Al Jefferson participated fully, showing no signs of knee trouble after practicing twice on Tuesday.
“It felt real good,” Jefferson said after the Timberwolves opened training camp in owner Glen Taylor’s hometown. “It’s more about my lungs than anything. My knee felt great. Felt good to be back out here with the team.”
“One thing about this team that we didn’t have the last two years I was here is everybody who is here wants to be here. That means a lot,” Jefferson said. “We’ve got guys who want to be here and want to be a Timberwolf and want to play hard and play for the coaches. That’s a plus from last year.”
“The team is not done by any stretch of the imagination,” admitted Kurt Rambis, the Wolves rookie head coach. “We do have key pieces and we want to build on these pieces and we want to get them understanding what we expect of them and the level of play we’re going to except from them to reach an elite level.”
Getting in sync with the “new” NBA appears to be Laimbeer’s biggest challenge.
“I’m learning more and more about today’s players,” Laimbeer said. “One thing I’ve noticed is that the court seems a lot smaller. The guys today are so athletic and quick. They make up ground in a hurry.”
Wolves second-year forward Kevin Love is one player who has made an early connection with Laimbeer. Laimbeer said Love’s versatility reminds him of himself during his playing career.
“There’s quite a few similarities,” Laimbeer said. “He’s a good passer, has a good nose for the ball, can shoot the three when needed, and he knows his limitations. We play the same position, so I see some of those things in him.”
The Greater Mankato Early Learning Initiative and the Minnesota Timberwolves teamed up for “Reading Time Out” this afternoon at Head Start…Players read stories and used Ready for Kindergarten learning tools to interact with the kids.And they say it’s all about giving back.
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