Rubio: Wolves are playing without heart or desire
Picked by many to be NBA's most improved team in 2016-17, the Minnesota Timberwolves have disappointed mightily through the first quarter of the season.
After falling to 6-17 on Friday night following a loss to the Detroit Pistons, starting point guard Ricky Rubio called out his team for a lack of effort, saying the team has began to grow accustomed to making mistakes.
"We can accept making mistakes and don't make shots," Rubio told reporters postgame, according to ESPN. "Playing with no heart, with no desire, it's just awful. Right now, it's just bad.
"And it seems like we didn't care."
While they still rank as one of the better offensive teams in the Association, the Timberwolves have been putrid on the other end of the floor, sitting just 27th in defensive efficiency.
Although things are certainly bleak for Minnesota at this point, head coach Tom Thibodeau hasn't given up hope, believing that the Timberwolves could still turn things around with 59 games remaining on the schedule.
"I'm going to keep coming. I don't go away," Thibodeau said. "I'm going to look at everything, re-examine. Something's being missed. It's got to change.
"Something is not right. We have to find the answer to that."