From Marc Stein/ESPN:
We get a lot of chat questions and e-mails asking why we’re never as hard on the Wolves for what they got back in the Kevin Garnett trade as we are on Memphis for what the Grizzlies took back for Pau Gasol. And we’ve pretty much stopped answering those questions, because it should be pretty obvious by now. Seriously, people: Did the Grizz get anyone in the Pau deal remotely capable of doing the damage Big Al does?
Jefferson didn’t make this All-Star team, but he’s not going to be eligible for future editions of the Harpers no matter how much you want to dock him for his defensive shortcomings. He’s one of only three 20-and-10 guys in the league at the minute, while also ranking as the most feared back-to-the-basket scorer in the game now that Tim Duncan is more of a face-up kind of killer. So you have to believe that Big Al — after all the publicity that came with this season’s near-miss — will be an All-Star next February … assuming next season’s Wolves don’t start 6-25 and that he won’t have to compete with such a strong sentimental push to get Shaquille O’Neal on the West squad.
After seeing that former Celtic and current Minnesota star forward Al Jefferson was averaging 22.9 points and 10.6 rebounds per game, Rivers, as well as the entire state of Minnesota, was surprised Jefferson was not a member of the Western Conference All-Star team.
“It would have been great for him, but his time is coming,” Rivers said. “He’s young and he’s getting better. We were having a discussion earlier as a staff, ‘Who is a better post player than Al?’ We had zero names as far as low post, back-to-the-basket scoring.”
Rivers acknowledged that because Jefferson is on a losing team, that’s probably why he is not on the All-Star team.
Despite all of his perceived shortcomings, as seen by many NBA scouts, the former Providence College All-American — who left the school as the Friars’ all-time leading scorer (2,138 points) — is living his dream by playing in the NBA with the Timberwolves, who the Celtics defeated, 109-101, on Sunday.
“Life is good,” said Gomes, who had about 20 friends and family members at the game. “I’m out there with my family. This summer I signed a new deal with them, so I have security. Everything has been going well as of late, so I’m happy.”
On Wednesday, Gomes’s foundation will donate two AED’s to the John Hope Settlement House in Providence.
“It’s just about raising awareness for sudden cardiac arrest and putting AED’s in facilities where people, if something tragic does happen, it’s there for them,” he said. “It’s kind of like insurance for your car, you just never know what can happen and hopefully you never have to use it. I’m just trying to raise awareness because I’m in a position where as a professional athlete people hear the things I’m saying more clearly maybe than somewhere else.”
Gomes recently wrote a letter to all Division I Men’s and Women’s basketball coaches and athletic trainers to try to get them to raise money to get AEDs in every single one of their gyms.
These are two teams which are built because of each other. It’s fun to watch them, fun to play.
“You have a good time when you get out there,” said Paul Pierce, who scored 36 points, “and you see the guys that used to be here, like Sebastian, Al and Gomes. You see their development and how they have become better players since leaving here, and it’s always fun and a joy to watch Al.”
It’s a joy to win, too, but there are few around the league who don’t believe the Timberwolves’ time is about to come.
Minnesota’s Kevin McHale has been making noises about wanting to leave the bench, but he’s going nowhere. Since he was forced by owner Glen Taylor to vacate his executive office and replace Randy Wittman, the mood in the locker room has vastly improved, players are happier without the negative Wittman around, and the team has actually experienced some success in January, going 10-3 entering Friday’s game vs. the Lakers.
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