Nov 2, 2012; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Minnesota Timberwolves forward Chase Budinger (10) against the Sacramento Kings at the Target Center. The Timberwolves defeated the Kings 92-80. Mandatory Credit: Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports

With all of the personnel speculation that March Madness (and in Chase Budinger’s case, successful 5×5 practices) brings — draft boards, MLB fantasy baseball drafts, NFL players migrating — it’s tough not to look at the roster the Wolves have been forced to trot out there and dream about the other moribund franchises getting ready to move on from their questionable investments gone to seed.

A recent email conversation began thusly:

Let me throw this one out for you guys, I have been thinking about it all year…we need a 2-guard next year, Tyreke Evans is pretty much odd man out in Sacramento and after a big rookie season all his numbers have gone down.  Part of it is they keep moving him from PG to SG to SF and back and the coaching turnover, DMC etc, Sacramento is a mess.  But the guy is talented, do you dangle an offer to him?  Try to get him and see if you can salvage something from him?
I am very intrigued by him, the talent, the physical nature of his drives to the hoop, get him attacking like he did his rookie year when he was one of the top guys in the league in attempts at the rim.
Not sure how well he fits Adelman’s system per se, but he could be a nice, relatively cheap addition.

My knee-jerk generalizing, ideologically manic-overreaction:

Evans is an 0-guard, in that — in his prime, which at this point was his rookie year — he could create for himself and dump or kick to shooters. Once the book was out that he couldn’t shoot, you could lay off him and watch him try and try and create. And then once he got teammates who needed the ball, too (DMC, Thornton, Thomas), he was told to play well with others.

If you like watching JJ pound the life out of the rock, you love the idea of Evans — but what about Tyreke do you think would make Adelman not kill him? He can’t shoot and dominates the ball.

To the shot chart:

Tyreke Evans’ shot chart.

And now — not setting the bar too high — check Corey Brewer’s shot chart for comparison.

Corey Brewer’s shot chart.

That’s Corey Brewer’s chart shaming Tyreke Evans’. Look at all of the red that changed to yellow. Take a look at Courtney Lee’s…

Courney Lee’s shot chart.

Look at all the green. Last one: Chase Budinger.

Chase Budinger’s shot chart.

Look at those corners. Actually, look at the whole right side from 3. (Might even look better next to Derrick Williams on the left.) This is 2011-12 Chase, but you get the picture.

As far as personnel this season, I hate that Ridnour is the starting 2 (2 years running) but at least he moves the ball and — in theory — can shoot it. (In theory.) A big 2 who could play d — Ronnie Brewer, Thabo Sefolosha, Tony Allen-types would be a worst-case scenario pair with Ricky. If that bigger, solid defending 2 could shoot? All the better. If that 2 could be a secondary ballhandler? Done deal.

At this point, with Ricky as your point guard who (at this point) can’t dependably shoot it; the 2′s gotta do what the 3 doesn’t. The fact AK can’t shoot and Love hasn’t been around, means the 2 has to. So, it’s Ridnour until Chase is back.

Best case? Tyreke would make a good Harden-type leader of the 2nd unit. Just dominate the ball and run wild, don’t worry about defending. Sure, the physicality of lowering a shoulder and barreling to the hole is different than what the Wolves have, but does that make it better? If Tyreke is dominating the 2nd unit, what would happen to this guy?

No thanks.

Losers of 5 straight, the Wolves would normally be happy for a visit to Sacramento to cure what ails them. But since switching up their starting lineup last Wednesday, these Kings are winners of 2 of their last 3 over the Los Angeles Lakers and Utah Jazz.

Kings probable starting lineup:

PG Aaron Brooks

SG Tyreke Evans

SF John Salmons

PF Jason Thompson

C DeMarcus Cousins

The player who hurt the Wolves the most last time was Isaiah Thomas, with 20 points on 7-13 shooting. Thomas has since seen his playing time dwindle to just 7 minutes and a DNP-CD over the last two and ceded his starting point guard spot to free agent signee Aaron Brooks.

Though Brooks has proven every bit as poor a distributor (2.4 assists per game over the last 5) as the man he replaced, he has done his part to fit in with the Kings on the whole — garnering a $25,000 fine for throwing his mouthguard into the stands following their loss in Utah.

Earlier this month, Cousins approached San Antonio announcer Sean Elliott in a hostile manner after their game and was suspended for two games without pay, totalling $70,500, which he is appealing to recoup.

Also earlier this month, rookie Thomas Robinson elbowed Detroit pest-forward Jonas Jerebko in the neck and was suspended for two games.

Tyreke Evans has been on a tear, shooting over 51% from the field over the last 5 games, producing 19.8 points per, while leading the Kings in assists with 3.8 over such time. Watch for AK47 to put an end to that nice little run.

The other starting lineup adjustment that has paid dividends for the Kings has been swapping small forward defensive specialist James Johnson for John Salmons. The defensive contributions of Johnson were being negated by his lack of offensive prowess. Salmons play is proving a net positive move by the Kings, allowing them to at least play 5 on 5 on the offensive end. Which brings us to…

Wolves probable starting lineup:

PG Luke Ridnour

SG Malcolm Lee

SF Andrei Kirilenko

PF Kevin Love

C Nikola Pekovic

The offensive struggles of Malcolm Lee have drawn the ire of many a Wolves fan. Possibly not as much as the overall play of Luke Ridnour, but both are big problems tonight against another quick backcourt in Brooks and Evans.

Lee’s struggles (24% field goal percentage over the last 5) have been forcing the Wolves to forge ahead 4 on 5 on offense, with opponents basically leaving Lee wide open in the corner in every half court set. After receiving a DNP-CD the first go around with Sacramento, Lee could see some bigger minutes tonight on Brooks. Because, you know, he’s quicker than Ridnour.

The largest matchup looms large, as Pekovic and Cousins will tangle down low. Cousins was a non-factor in their first meeting this season, scoring 11 points on 13 shots and being limited to 25 minutes with foul trouble. The strongest limiter being his reaction to every call drawing his focus away from the game and onto the referees, who obliged by heaping, by his perspective, even more injustice upon him. Pek v. Boogiemonster should prove to be the most entertaining matchup of the evening.

The long jump shots the Wolves have been settling for since Love’s return would pick a good night to turn into forays to the hoop: Sacto is 26th in the league in blocks per game, with just over 4 a game. Here’s hoping Pek, Love and AK live at the line.