Jason Fleming/Hoopworld lists Rashad McCants among the early candidates for the Most Improved Player award.
Marc Stein/ESPN on the All-Star ballot:
Antoine Walker appears on the ballot as a West guard because the Wolves, again, had to have three names on the ballot and were down to two when Ricky Davis was dealt to Miami in the ‘Toine deal.
The other encouraging news in Minnesota, along with the early play of
Al Jefferson after being acquired as the headliner in the package that
came from Boston for Kevin Garnett, is Theo Ratliff (above) as No. 2 in
the league in blocks at the start of Friday action. Ratliff’s greatest
appeal in the Twin Cities as part of the Garnett deal was the expiring
contract that would come off the books in the summer of 2008. The
recent showing, though, could have the rebuilding Timberwolves fielding
trade offers of draft picks or prospects from championship hopefuls
looking for insurance inside, an option worth considering against the
benefits of salary cap relief.
The Timberwolves were awaiting the results of an exam performed on center Theo Ratliff’s sore right knee Saturday.
Coach Randy Wittman said about 75 minutes before
tipoff that the magnetic resonance imaging exam had been completed and
that a physician was expected to review it later Saturday night.
tipoff that the magnetic resonance imaging exam had been completed and
that a physician was expected to review it later Saturday night.
A little birdie says that during a four-year period (the past two seasons, this season and next season), the Timberwolves will have lost nearly $50 million. Before that, owner Glen Taylor made many millions on the team, so much that he was able to pay off the $80 million he paid for the franchise 12 years ago.
This weekend couldn’t have gone worse for the Timberwolves. It wasn’t
very difficult to predict two losses for Minnesota heading into the
two-game stint against Washington and New Orleans, yet the outcome was
worse than two additional notches in the loss column.
very difficult to predict two losses for Minnesota heading into the
two-game stint against Washington and New Orleans, yet the outcome was
worse than two additional notches in the loss column.
After back-to-back bad losses, Wittman and the
Wolves will find out how they handle setbacks. Wittman might have to
use psychology to keep his players from heading into a downward spiral.
Wolves will find out how they handle setbacks. Wittman might have to
use psychology to keep his players from heading into a downward spiral.
Postgame quotes from last night’s loss.
Big Al Jefferson is averaging 19.4 points and 11.3 rebounds for Minnesota. Two other ex-Celtics, Ryan Gomes (9.6 ppg, 3.9 rpg, but a field-goal percentage of only .377) and Theo Ratliff (8.2 ppg, 4.4 rpg), start alongside Jefferson, but Sebastian Telfair already lost his starting point guard spot.
Telfair is dishing out a respectable 4.9 assists a game, but he’s shooting a dreadful 28.6 percent. Gerald Green has played in only two games for a total of just 10 minutes for the Timberwolves…
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