For those curious about Vonleh:
From canishoopus.com's midseason grade write-up today:
"Despite wildly inconsistent minutes and a box score production that is far from flashy, Noah Vonleh has been solid when given the chance this season. He isn’t the 3-point jacking, shot-hunting big man that made a mini-breakthrough for the New York Knicks last season, but he is the kind of player who often makes the team better when he is on the floor. Offensively, he has struggled to make much of an impact outside of the odd bully-ball post-up or putback layup. He is averaging 4.4 points per game, hitting 54.7 percent of his field goals. Although, his work defensively and on the glass has been a breath of fresh air for a team that has struggled to string together consistency in those areas. Only Gorgui Dieng and Robert Covington currently hold a higher D-PIPM (+0.47) than Vonleh and only Karl-Anthony Towns corrals more boards per 36 minutes (12) than him. He has excelled in David Vanterpool’s drop scheme pick-and-roll coverage, using his long arms and sound positioning to deter would-be scorers. Overall, he has been a good find. But, without consistent minutes, Vonleh fails to reach a higher mark."
Also, in trying to gauge what the media/fan buzz around Vonleh is with the Wolves, including his name in possible trades, I can report the following:
From canishoopus.com's midseason grade write-up today:
"Despite wildly inconsistent minutes and a box score production that is far from flashy, Noah Vonleh has been solid when given the chance this season. He isn’t the 3-point jacking, shot-hunting big man that made a mini-breakthrough for the New York Knicks last season, but he is the kind of player who often makes the team better when he is on the floor. Offensively, he has struggled to make much of an impact outside of the odd bully-ball post-up or putback layup. He is averaging 4.4 points per game, hitting 54.7 percent of his field goals. Although, his work defensively and on the glass has been a breath of fresh air for a team that has struggled to string together consistency in those areas. Only Gorgui Dieng and Robert Covington currently hold a higher D-PIPM (+0.47) than Vonleh and only Karl-Anthony Towns corrals more boards per 36 minutes (12) than him. He has excelled in David Vanterpool’s drop scheme pick-and-roll coverage, using his long arms and sound positioning to deter would-be scorers. Overall, he has been a good find. But, without consistent minutes, Vonleh fails to reach a higher mark."
Also, in trying to gauge what the media/fan buzz around Vonleh is with the Wolves, including his name in possible trades, I can report the following:
- Very little buzz one way or the other. Fans seem to neither love nor hate him, nor care too much whether he plays or doesn't.
- Most generally regard him as competent, but certainly not a ceiling-raiser.
- A few think he's not good enough to be an NBA player.
- He received a bit of flack recently after apparently being destroyed by Sabonis.
- A few have mentioned trading him as a possible way to gain an asset. But there's very little sense that the Wolves are or ought to be aggressively looking to find something for him. (My interpretation: Jazz would be in a position of weakness in the trade negotiation, if they are interested, as likely the more motivated/desperate partner).
- Wolves fans are much more interested in big trades (including the DLo dream). I think they'd be far more excited about trading Vonleh as part of something bigger rather than just for some small return back. (Thus, imo, even if the Jazz want him, nothing is likely to happen until the deadline, after the Wolves have exhausted other options.)
