You have to wonder about the NBA sometimes.  When your team trades it's leading scorer and their serviceable starting center, who combined for 29.3 ppg last season, and all they get in return is an 8.5 ppg scorer with conditioning issues, two scrubs, and a conditional future first-rounder, you shouldn't be happy about that.  But when WFAN did their sports update on my way home from school and announced that Ricky Davis and Mark Blount had been traded to Miami for Antoine Walker, Michael Doleac, and Wayne Simien, I was ecstatic.  It really is a shame when most of a league's player movement revolves around swapping your team's syphilis for some other team's chlamydia, and the big selling point of the deal is how fast you can get rid of the players you just traded for.  Yet that's the state of the current NBA with it's nonsensical salary cap and luxury tax.  Oh well, at least at the end of the day I feel my team came out ahead in the deal.  No amount of Valtrex in the world is going to cure Miami of the Mark Blount Herpes for the next three years.

With that being said, here are some things I like about the trade:

1. No more Blount! "Cancer" does not begin to describe Mark Blount.  As I mentioned above, painful genital ulcerations is more like it.  I was certain we were stuck with him for the next three seasons, and now we're free.  This must've been like what Elizabeth Hasselbeck felt like when Rosie quit The View. 

2. As a Wolves fan, any time the words "Kevin McHale" and "trade" are used in the same sentence, and you actually gain a draft pick, you should be doing backflips.  Unbelievably, this deal now marks two consecutive transactions in which this has happened.  I feel like I'm living in bizarro world. 

By the way, you may now mock me for using a "View" analogy on TWolvesBlog.  Seriously, that had to be a new low point for me. 

3. We got to spread out our expring deals. The Wolves had Theo's 11.6 million and Ricky's 6.8 million set to expire at the end of this season.  Seeing that losing all that salary still wouldn't have put Minnesota under the cap, it's good that we won't be taking over 18 million off the books this year.  We'd never use all that salary space as leverage in a trade deadline deal this season.  It's simply too much money.  We'll be much better off losing Theo's 11.6 and then another four from the Doleac/SimienWilkins combo this season, while being left with Walker's 8.3 and Howard's 6.8 to play with next year.  This trade effectively gives the Wolves two seasons in which they can be major players at the deadline.  Having that much money tied up in expiring deals could put them in the position to make the next blockbuster trade, much like the Iverson and KG deals. 

4. Wolves fans now get to witness Antione Walker and Gerald Green go head-to-head in an all-out war to see who can chuck up the most ill-advised shots.  As there may not be very many close games in the 4th quarter this season, at least fans will have a reason to stick around and watch this incredible sub-plot play out.  I can only imagine how many times this season a highly-contested three by Green will be followed up by an "Antoine Special" from the bullseye in the Target Center logo.

5. You just have to appreciate the dark humor of the Wolves, already one man over the limit, completing a 2-for-3 trade, days before the deadline to trim rosters.

I want to get a couple things out of the way before getting to a brand new topic that I've never discussed here or anywhere.  I'll give you a preview: it has something to do with point guards, this team not having any, and me lying in the second part of the preceding sentence.

First off, I dragged myself to the Timberwolves/Indiana game.  Per usual, I will be the last to report this news: they lost.  However, I finally get to base my reactions to the game on my eyeballs rather than a box score.  I'm going to keep this brief:

- The past two preseason games, Jefferson had put up 18 points/12 rebounds, then 21 points/13 ball boards.  On my other blog before coming here, I stated that these are numbers at or around what I want to see out of him consistently.  However, last night he put up 27/17 and played an all-around outstanding game and that deserves recognition.

- I thought the Wolves looked good in the first half.  A lot of missed shots, but they were smart, open-look attempts at least.  Things got a little sloppy in the second half with less movement and shot-clock panic heaves.

- The effort on the boards, especially offensive boards, is going to be exponentially better this season than the last two.

- It's still tough to give an opinion on the team because of the injuries. 

Notwithstanding my stance that there are no point guards on this team, two of the three players that either (a) claim that they are point guards, or (b) the organization tells us are point guards, did not play due to injuries.

There's my game wrap.

Now, back to it.  You know where I'm going: it's that place to complain about point guards, it's after the jump, and you need to come with me.  Please click "Read More".

In anticipation of the 2007-08 Minnesota Timberwolves season, TWolvesBlog is counting down the days 'til tip-off by featuring some of our team's players.  These player articles were written by several of our forum members, as well as the site's regular contributors.  The second piece in this series was written by a Wolves fan relocated to Austin, Texas: forum poster, Whiskey Dizzy.  In it, he gives us an informational look at our newest second round draft pick... the two-time NCAA Champion center Chris Richard.

Chris Richard - "A Committment To Winning"

Chris Richard was born on Christmas Day, December 25th, 1984 in Lakeland, Florida.  Richard attended Kathleen High School in Lakeland, where he played varsity for four years averaging 24 points, 14 rebounds, five assists and seven blocked shots per game. He won the state championship in 2001 during his sophomore campaign but failed to play for the title his junior or senior seasons.  During his senior year, Richard was named the Gatorade High School Player of the Year and won the Mr. Basketball award for the state of Florida. Richard committed to play for Billy Donovan at the University of Florida the summer before his senior year, choosing the Gators over offers from Alabama, Auburn and Miami.

In anticipation of the 2007-08 Minnesota Timberwolves season, TWolvesBlog is counting down the days 'til tip-off by featuring some of our team's players.  These player articles were written by several of our forum members, as well as the site's regular contributors.  The first piece in this series was written by a Wolves fan all the way over in Germany, forum poster, Sanyarin.  In it, he gives us a very detailed and thought-provoking look at one of the more enigmatic players on the Wolves roster, Sebastian Telfair.

A Personal Game Seven - Sebastian Telfair 
 

WINNING IN THE NBA: A HOW TO GUIDE

Part 1 of Many

Having Players Play Positions (yes, that sounds dumb)

**Disclaimer - I am not Denny Green.**

This is the first of what I hope to be several posts here at the Twolves Blog.  If you are not familiar with my short body of work at "The Old Timberwolves Logo" blog, let me preface this post by stating that I am a die hard fan of this team.  I use the term "die hard" in sense that I will not lose interest in the Wolves, but I also take a very realistic view on this team's chances.  In 2003-2004, I was optimistic, but satisfied in the product and effort.  2005-2007, I ranted and complained, because they not only lost, but they looked bad doing it and they failed to entertain.  I also have invested a financial stake in season tickets, so I really reserve the right to complain.  I will not rant much about this team's records, but some common themes you will notice in my writings: lack of point guards, lack of making jump shots, poor shot selection, poor scheming and a certain "center" in general.  Please email me at your convenience if you want my opinion on anything or if you just want to tell me I suck, whatever.

The main body of this article shoud appear after the jump, but I already screwed it up once as I learn the system and I'm sure it will happen again.  This means please click the "Read More" to the right, I'm about as technologically advanced as Brooks in Shawshank.

As Sonia mentioned earlier today, the Wolves introduced a "See What They Can Do" Tour, which will lead up to the home opener on November 2.  Kudos to the Wolves for holding events at area elementary schools, the Waite House, and a brand new learning and rec center.

Many of the non-charity events focus on impressing the VIPs...corporate sponsors, rich season ticket holders (Jimmy Jam, Superfan), and people who are members of the various exclusive clubs at Target Center.

That's fine...I completely understand the need to secure the support of people who can provide the organization with some serious cash.

So, the Wolves seem to be doing a solid job of reaching out to the community and their crowd of rich dudes.  But they forgot a significant group.

The real fans.

Whelp, for the rest of the preseason, we're going to have to rely on the radio/newspaper/box scores to evaluate the Pups...so here's some general observations from the box score of Tuesday's Atlanta game.

*Foye was a DNP, so Marko got the start at point guard...and he responded by shooting 0-5 from the field and picking up 2 assists in his 33 minutes of playing time.  Marko was absolutely clueless at point in Casey's first season, and two years later, it doesn't seem as if he's made any great strides at that position.  I can't say I'm surprised. 

I'm hoping like crazy that Telfair pans out, so Jaric won't be getting 10-15 minutes per game at point guard.  There are few things in Minnesota sports that drive me as crazy as watching Marko run the point...so for the love of God, Sebastian, have a good freakin' season. I don't know if my psyche can handle another year of Jaric at point.

*Green's been playing with more self-control since the Efes Pilsen game, in which he had 15 shots in 14 minutes- he put up 12 shots in 27 minutes against Atlanta.  He shot 1-5 from beyond the arc...I know that Green can shoot the three, but that stat suggests he may have jacked up a few threes while being guarded pretty tightly. 

It scares me that Wittman is coaching Green during this critical point in Gerald's development.  Green could be a phenomenal player if he had a no-nonsense coach who's a great TEACHER...unfortunately, I don't think Wittman has either of those qualities.

*Big Al dominated the boards, grabbing 15 rebounds (6 of them offensive).  While it's unreasonable to expect Jefferson to attain the rebounding prowess of KG on the defensive end, he'll be able to provide the Wolves with some much-needed improvement on the offensive boards (in my opinion, a lack of second-chance points was one of the major issues with this team, last season).

*Rashad's three-pointer wasn't falling, but he did reach the free throw line several times, going 6-7 from the charity stripe.  Rashad's issue is no secret: He's extremely streaky (speaking of which, the streaker at a recent high school football game I attended at least had the decency to wear skin-colored underwear. It was hilarious- they had this vehicle that chased the streaker around the field, eventually cornering him in the endzone).

ANYWAY, on any given night, Rashad seems to either be unstoppable or inept.  Not much of a middle-ground with him.  On the days when his shot isn't falling, it's crucial for Rashad to get some easy looks...the best way for a streaky shooter to get on track is to knock down a few 10-15-footers.  

Minnesota T-Wolves Season Preview – “A New Beginning.”
Written by: Dave Kelsey
Wednesday, 17 October 2007

Minnesota Timberwolves – Twolvesblog.com
Last Year's Record: 30-52 (T-3rd in Northwest)
Key additions: Corey Brewer (No. 7 Draft Pick), Al Jefferson, Gerald Green, Ryan Gomes, Sebastian Telfair, Theo Ratliff, Juwan Howard, Greg Buckner.
Key losses: Kevin Garnett, Trenton Hassell, Mike James, Troy Hudson.

It’s no secret to any NBA fan that the Kevin Garnett trade was the biggest and most significant move during any Wolves offseason in recent memory.  Sure, they also dumped some salary in the Mike James-Juwan Howard and Trenton Hassell-Greg Buckner trades, but these minor moves are massively overshadowed by the Garnett trade to the Boston Celtics.  The Wolves got a small bounty of five players and two draft picks in return for KG, but will they be enough to replace the future Hall Of Famer’s MVP-calliber statistics and on-court leadership?  The early verdict is that we got some very gifted youngsters such as Gerald Green, Ryan Gomes, and Big Al Jefferson.  These guys are all either loaded with potential (Green, Sebastion Telfair), glimpses of steady and consistent play (Gomes), or destined for future greatness (Jefferson.)
Corey Brewer was the Wolves first round draft pick (#7 overall) from the University of Florda.  Brewer, a versatile small forward/shooting guard was lauded as a superb perimeter defender and active rebounder, who is also capable of slashing to the hoop and providing the intangibles that teams need to be successful.  

2. What are the team’s biggest strengths?

The T-Wolves no longer have the “Big Ticket” around to guide them and fill up the stat sheets every night, but they are loaded with a young and very talented core group of players.  While the team is very young and relatively inexperienced, there is good reason to believe that this core group of players will be able to grow and learn together, providing the basis for contention many years into the future.  As most fans are aware, this transformation will not happen overnight, maybe not this season, or perhaps even the season after.    Fans will need to be patient and hope our youth can grow together to eventually realize their complete potential.  The necessary skill-sets and opportunities will certainly be there for this group, but it’s what they do with them that will determine the outcome.

3. What are the team’s biggest weaknesses?

In a sense, the Wolves biggest stength is also it’s biggest weakness.  Mainly, that our squad is composed of mostly young players with little NBA experience.  Also, our roster is overloaded with players, (many at the same positions), and some tough decisions are going to need to be made to determine who stays and who goes.
The sooner the young squad is able to establish team chemistry and build upon an identity, the better off the prospects for the future will become.  Without good core chemistry, things could head south in a hurry.  Nothing destroys a team more quickly than squabbling and infighting amongst the players.  The burden of developing good team chemistry is placed squarely upon the coaching staff and veteran leaders of this team.  Can Coach Randy Wittman take charge and reign in his players when the occasion presents itself?  Will he be able to command everyone’s respect in times of difficulty?  These are questions that are going to need to be answered sooner, rather than later.  Once something like team chemistry begins to spiral out of control, it is very difficult to right that sinking ship.
Another aspect that is a problem and therefore technically a weakness: Roster Construction.  The Wolves currently have 17 players associated with this club that have the ability to play in the NBA, albeit with varying degrees of skill.  Regardless, the roster must be trimmed down to 15 players by October 31st.  From there, an “active roster” of 12 players must be determined.  The difficulty does not end there.  No NBA team plays all twelve players significant minutes every game.  This is why a set rotation and minute allocation must be determined.  The season could implode if some youngsters play 30 minutes one night, but only 5, or zero, the next.  Without clear-cut roles and expectations, the players could be lost quicker than one can imagine.  As it stands without Garnett, Ricky Davis is the de facto “alpha male” of this squad.  He is a veteran that has proven he can “get buckets” in the NBA.  Another question that remains to be answered is whether or not Davis is mature enough to lead a team of youngsters and display unwavering leadership.  The Wolves will eventually need to have young core players step up and assume leadership roles, to help guide this team next season and beyond.

4. What are the goals for this team?

Winning is always the ultimate goal of every club, but as reasonable fans, I don’t think it’s healthy to have championship aspirations in the near future.  In my mind, the goals are for this team to play hard and give 100% effort each and every game.  I’m not saying that the playoffs are out of the question, but to consider the upcoming NBA season successful for the Minnesota Timberwolves, many things will need to go favorably for the home team, and they will need to catch as many lucky breaks as they can. Above all others, three distinct goals stand out as season-long keys to success:  1) Developing good team chemistry, 2) Establishing a pecking order and set rotation, and 3) The ability of Jefferson and Foye to be able to manage increasing leadership responsibilities off the court, as well as improving their numbers on the court.
Who knows, maybe the young Wolves will catch some lucky breaks and win a few more games than people expect.  The 8th playoff seed certainly isn’t out of the question.  Any team that is willing to bring the intensity every game and wants it enough, certainly has a chance to nab a low playoff spot.  If the Wolves made the playoffs this season, they would certainly exceed all expectations.

5. With the departure of Garnett, who will emerge to lead this young club into the future?

Point guard Randy Foye and pivot Big Al Jefferson appear to be early candidates for young team leaders of this club.  The four-year college star Randy Foye has displayed heady maturity last season, playing point guard. All indications show that Foye is ready to assume even more leadership on the court running the offense, as well as off.  Big Al appears to be another player wise beyond his years, and someone that the other players will eventually be able to look towards as a leader of this young club.  Being that Jefferson jumped into the NBA from high-school, he doesn’t have quite as much experience as Foye.  However, last season he clearly displayed his ability to mix it up with the big men, as well as take charge and bang down low.  Both these guys give 110% while exhibiting an incredible amount of desire and hustle.   Being leaders of this club means that they will need to continue to “walk the walk” as well as help their teammates develop into the best players, and people, that they can be.  It is not just about becoming leaders during the games.  These two young men will need to also lead their brethren off the court as well.  Both players are model citizens who give back to the community.  Setting and continuing to follow this type of an example will go a long way towards commanding the respect and attention of their teammates.

Predicted Record: 21-61

I’ve picked this record because valued forum member “WhiskeyDizzy” has devised and authored a complex Regression Analysis Win-Loss Predictions Article, which attempts to formulate a given team’s win-loss totals for the upcoming season, following the trade of an All-Star NBA player.

In comparision, his Regression Analysis has also predicted that the Celtics will finish 48-34.  (In fairness, after that article was published, he adjusted the Analysis further and the new predicted Celtics record is 51-31, by taking into account at what point during the season/off-season the players were traded.)  

For those of you that are not familiar with regression analysis, these results are NOT steadfast and concrete predictions.  However, it is actually quite interesting.  I advise all of you to check out his article, you may find it to be pretty fascinating. 

I agree with the results.  Under certain circumstances,  I could see the Wolves winning around 21 games.  You never know how things will turn out, as there are a lot of variables that go into an entire NBA season.  While I wouldn’t be happy with us winning only 21 games, it is certainly possible.  I could also see us winning around 25-26 games (or more) this season.  Let’s hope for the best.

While I was putting some new music on my iPod today, I started thinking about a possible Timberwolves playlist.  What songs could represent the players?  Well, here's what I came up with:

Mark Blount: Tupac/Sleep...seriously, the Wolves could win an NBA Championship, a bomb could explode in the Target Center, Sebastian Telfair could start firing one of his girlfriend's guns...and Blount would still look half-asleep.

Ryan Gomes: Twisted Sister/We're Not Gonna Take It...last year, Gomes spoke out against the obvious tanking by the Celtics, telling everyone that his team was much more concerned with their draft pick than winning ballgames.  That's a gutsy move by Gomes, and I appreciate that the tank job pissed him off so much.  If the Wolves resort to tanking this year, I hope he'll speak out.

Sebastian Telfair: Jet/Last Chance...while Telfair will clearly get a fair shot in Minnesota, he's running out of chances to prove that his nickname shouldn't be "Telfailure."  I'm rooting for him to succeed with the Wolves...we could use the help at point guard.

First Peek at the New Celtics

***The following article was authored by another valued forum member, "Bonk."  Bonk also happens to be my Wolves season tickets partner in crime, as well as general sports viewing buddy.  Kinda like Bill Simmons and his buddies "Johnny" and/or "Hench," except not nearly as homoerotic.

I am a bonafide KG pimp, a diehard KG fanatic, a loyal & faithful KG follower.  However you want to put it, I love KG.  So when “the trade” went down, it is only right and natural that my allegiances follow him to Boston.  It also helps that I am a longtime Paul Pierce and Boston follower from afar.  I already have my Celtics hat, jersey, & Truth jersey from the “old” Celtics days of the last several years.  How cool is it that my favorite player ever got traded to my 2nd favorite team, which already included my 2nd favorite player?  I am more than ready for this season to begin, and have to share my thoughts on my first look at my NEW favorite team.  Sorry Minnesota, but I’m KG first, Timberwolves second.  Without further procrastination, here are my thoughts on the London game, from a C’s perspective...