:

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by | October 30, 2013 · 1:36 PM

INTEL REPORT: Magic at Timberwolves (The Season Opener Edition)

Orlando appears to be keeping its eyes on the prize this season: The 2014 NBA Draft

Orlando appears to be keeping its eyes on the prize this season: The 2014 NBA Draft

The Wolves open their season tonight in Minneapolis against the already-tanking-for-Wiggins hard-charging  Orlando Magic, who’re 0-1 after last night’s season-opener loss to Indiana.

(Eds. Note: Is there anyway to figure out how many fantasy teams there are this season named “Tanking for Wiggins” or some variant of it? I don’t know how many fantasy teams there are total, but I’d still take the over on at least 10k “Tanking for Wiggins” teams this year. Maybe 15.  There were probably fantasy league owners everywhere trying desperately to change their league rules at the last minute to allow them to use their auction money to bid on the rights to the “Tanking for Wiggins” team name instead of on draft-able  players.)

Anyway, there’s a lot of interesting stuff to watch for, much of which could provide information on the questions we asked in our season preview post about the team’s starting lineup, defense, offense, and rotations.

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by | August 22, 2013 · 8:31 PM

Brewer the Winner

brew

Corey Brewer went to The State Fair today. @TWolves_PR covered it in detail, hashtagging #BrewerOnAStick through Corey’s adventures around The Great Minnesota Get-Together. If there was an unofficial “welcome back” for Brew, this was probably it. Brew is not a star player and never will be, but it’s hard not to spew positive thoughts when talking about the guy. He always smiles, he works as hard as any player you or I have ever seen, he owns a goat, and he unquestionably demands that most intangible of characterizations:

WINNER

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by | July 27, 2013 · 3:00 PM

INBOX: The “We haven’t discussed Kevin Love in a while” Edition

Kevin Love and Jonah Hill: Studies in Weight Fluctuations

Kevin Love and Jonah Hill: Studies in Weight Fluctuations

The roster is mostly set. (C’mon, Pek, sign that dotted line…) The coaching staff seems to be in place, replete with a (David) Adelman for Billy Bayno swap and Shawn Respert proxying for the late Pete Newell as the Wolves new big man coach instead of teaching Ricky Rubio how to make a jump shot.

That said, there’s a lot to be optimistic about. Rick Adelman will be back. The Wolves lost a wing, but added a pretty good one to replace him. Two or three actually, depending on how Shabazz Muhammad plays out. Most important, Kevin Love, Ricky Rubio, and others whose major, or niggling, injuries derailed the Wolves’ 2012-13 season are all reportedly healthy for 2013-14.

So now you’re looking at a rotation that might be something like this:

PG: Ricky Rubio, J.J. Barea, Alexey Shved

SG: Kevin Martin, Shabazz Muhammad, Alexey Shved

SF: Chase Budinger, Corey Brewer, Shabazz Muhammad

PF: Kevin Love, Dante Cunningham, Derrick Williams (!)

C: Nikola Pekovic, Gorgui Dieng, Chris Johnson

Our team should be pretty good.

That’s a nice segue into today’s edition of Punch-Drunk Wolves’ INBOX feature.

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by | July 10, 2013 · 8:35 PM

How Well Will Corey Brewer “Blend” With The Timberwolves?

Corey Brewer is taking his smile to Minneapolis

Corey Brewer is taking his smile to Minneapolis in 2013-14

The Wolves are reportedly on the verge of acquiring veteran wing (and former T-Wolves lottery pick) Corey Brewer. Apparently it will be a three-year deal worth somewhere in the neighborhood of $15-million.

So now you’re looking at a rotation that might be something like this:

PG: Ricky Rubio, J.J. Barea, Alexey Shved, Will Kahnroy

SG: Kevin Martin, Shabazz Muhammad, Alexey Shved

SF: Chase Budinger, Corey Brewer, Shabazz Muhammad

PF: Kevin Love, Dante Cunningham, Derrick Williams (!)

C: Nikola Pekovic, Gorgui Dieng, Chris Johnson

Andy G: First things first:

BREWER’S BLEND!

I never thought Brew would be back after he mildly disappointed as a seventh overall draft pick, and was given away in a trade that brought back Anthony Randolph.

But according to today’s reports, he is back — back for the relatively hefty sum of $15 Million.

Your thoughts?

Patrick J: This is a solid pickup for Flip & Co. The Wolves defense was in a bad place after the Kirilenko divorce. The big question was, who would guard the wings? Certainly not Kevin Martin. And as much as we’re loathe to admit, Ricky Rubio probably can’t guard both backcourt positions by himself. And now, Brewer is back and is likely to fill a position of need–his lanky frame and hawk quickness enable him to guard most NBA shooting guards. So there’s his niche. Brewer can play the role we desperately need played.

The question that still stands out in my mind is, where does Brewer fit into next season’s rotation? Does he fill Kirilenko’s vacant starting position? Or come off the bench?

Andy G: He comes off the bench. I doubt Coach Adelman (or anybody on the Wolves’ side) wants to see starting floor time shared by Ricky Rubio and Brewer. It’s just not enough perimeter shooting to make up for what will inevitably be tenacious defense. That isn’t to say they’ll *never* share the floor. I’m sure they will. But I expect Martin to start at the 2 and Chase to start at the 3. Of course, like last season, all of this could be blown up by injuries. But for now, I’ve got Brewer slotted to come off the bench.

I was away from the internet when this news broke and returned to what seemed like divide of emotional reactions on the Timberwolves Twittersphere. Some are overjoyed to see a fan fave return. Some are disappointed in what might be overpaying a limited role player.

How do we FEEL about this move? Happy to see Brew return? Upset at the contract?

Patrick J: “Yes, awesome.” That’s all that really needs saying. I’m on record as saying Brewer provided some of my favorite memories as a Wolves fan. I’m glad Brew is back.

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by | April 17, 2012 · 8:59 PM

The Alumni Team

As the Wolves season inches closer to its end, (we’ve been screaming ‘uncle’ for weeks now, it seems) I’ve taken a bit more interest in some of the team’s former players, many of whom are playing meaningful roles on competitive teams.  After watching Randy Foye posterize the mighty Serge Ibaka last night on national tv (more on this, below) I thought it’d be fun to scan the league for former Timberpups making various levels of noise in their respective situations.  Without further ado, here is your 2011-12 Minnesota Timberwolves Alumni Team:

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by | February 21, 2012 · 12:53 AM

Mile Low (NUGGETS 103 , Wolves 101)

Tonight was a weird, weird, game. The play was rough and sloppy. The Wolves lost in OT.

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by | February 19, 2012 · 11:40 PM

JRUBIO (WOLVES 92, 76ers 91)

Jrue Clownin'

Tonight’s matchup with Philly turned into an interesting contest.  It was interesting because a near-capacity crowd showed up on a Sunday night even though the Sixers don’t have a “superstar” talent that typically draws big attendance.  It was interesting because it was very close for nearly the entire game.  It was interesting because Jrue Holiday and Ricky Rubio are each fascinating players in different ways.  And it was interesting because the Wolves won by a single point, in somewhat bizarre fashion.

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