Stephen Litel/Downtown Journal talked to Jim Stack about Al Jefferson:
What is his biggest weakness as a franchise player?
“I think he has to grow as a leader. At times, he tends to berate a little bit because he wants to win so much and I think he’s grown in that area. The right kind of vocal leadership that’s not punitive and holding things against his teammates. He has to understand these guys have their deficiencies and weaknesses and he has times on the floor when he’s not doing everything he needs to and he’s still growing in that area. It’s a work in progress because he’s young, he’s emotional, he’s competitive and he wants to win. I don’t think he’s intentionally doing that, but it’s more in the context of, ‘Hey, I want to win.’ Defensively, just being quicker laterally.”
“He has to get better in those two areas, but he’s so good in so many other areas it’s really me nitpicking him at that point. Al understands and has a pretty good feel for who he is, so those are things you hope as he matures, he’ll continue to grow in and I think he will.”
The Wolves frequently have stated that the draft day trade involving Love and Mayo would not have occurred without the inclusion of Miller, and they professed great excitement about Miller joining the team and providing them with an outside option that could spread the floor and stretch the defenses away from Jefferson. Yet just as frequently they have expressed great excitement about all the salary cap flexibility they will have in 2010–much of it because Miller’s deal comes off the books. According to people close to the team, Miller was very aware of preseason trade rumors that had him going to LA (among other places) for Lamar Odom. To this day, he has kept his wife and children down in Memphis, where he toiled for the Grizzlies. And among the major pieces on the team, Miller’s name was again prominently bandied about in rumors near the close of last month’s trade deadline.
Forward Corey Brewer hasn’t played since suffering a season-ending knee injury Nov. 29, but McHale said the former first-round draft choice is handling his as well as possible.
“The thing that’s tough for a 22-year-old is not playing for a year,” McHale said. “That is really hard. If you take a year off when you’re 32, it’s hard, too, I guess. But at a young age, especially when he was developing … I really felt that the last four or five games before Corey was hurt, he had slowed down enough to where he was playing much more under control.”
Like star center Al Jefferson, Brewer suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament, and McHale said the toughest thing is not being around the team on a daily basis.
“He’s handled it well,” McHale said. “He feels good now. He’s able to do more things and in about another month he’ll have another workout partner in Al.”
Brian Stensaas/Star Tribune on Sunday’s loss to Houston:
In fact, forward Ryan Gomes afterward twice referred to the game as a “20-point loss” like Friday’s against Portland. After allowing Houston to shoot 60 percent in the first half and 53.3 percent for the game, it felt that way.
“The last few games we’ve been going on droughts for long periods of time,” said Gomes, who scored all 11 of his points in the first quarter. “That’s been the big difference.”
The loss is Minnesota’s sixth in a row and ninth consecutive at home. It is 1-8 since losing star center Al Jefferson to a season-ending surgery to repair a torn ACL.
Following a 1-for-10 shooting performance in a preseason loss Oct. 22, Love slumped at his locker stall as if he had just learned someone swiped his signing bonus. He quietly addressed his off night, shaking his head and scowling while taking questions from the assembled media.
Nearly four months later, he has learned to deal with the potholes on the rookie road.
Naturally, he was not all that thrilled with his two-point, three-rebound effort against Portland on Friday. But over the weekend he was far from morose.
“My confidence is still there,” said Love…
An internal debate, in fact, has ensued for months, as it has throughout professional sports: Is it smarter to maintain current prices despite the economic crisis, or wiser to respond aggressively with discount packages, promotions and mini-season deals, thereby luring more fans into the building, to the concession stands and into the team store?
“Teams that aren’t winning are really taking a beating in concessions and merchandise sales,” said Jon Greenberg, executive editor of Team Marketing Report’s Fan Cost Index, which ranks the Kings 10th in average ticket prices. “Everybody’s trying to come up with different packages, seeing what works best in a particular market. Some of the smaller markets, like the Timberwolves, Grizzlies and Jazz, are really good. So are the Bulls. I think everybody realizes it (economy) is a lot worse than they thought it would be, and no one knows how bad it will get.”
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