Wolves, post-game

Greetings, again.

I guess it's progress to go from two blowout losses to a 10-point loss to unbeaten Atlanta. Still, I was intrigued with the way Wolves coach Kurt Rambis reacted after the game.

Not dwelling on the loss, Rambis instead lauded his team's effort, said the Wolves played better defense than the Hawks' 54.3-percent shooting might indicate and said, basically, he was pleased.

I guess he had to.

This is a very young team, one that has already taken its lumps against some good competition early in the season. And it doesn't get easier with three road games coming up against Houston, the Lakers before going to Sacramento. I think Rambis felt it was time to ease up on the criticism and instead accentuate the positive.

And there were some good things. I think:

--Wes Johnson played a nice game on the offensive end but is still figuring out how to defend at his position in the NBA. But he did hit four of six three pointers, including three straight that he took in the second half.

But then, there were problems too. Atlanta moves the ball very well, and they did hit some very difficult shots. Especially Jamal Crawford. But too often a Hawks player got an open look after just a couple passes.

Michael Beasley played a team-high 35 1/2 minutes after missing a game with a bruised hip. But his shot suffered. He shot 6-for-17. He and Kevin Love both struggled with their shot through three quarters.