Columnists
Sonia Grover started her Wolves site, "I Heart KG", in 2006. In the wake of the big trade, she moved over to TWolves Blog and brought her column,
"Wolves Daily News"Email:
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Derek Hanson, the founder of TWolves Blog, delivers his optimistic and often inspiring take on the Wolves in his column,
"DeROK's One Shot"
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Dave Kelsey, life-long Wolves fan, season ticket holder, and forum post champion gives his humorous take on the Wolves and life in general in
"Club Seating with College Wolf"
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Jeremy Knutson packed up his stuff from the Old Wolves Logo, drove over to the TWolves Blog, unloaded the car, and now invites you to come along for a ride through the NBA in his
"Hoop De Ville"
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Rob Brewer and Neil Olstad launched the first-ever Minnesota Timberwolves podcast back in 2007. After acheiving critical acclaim with "The Kissing Marney Gellner Show", the duo decided bring their act to TWolves Blog. "Timberwolves Today"
Jon Marthaler considers Mark Madsen to be the absolute height of comedy - high praise, since he's been observing Timberwolf follies for almost two decades. When not watching Mad Dog brick free throws, he writes at TNABACG. Now you can find him here on TWolves Blog with his column,
"Both Teams Played Hard"
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Minnesota Timberwolves Daily News
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Posted by SG
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Sunday, 20 July 2008 |
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Early in the third quarter, Minnesota's Kevin Love appeared to roll his
ankle and was helped to the locker room. I'll try to get an official
word. Before the injury, Love had 10 points and nine rebounds...
It turns out that Love has a sore right Achilles and will not return to the game.
Just FYI for those watching the webcast: A Wolves representative in
Vegas says Love didn’t play most of the second half because of soreness
in his right Achilles tendon, a precautionary move because of his
commitment to the select team next week. He will join the select team
today and won’t play in the Wolves’ final game against New York.
Update:
Minnesota, who lost 2008 lottery pick Kevin Love to a sore left Achilles midway through the third quarter, was led by Pops Mensah-Bonsu’s 13-point outing...
Kevin Love was off to a fine start in his game against Joe Alexander, but after grabbing his ninth rebound at the beginning of the third quarter he immediately called timeout and made his way towards the bench before heading to the locker room where he remained for the rest of the game. Word is that he has a sore left Achilles’ tendon.
There were some brief fireworks after Love took an arm to the
neck/face/throat that sent him to the ground from Milwaukee's Olumide
Oyedeji. Love quickly rose to his feet and stepped up to Oyedeji who
was busy arguing with the officials.
For a moment Love looks so furious, it looked like he was about to swing but restrained himself.
On the next possession Love battled aggressively with Oyedeji in the
post. To cool things off, the referees called a foul and then one of
the benches called for time. Over the PA could be heard "Hot Blooded,"
attempting to break the tension.
The acrimony didn't end there as both Love and Oyedeji were rushing for
a loose ball and Love gave his opponent a little check that sent him
flying. The crowd gave a cheer and a number of UCLA shouts could be
heard.
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Last Updated ( Sunday, 20 July 2008 )
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Posted by SG
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Saturday, 19 July 2008 |
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First-round draft picks Kevin Love and Robin Lopez were added Saturday
to the select team of young players that will scrimmage against the
U.S. Olympic team this week.
Both players were chosen after strong performances in the NBA summer
league. Love, picked fifth by Memphis and traded to Minnesota on draft
night, has averaged 20.7 points and 15 rebounds in three games for
the Timberwolves...
The select team will begin practicing Sunday and is expected to work against the Olympic team from Monday-Thursday.
Love and Robin Lopez join O.J. Mayo, Derrick Rose, Rodney Stuckey,
LaMarcus Aldridge, Kevin Durant, Jeff Green, Luther Head, Al Horford,
Andre Iguodala and Kevin Martin on a 12-man team that begins four days
of training against the Olympians on Monday.
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Posted by SG
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Saturday, 19 July 2008 |
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At the Summer League this week, McHale sat in a corner of the Thomas
& Mack and watched Kevin Love and other Minnesota hopefuls. Fans
walked by wearing green Celtics jerseys with Garnett’s name and number
5 on the back, but the Timberwolves exec said he didn’t notice.
Asked to reflect on last summer’s trade, McHale said he’s satisfied with how it unfolded.
“We didn’t make the playoffs for a couple years with Kevin,” he said.
Actually, Minnesota had just missed the playoffs for a third
consecutive season. “We had a high payroll. Knowing he wanted an
extension, our owner was not prepared to go in that direction. He
wanted to rebuild.”
There is nothing noteworthy on Wittman’s resume except perhaps that he has Kevin McHale listed among his references.
Update:
He's getting an easy 20 points a game, which I suppose was expected,
but he's been an absolute beast on the boards getting 15 a game. (And
all the people who want to pretend he's "unathletic" just because he's
big and white? Ridiculous. He's not going to keep up with a guy half
his size, but he can get above the rim when he needs to.)
More than that, though, his overall awareness is leaps and bounds
better than most of the guys he's sharing the floor with. I've heard
people talk about his outlet passes in the past, and to be honest, I
never really understood what the big deal is. But to see it in person,
to see the way he can stand underneath the basket and hit a teammate
streaking down the court in stride is amazing. He's like a quarterback
leading a wide receiver down the field.
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Last Updated ( Saturday, 19 July 2008 )
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Posted by SG
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Saturday, 19 July 2008 |
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The Wolves take on the Bucks tonight at 7:30pm CST in the Las Vegas Summer League.
Click here to watch the game live online at 7:30pm CST
Click here for the forum's game thread
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Posted by SG
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Friday, 18 July 2008 |
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It's a small marketing gimmick, but the two best young players in Vegas -- as judged by an NBA panel -- will be invited to join the team that will practice against the United States later this month as Kobe Bryant, LeBron James and Jason Kidd prepare for the Olympics in China. Love and Jerryd Bayless are among the early favorites.
I know it's only been two games, and it is just the summer leagues, but
Love is already starting to prove his doubters wrong. Averaging 18.0
points, 15.0 rebounds and a block while shooting 51.6 percent from the
floor, Love is doing exactly what he did at UCLA, relying on his pure
basketball skills and intensity rather than athleticism, and is
dominating while doing it.
But while the offer from Joventut remains firmly on the table, Mensah-Bonsu is still pursuing his aim of joining an NBA team and was in action with the Minnesota Timberwolves in Vegas yesterday.
Benny Bonsu, Pops' sister and Basketball 24/7 contributor, confirmed: "Pops has not signed anything yet.
"He has an offer from Spain but has not signed anything and his ambition remains to return to the NBA if at all possible."
Former Missouri State basketball standout Blake Ahearn continues to
make a strong case for a roster spot with the Minnesota Timberwolves,
scoring 14 points in an NBA Summer League game Thursday night in Las
Vegas.
Ahearn, who played the final five weeks of last season with the Miami
Heat, is averaging 13 points and shooting 46 percent from the field in
the Timberwolves' summer team's three games. Two games remain on the
schedule.
Loukas Mavrokefalidis is much closed to sign a contract with Costa Cafe Marousi
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Last Updated ( Friday, 18 July 2008 )
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Posted by SG
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Friday, 18 July 2008 |
Minnesota rookie forward Kevin Love
confirmed Thursday that he will join the USA Basketball Select Team
that will scrimmage daily against Team USA beginning Monday at Valley
High School.
"They talked to me, and I'm going to do it," Love said.
The former UCLA standout joins a
roster that includes rookies O.J. Mayo and Derrick Rose. Love is
averaging 20.7 points and 15.0 rebounds for the Timberwolves in the
summer league.
Could another year at UCLA have served him better in lifting his game to the professional level?
Not an issue, Stan Love says.
"When you can be the No. 5 pick in the draft," the older Love said,
"and make X amount of dollars, you can't tell a kid to stay in school
so he can get a better job. Not when he can get a job that will pay him
more than his mom and dad will make in their whole careers. The advance
Kevin got on his contract is more than I made in my four years in pro
ball."
Love acknowledged that he will need time to adjust to the speed of the
game and the grind of an 82-game schedule. He also aspires to continue
to shed weight and lower his body fat; he has trimmed that from 15
percent to 12 percent since the end of the college season and hopes it
eventually dips below 10 percent. More than anything, Love said, he
will need to become a better defender...
The spotlight will only get brighter for Love -- a film crew was
recording a "day-in-the-life-piece" Thursday and he will be featured on
the cover of EA Sports' March Madness video game this fall. But, more
than anything, the competitor who played in three high school state
championship games before reaching the 2008 NCAA Final Four during his
only season at UCLA wants to help transform a losing franchise into a
winner.
Timberwolves rookie Kevin Love, 19, whose contract guarantees him
$5.4 million for the next two years, won't be buying a Cadillac
Escalade or similar luxury sport utility vehicle like many of his
teammates.
"Maybe a Prius, because gas prices are so high," he
said. "I'm all about saving money so I can have some security. I'm not
chasing money; I'm chasing the game."
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Last Updated ( Friday, 18 July 2008 )
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Posted by SG
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Friday, 18 July 2008 |
The Wolves continue to negotiate with restricted free-agent forward
Ryan Gomes and unrestricted free-agent point guard Sebastian Telfair.
The team also is pursuing trade talks for a point guard, a position at
which only Randy Foye is under contract.
"We want to get them back," McHale said. "I told Craig I'm happy to
have him back here, not only as a player but as a person. I feel the
same way about Bassy and Ryan. They're just a joy to have around. You
never know until you re-sign them. We're having meaningful
conversations with both of them. We'll try to get something done, but
it's a process."
The Timberwolves made a qualifying offer to Smith on
June 30, which allowed them to match any offer made to him by another
team. Smith said he had talked with other teams but didn't receive any
other offers.
"I decided to go back to Minnesota and talk it out with them. That's where I wanted to be," he said.
Although Smith has been in Los Angeles during the
offseason, he has been keeping tabs on the team during its summer
league games in Las Vegas, and he has been impressed with Kevin Love.
Assistant general manager Rob Babcock, who saw
Neitzel play in college, noted that Neitzel had good court sense,
fundamentals and shooting ability. Babcock added, though, that his
height is "a little bit of a weakness" and that Neitzel doesn't possess
"blinding quickness."
That, coupled with a Telfair signing or another
free-agent acquisition, could dampen Neitzel's hope of landing in
Minnesota. But by show of the depth chart, Neitzel could get an
extended look in the fall.
"There's certainly a chance," Babcock said. "That's why he's here — to compete for that spot."
"He's a heck of a coach and a great guy," Sichting said, "and he's got a good future."
Skyforce head coach Nate Tibbetts has two games remaining in his stint
as an assistant with the Minnesota Timberwolves at the NBA Summer
League in Las Vegas
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Last Updated ( Friday, 18 July 2008 )
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Posted by SG
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Friday, 18 July 2008 |
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Kevin Love tallied 26 points and 15 rebounds and the Minnesota Timberwolves rolled to an 88-78 win over the Portland Trail Blazers in the final game of the NBA Summer League at Cox Pavilion on Thursday.
Odenized posts video of a Kevin Love dunk.
Kevin Love overshadowed Bayless' performance with 26 points and 15 rebounds, bolstering his summer league average to 20.7 points and 15 boards per game. The T'Wolves outscored the Trail Blazers 31-20 in the third quarter to earn their first win in Las Vegas. Both teams are now 1-2 and will resume play on Saturday.
Craig Smith played 19 minutes in his debut after signing a new two-year
contract earlier in the day and it looks like K.L. just keeps getting
better with his third double-double (26 and 15) that overcame Jerryd
Bayless’ 29 and just could be another step in winning over the
unconverted (and all those Kevin McHale haters).
Lots of numbers jump out: 11 points and seven boards off the pine from
Pops Mensah-Bonsu; 10 points, three boards and two assists from Craig
Smith in limited minutes; 14 points from Blake Ahearn; 11 points, two
dimes and two boards from Pooh Jeter, and nine points off the pine from
Bryce Taylor.
Minnesota took a 40-36 lead into the break at Cox Pavilion, getting 13
points from Love and nine off the bench from Mensah-Bonsu along with
nine boards between the two of them.
In the Love vs. Bayless matchup, Love came out the winner. For
starters, his team won by 10. He went 7-for-20 from the field,
12-for-14 from the line, grabbed 15 rebounds (10 offensive) and had two
assists (official stats say one, but there is no way the outlet pass he
threw to Pooh Jeter for the and-1 wasn't a dime, even if he didn't
receive credit for it)...
With apologies to the fans in Golden State (Marco Belinelli is hot,
team is 3-0), Bayless and Love are the two best players after seven
days in Vegas regardless of what their team's records are.
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Last Updated ( Friday, 18 July 2008 )
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Posted by SG
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Friday, 18 July 2008 |
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From Jerry Zgoda/Star Tribune:
On the prospects of signing Gomes and Telfair, McHale said, “You never
know until you sign them. It’s so hard to say. We want to sign them. We
like them. We felt the same way about Craig. I told him I’m so happy to
have him back. He’s such a great guy, the same way I feel about Bassy
and Ryan. They’re just a joy to be around. We’re having meaningful
conversations with both of them. It’s a process.”
Asked about the possibility of trading for a point guard (Randy Foye
currently is the only one under contract): “We’ve had some
conversations with some teams. We don’t have a deal to announce today.”
McHale signed the restricted free agent to a two-year deal on Thursday that runs through the 2009-10 season.
"We like Craig a great deal. I didn't see any reason not to try to
really re-sign him,'' McHale said in a teleconference from Las Vegas,
where the Wolves have a summer league team. "There was an opportunity
possibly to go out and chase other free agents, but it didn't make any
sense to me. Our young guys, I like a great deal.''
As we saw earlier this week, Love had a big impact on the game, though
he still struggled with turnovers. Still, his fantastic long-distance
passing is a site to see up close, and he finished the game with 4
assists as a result. On the glass, he used his strong body to push
opposing players out of the way, and used his fantastic hands and touch
inside to convert a number of offensive rebound attempts into baskets.
Defensively, it's clear the rookie has some work to do. He must learn
when to contest shots and rotate at the proper times on the defensive
end of the floor, but he stay out of foul trouble throughout the game.
On the offensive end, he again displayed nice skills both facing the
basket and in the low post. Though he's not the most athletic player,
his incredible basketball IQ allows him to get shots off in situations
where players his size normally struggle. He has the tools to be a
solid big man in the NBA at least, and could turn into much more than
that in a couple seasons. His outlet passes in the second half were
just a pleasure to watch.
Corey Brewer of the T’wolves showed his all-around
talents today, finally putting a game together that properly represents
his ability. A demon on the fast break, Brewer dropped in 19 and had 2
game-changing blocked shots, once chasing his man down on the fast
break (a la Tayshaun Prince / Reggie Miller) and another time snuffing
a would-be dunker. His ability to finish in transition coupled with his
defensive stopper mentality make him a weapon the T’Wolves will be
forced to use more this upcoming season. He just needs to find some
consistency in his half-court game to be a regular starter in the
League.
Still, the story of the day was K-Love and his mysterious board working
ways...
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Last Updated ( Friday, 18 July 2008 )
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Posted by SG
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Thursday, 17 July 2008 |
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Minnesota Timberwolves Vice President of Basketball Operations Kevin
McHale today announced the team has re-signed restricted free-agent
forward Craig Smith. Per team policy, terms of the deal were not
disclosed.
"Craig brings tremendous energy, hard-nosed post play and depth to our
roster," McHale said. "We look forward to his continued improvement,
and having him as a member of our core group of players for the future."
Now how, or if, Smith will play in the remaining three games is
uncertain, but since the summer team’s practice days all have passed,
it wouldn’t make much sense for him to travel from his home in Los
Angeles to Vegas if he wasn’t going to play at least a game.
The Wolves have not yet reached new deals with restricted free agents
Ryan Gomes and Chris Richard or unrestricted free agent Sebastian
Telfair, although Richard said the other day he assume his re-signing
is a foregone conclusion.
After the team got back from shootaround, Craig Smith had to get
himself a room (he didn't do it himself, to be fair) and take his gear
up to the training room to be washed before tonight's game. Along the
way, Smith told me what he's been up to these past few weeks (hooping,
running on the beach, working out, keeping up on L.A. fashion) and how
he felt about his new deal (great)...
The beast in the paint – who is comparable to Utah's Paul Millsap – was a restricted free agent who many think could blossom into a star given more minutes.
Will those minutes come in Minny though? Perhaps not. Al Jefferson is the team's star and they made the draft day trade to send the rights to O.J. Mayo out for the rights to power forward Kevin Love. Love and Jefferson figure to be the likely starters and the team is supposedly likely to re-sign free agent Ryan Gomes as well. Gomes can play both forward spots.
A high percentage scorer, good rebounder, and solid post defender, Smith gives the Wolves some toughness down low, so when Jefferson or Love come out of the game they won't miss a beat.
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Last Updated ( Thursday, 17 July 2008 )
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