Let me see...in the last week and a half I've lost serious investment money, heard some KTLK radio maroons claim Magic Johnson faked AIDS, saw some lady from Shakopee insist to John McCain that Obama is an Arab (she repeated her opinion, then added the two other often whispered but bogus Muslim and terrorist claims to a Star Tribune reporter), and watched the Lakeville town hall crowd boo when McCain told them Obama was a decent fellow. Not a great time to be in the middle class here in the Tundra.

Properly depressed, I hit the bunker for awhile, complete with my new HD screen, Wii, a great Vodka martini, and an Internet connection, scanning my universe for signs of hope. Given my ongoing distrust of our local NBA franchise, you can imagine how rock bottom my world is to say I have found a spark of promise in our club. How 'bout them Wolves anyway?

As much as I've joked about the Iron Ranger and the Wolves front office, they continue to make the little moves that have low risk and potentially high reward. Yes, they swung and missed on Shaun Livingston, but adding Kevin Ollie and David Harrison could be small gems during this long season. Harrison is a potential problem child to be sure, but has much more talent than either the just departed Rafael Araujo, or certainly Cal (Tattoo) Booth. If healthy and focused, Harrison gives them another legitimate big body; from what we've seen so far this preseason, Kevin Love will have some defensive adjustments to make against quality big men, which equates to fouls and extended bench time. Having both Harrison and Collins playing minutes at the 5 means no "forced feeding" of the rookie (pun intended); if Love has it going, keep him in, if not, slide Big Al over to his natural power position and let the Wolves work with a bigger front court. Here's hoping Harrison can get healthy and force the club to either buy out or waive Booth by the beginning of the season.

Ollie isn't a great player by any stretch of the imagination. However, like Greg Buckner last year, he can be enough of a glue guy to help out 5 -10 minutes per contest, or be DNP for a number of games and still make a contribution when his number is called. Other than Mike Miller, the veterans on this roster aren't particularly talented, but they seem to be straight up guys. That should help in the locker room if and/or when those extended losing streaks occur.

It may have been Fatigue Friday against the Nuggets (without Anthony, I might add), but my sense is the Wolves will increase their overall win total on the backs of teams like OKC, Milwaukee and Memphis this season, but still struggle mightily against the elite teams--save for a couple of exciting upsets. Hope is what we're looking for, so if those upsets come, say, against the Spurs, or a certain green clad team from Boston, that and 30 or so other wins will be enough for the majority of us.

Speaking of the Celtics by the way, it looks like they may have added some talent, also under the cover of low risk contracts. Here's Peter Vecsey's column today in the NY Post about one Patrick O'Bryant. We'll have to see if Darius Miles has anything left, but O'Bryant is showing some serious upside in the preseason. Good for them, bad for the rest of the league...maybe.

Looks like everyone everywhere could use a little more hope, even the champs.

While the Shaun Livingston watch has now been renewed (really, when has more effort been made on a third point/combo guard?), let's roll back to Monday's "10 Questions Facing the Wolves" article written by the Strib's Jerry Zgoda. The best piece of his feature was speculating on who's more or less on the bubble. His conclusion was on the mark...it's Shaddy's time to rain or shine. At last season's training camp, he was talking big time about filling KG's void, in terms of leadership. We all know that didn't happen, and by the end of the year was chafing at coming off the bench.

While the injury to Jason Collins might force Kevin Love to start from the get-go, as opposed to working him in as the season progresses, unless there's other injuries that would affect the rotation (or Corey Brewer gains 9 pounds and a jump shot), it seems as if Rashad will be coming off the pine again this season, in the microwave role.

A look at Shaddy's career numbers from NBA.com:

and, from 82games.com:

Based on the numbers, some folks would think McCants might be primed to have a breakout year.

That's where stats are deceiving.

We saw consistently at the end of last year's games, or when the pressure was off, McCants effectively padded his numbers by scoring meaningless points. Often holding on to the ball for precious seconds on offense, he resembled a smaller version of JR Rider. His defense ebbed and flowed with his on court demeanor. In order for him to become a solid starter or rotational player, he's going to have to finish when it counts. It might be--in a spread offense with Foye and Miller on the floor--he will flourish, making quicker decisions and attacking the rack with abandon. A strategically used small ball lineup of Jefferson, Gomes or Love, Miller, Foye and Shaddy would even put a smile on crusty Don Nelson's face at times. Even though they haven't proven a thing yet, the Wolves on paper have that type of versatility on offense.

In the end, it will be the mental game that Rashad has to succeed at to be a productive player in this league. Whether he makes or breaks it with the Wolves, he will certainly get a flyer with another club, and can effectively argue that he wasn't used properly by Minnesota. I think he would lose the argument, but in addition to Minnesota playing at least adequate team defense, if we can see a mature McCants morph into the clutch scorer he claims he can be, that would be a catalyst to propel the Wolves past the mid-30 win predictions offered by just about everyone this year.

In the end, it's up to him.

Livingston's apparent decision to go elsewhere is an important reality check for the Wolves, in their strategy to manage the cap for a future free-agent run.

Dudes, it's cold up here!!! And, it's flyover land!

Besides, even though I think taking a flyer on Shaun would have been worthwhile, of the two Kevin's currently managing ball clubs--Pritchard and McHale--I'd trust the Blazers brainiac more than I would ours. He had the inside track, and he walked away from the rehabbing youngster. That's no accident, I have to believe.

It's hard to think of anyone in the upper player echelon who would come here of their own volition, unless we had an edge, like, being on the cusp of a championship. I'm not being pessimistic here, it's just that the historical evidence doesn't so far support the strategy. Savvy drafts and trades are our two main tools in rebuilding this franchise; managing the cap will allow us to add an impact role player, or pay our own developing stars in an effort to keep them on the roster.

Give the Iron Ranger credit; in past years, a swing and miss like this would have sent folks into a tizzy, worrying about the support KG's not getting. Given the roster moves of the off-season, there's still enough optimism and storylines to go around.

Hopefully, with another ten wins or so, the Woofies can start heating up the place.

Journal Entry - September 24, 2008

I'm excited, Glen's excited, heck, I think even Shooter Walters over at the Pi Press is excited about this season. Not to separate my shoulder by patting myself on the back, but what other sports executive can generate this much enthusiasm for a 20 win team? Not many, I'll tell you. The only things left for me to do would be to sign that Livingston kid and find some Palin-esque rimless glasses (men's, of course). I gave the club a makeover with new uni's, right? Why shouldn't I turn myself out? I won't slick back my hair like Riley, so rimless glasses would be a perfect compromise, a real new look for me. If only I could limit my media exposure like Sarah does...note to self.

But training camp is right around the corner, so I guess I do have to show up for media day and tell everyone how much better we're going to be. I love to see Wittman sweat when I mention the 20 win improvement. It's like doubling the bet with Chuck Barkley on the 18th hole, I can't lose! I have added talent, worked with the cap...if we go into the crapper, it's not my fault. The only thing that could wrong this year is if Mayo wins ROY. I'll have to go into Foye mode, and do the whole " you have to judge a player over the course of a career" rap again. I can't dip from that well too often, but I have every confidence we're going to do great this year. I love this bunch of kids; I traded for and drafted them, didn't I?

Maybe I should really shake things up and get Steph back here when the Knicks let him go at the end of the week. He knows he screwed up when he left here, KG is gone, and he makes more money than Big Al. I've heard he's in great shape, and if he doesn't work, it would be all Steph's fault, since he hasn't gotten along with anybody, anywhere. If it does work, it's the playoffs, baby, and I could leave...ah, who am I kidding, he'll never come here. And do you know what? We don't need him.  We'll be just fine, I absolutely love this team. I just hope Randy can do something with them...

Celtics in the land of Bush, pre-Financial Market Bailout plan

(Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Just to get everyone's juices flowing on a Monday, here's the 1,765,893.343th quote from KG on his trade from Minnesota, from ESPN's Jon Robinson article "The Secrets to His Success", under the heading "Even Great Players Need Help ":

Did Minnesota get swindled or was Kevin McHale helping his old team build a new dynasty? "You need to ask McHale that," Garnett says, pauses while trying not to laugh in a Dr. Evil sort of way then continues: "It just goes to show what can happen when you get a guy some help. Minnesota did the deal for a reason, and they seem pretty upbeat about what they did, and I'm pretty sure Boston is happy about what they did (laughing). But to me, it just feels good to be in Boston. It feels good to have a chance. It feels good to have other guys on your team who have experienced things. It feels good to have a coach, owners, and an organization who actually believe in you. One of the things I've learned in this league is to never point fingers or blame anyone for the past, that's not how I do things. But I embrace my new situation ... totally."

As a once fervent (but not as much as Britt Robson) KG admirer, can anyone shut this guy up? That section of the article should have been named "Even Great Players Need Paul Pierce to Step Up in the Big Games".

He deserves his moment in the sun, but it's funny how he praises his OBF for straight talk and honesty, and yet no one wants to tell him him and his salary demands were part of the problem. Okay, we get it, you're loved and trusted in Boston, the Wolves didn't believe in you any more. You won, we still kinda suck. Now, stay in the yard and play 2K9, until training camp starts. You'll have better competition in the East to focus on this year.

Sheesh.

"From Midwest Sports Cooperative.com, excerpts from an interview with Randy Wittman, head coach of the Minnesota Timberwolves. After 41 games, the team is last in the Northwest Division, at 13-28, and there are rumblings that Wittman's job may be on the line. At the mid-season break, we sat down with Randy to get his perspective on the season so far:

MSC - Thanks for taking the time with us!

Randy - I'm always happy to talk to fledgling news organizations. You may be out of business quicker than I am.

MSC - Okay...give us a thumbnail sketch of how the season's gone.

Randy - Well, of course, once again for the second year in a row, we've had one of key pieces get hurt in the pre-season. Last year it was Foye, and this year it was Big Al.  Jefferson's injury wasn't as bad as Randy's, but given the all the additions on the club this year, it prevented us from jelling early. That set us back, especially on defense, and the chemistry between Love and Jefferson.

MSC - Grade Kevin Love for us...how's the rookie been so far?

Randy - We knew when we traded for him there was talent there. Kevin McHale saw a lot of himself in the rook, and we know McHale was a Hall of Famer, right? But, a pre-season incident seem to shake Love's confidence right at the start...losing the jump ball tip to Randy Breuer at the season ticket holder's celebration in September. We all knew Love was undersized, and how tall Breuer is, but let's face it, Randy's old, and he never could jump a lick. Love's confidence in not being able to out jump a old white guy has haunted him ever since. It'd be like losing the tip to the Mikan statue out in the Target Center. Lately, he's shown signs of coming out of the funk, but we're still waiting for him to emerge.

MSC- How about the backcourt? Who' s been both good and disappointing?

Randy - As you know, Shaddy's had some issues. He's always had trouble accepting coming off the bench, and it's getting closer to free agency, so of course he wants to shine. Foye has been decent, but still lacks the fourth quarter explosiveness we were expecting out of him. Bassy has been a solid backup, but he still misses those bunnies right at the basket. If he wants to play meaningful minutes at the end, he has to provide some credible threat, or else teams will just sag off of him and guard other folks. Mike Miller has been sensational, a true veteran in every way. We wouldn't have won thirteen games without him. Corey is still a work in progress.

MSC- There's been more than a few rumors out there that if you don't improve in the second half of the season, your job is at stake. Any thoughts? What's your plan?

Randy - You can only work with what's been given you. A head coach in the NBA is hired to be fired, so you can't let that bother you. McHale promised a 20 win improvement at the end of last year, and given the talent he acquired over the off-season, if everything went okay, I certainly thought we might have a shot. But as I've pointed out, we had some pre-season bumps in the road, and I think we're still recovering from that. I like our club though, the roster chemistry is great. Regardless of anyone's individual situation, they're all pulling for each other, and working real hard. That's all I can ask of them, outside of a couple of more wins in the close games.

MSC - Thanks for your time!

Randy - Hope we actually talk again...

Part II coming tomorrow, check back at MSC.com."

Okay, so we've all defended Bassy in the last thread; what of our dear, should-have kept-Brandon Roy-combo guard?

Not quite apples to apples because of injury, but here are basic stat comparisons for last year and career between Randy and Sebastian:

Foye:

Telfair:

By any stretch, you can see that Telfair is the more traditional point guard; his role is significantly much different than Foye's however. Randy is still second to Jefferson as a go-to player; hoping to regain the "Fourth Quarter Foye" tag he was given in '06 by our local King of Clichés and Catch Phrases, Tom Hanneman. As a combo point guard, his focus will be playing the number two or three scoring option on the floor. But, given the increased offensive (positively speaking) options the Wolves have added to the roster this year, Foye's ability to run the team and get the ball to Miller, Big Al, and even Kevin Love will even be more vital. Despite the hope that Love will be a dynamic passer out of the front court--especially with an occasional gorgeous full court pass--it's still going to be up to Randy (and Bassy) to get the team into their sets, game-in, game-out.

Though I can see scenarios where both Telfair and Foye are in the back court, with Foye sliding over to the 2 guard, playing scorer to Bassy's distributor, the present lack of a serviceable third point guard makes a consistent pairing of the two a dubious strategy.  The biggest question remains however: what if Foye isn't effective enough at the point, and is a better shooting guard? In that case, the club is in a pickle. McCants and Foye are replicants at the two; one of them would surely have to be moved if it's finally determined that the Foye experiment has indeed failed.

In addition to coaxing a better defensive effort from the team, the Foye-as-point-guard conundrum has to be second or third on the list of priorities for the Wolves front office. Since McHale did give up Brandon Roy to get Foye, how this all plays out has to be of prime importance to the club.

It's amazing how today's news gets delivered, but coming from HoopsHype via Yahoo Sports, it looks like the Blazers, Heat and Timberwolves are competing for the services of Shaun Livingston, the rehabbing, formerly-known-as-the-Clippers PG-wunderkind. You can read about it here. According to Yahoo Sports, Jim Stack, the Mayor, and Wittman went down to Chicago to watch Livingston work out and want to sign him immediately. Competing reports have the Heat and Blazers as front runners to also acquire his services, but we'll have to see how this all plays out.

Career Stats:

My colleague S-N-P has been advocating Livingston's signing for months; as a PG with combo skills. Given that his role would indeed be the third point guard/combo one, if Livingston is healthy, at 6' 7" he certainly  would bring size to the position. It would also allow Wittman more flexibility to play both Foye and Telfair in the same backcourt, knowing there was a reliable backup to sub in. A lot of "ifs" most assuredly, but given the need and his availability, it's suprising that the Wolves couldn't have been a little more aggressive in evaluating and making an offer to the kid. However, with an injury as nasty as Livingston's was, it would give any signing executive pause for thought, although now it seems as if they have seen enough and are ready to move...if possible.

Stay tuned.

Paul Forrester of CNNSI had a good breakdown of the challenges and prospects facing the eight new NBA coaches this year. I thought it might be good to profile our own head wizard in a similar fashion.

Challenges:

• Defense, Defense, Defense. The Wolves were 5th worse last year in point differential, a hefty  -6.78 per game. They gave up 102.37 points per game, 10th worse in the league, and allowed opponents to shoot .472 overall, 4th worse in the league. If Kevin McHale thinks that 20 more wins are coming strictly due to the additions of Kevin Love, Mike Miller and Rodney Carney--all primarily offensive players--there must be truly some fierce hallucinogenic in the Iron Range or North Oaks air. Since the Wolves have no real individual stoppers on the roster--save for an occasional Corey Brewer sighting--Wittman is going to have to develop a team approach to defense, with the idea that good enough may be the best this team can do right now. It's regrettable that McHale couldn't find a Richie Adubato or Dick Harter type of assistant coach who could help Wittman to preach and design schemes on defense.
• The Love Connection. Okay, McHale wanted a shorter, heavier version of himself on the team, albeit with much better passing skills. Only time will tell whether or not the Mayo/Love exchange was justified, but in large part that depends on how Wittman uses Love. The conventional wisdom--both from an offensive and defensive standpoint--has been beaten to death; the time is near to see exactly how Wittman's pairs the kid with Big Al. Will the fans go wild, or be hurling empty chocolate milk cartons toward the Timberwolves bench by mid-season?
• How much progress will be enough? Even the most optimistic Wolves fans probably deep down feel a 20 win improvement is unreasonable. So, no playoffs...again. Yet, fans are starving for some sign of results, and not unlike the current presidential race, may once again be willing to give a failed organization yet another shot at redemption. Too bad Pam Borton signed an extension with the Gophers; she may have been the Palin-esque jolt the coaching staff needs to help Randy keep his job. Seriously though, if the Wolves stay in the 20's, how can Wittman keep his job, other than through his country club connections?

Prospects

The Wolves have stacked their improvements on the offensive end, which should substantially improve their offensive stats (95.59 points per game, 5th worse in the league last year). Given the acquisition of Love, Miller, and Carney, as well as the re-signing of Gomes, Telfair and Smith, the Wolves can effectively argue they have given Wittman a better chance of success this season. If he were an outsider like Dwyane Casey (or even Bill Blair), this certainly would be a do-or-die season for the Hoosier. In an earlier thread, many of us predicted a win record in the mid-30's; if that's realized, the prospects for Wittman to stay on as head coach are decent to good. On the other hand, if the Wolves start out of the gate as poorly as last year, McHale may be forced to bounce Randy mid-season. But, there's too much talent for him to screw up that badly, right?

David Sherman/NBAE/Getty Images

With the NBA training camps within sight, it's time to bid a fond farewell to the Lynx, who won last night, lost it's two best players to injury, and again failed to make the playoffs. Let's hope both Seimone Augustus and Candice Wiggins will recover from their injuries, as the team closes out their season this weekend. Especially Augustus, in what looked like a very nasty spill to prematurely end her year.

In a missive at the beginning of the season, I "boldly" predicted that the ladies would do better, but wouldn't make the playoffs. Since the team has been positively awful the last couple of years, I didn't go exactly on a limb here, but when they started out 5-0, I thought I'd have to take back every bad thing I said about head coach Don Zierden, along with players Nicole Ohlde, and Lindsey Harding.

I shouldn't have been so hard on myself.

While a lot of positive things happened this season, this team is still plagued with issues of size, point guard play, and defense. Nicky Anosike was an interior godsend, but isn't big enough to handle the likes of Lisa Leslie. Veterans Ohlde and Vanessa Hayden-Johnson have once more demonstrated that they are not starting quality interior players. Anosike and Charde Houston--who was a surprise offensively--are hopefully the beginnings of a revamped front court.

Any criticism of Harding seems unfair given her preseason injury, but as an overall number one league draft choice, she is not an impactful player, and her on-court team management skills have been underwhelming. Coach Zierden's inability to regroup and adjust to league play after the 5-0 start is another indication that as a head coach, he makes a good assistant. Given the overall youth of the team, what could he have done?

Primarily, start and keep the best players on the floor, longer. While Candice Wiggins isn't a natural point guard, she was the best one the Lynx had, and was effective at the position. Anna DeForge has been a disappointment; if the idea was establishing overall team balance and depth, why not bring her off the bench to stabilize the second unit, move Augustus to SG and start Houston, who had some serious energy and front court scoring ability? Or, if the team simply must start Harding to justify the investment of trading for her, start Wiggins at SG? I don't want to go Randy Wittman on anyone here and keep changing a young lineup, but it's been pretty clear throughout this season who were the more consistent, "impactful" players. Zierden did a poor job of asset management.

Still, to go to the games this season was a breath of fresh air. There was energy, excitement and hope, which for rebuilding teams is a vital dynamic. We can see signs from both the men's and women's teams that the organization might finally be starting--after years of ineptitude--to figure things out. If the Wolves can demonstrate the same sort of progress, we just may have something here.