Al menos, unos POCOS reconocen el valor y la aportacion del Bareilla a los Lobotes de Palo.... me likey...!
Tom Powers: New guys are fine, but Timberwolves' first save goes to J.J. Barea
J.J. Barea was like a tornado coming off of the bench, albeit a very small one. He was a whirling, darting ball of commotion.
I had forgotten about all of that during a hectic offseason in which new players seemed to be added to the Wolves' roster almost daily. But we all remembered quickly in the opener against the Sacramento Kings as Barea did his Tasmanian Devil impersonation and sparked the Wolves to a victory.
It's as if the entire game is on a sugar buzz when he's out there.
"J.J. was terrific; he came in and attacked the basket,'' coach Rick Adelman said.
He attacked everything. I swear he sticks his chin in front of elbows in order to draw fouls.
So on a night in which the Wolves made just 2 of 17 three-point attempts and generally couldn't hit water if they were tossing the basketball out of a rowboat, they won by 12 points. They played good defense and got contributions from a lot of people, which will be the blueprint for success while Kevin Love and Ricky Rubio remain out of action.
They also got 21 points and unlimited energy from the whirling, churning Barea as they overcame a 37 percent shooting night.
"I've been feeling good lately," Barea said. "I was able to just come with a lot of energy. I was moving good and I was attacking. It was working. I think the bench did a great job, came out with a lot of energy. And I think it works for us."
My guess is that he goes home and plugs himself into an electrical outlet. In fact, I think if you stick slices of bread in his pockets, he can make toast.
It was an interesting night at Target Center as several prized acquisitions made their debuts. Here are some first impressions:
Brandon Roy looked like he was moving around pretty well. He played 30 minutes and still has sort of a regal presence on the court. He also missed about a zillion open shots, which immediately made him one of the guys. But that shouldn't happen very often.
-- Greg Stiemsma already has made me forget ... what's his name ... Durko? Drago? Stiemsma was a revelation, and Adelman was raving about him after the game. Stiemsma had 9 points, 7 rebounds and 4 blocks in 16 minutes. He also ran the court very well. Granted, it was one game against Sacramento, but that's already an improvement over Dumko.
-- Andrei Kirilenko does everything right. He makes the right pass, takes the right shot, tips the ball in the right direction and is in the right place. Kirilenko strikes me as a fellow who makes his teammates better, often by doing things that aren't tracked in the box score.
-- Alexey Shved struggled. Clearly, the game was moving a bit too fast for him. He seemed a step behind everyone and was caught flat-footed a few times. He'll need some time to adjust his game. And he'll need some time to adjust that hair thing he has going on.
-- Chase Budinger was first off the bench. His shot was off, pretty much like everyone else, but he wasn't afraid to keep firing. His defense and rebounding were decent. He did not look out of place.
-- Dante Cunningham had a fairly quiet debut on the offensive end. He drew a couple of fouls pretty quickly in the first half and never really got into the flow. But he was a bear on the boards and was another newcomer who showed a tendency toward tough defense.
Again, these are first impressions. It also should be noted that beating downtrodden Sacramento was not easy. I don't think there's ever been a game at Target Center that hasn't been a struggle. At some point, the Timberwolves always appear doomed. It's tradition.
That moment occurred midway through the third quarter when Minnesota was on the wrong end of a 17-4 run at the start of the second half. The Wolves were completely out of whack. Then Adelman sent Barea back in and instantly everything was faster, more frenetic. The damage was contained. Soon the Wolves regained their lead, and the victory was secured.
"J.J. made some really good plays on the pick and roll," Adelman said. "He made really good decisions, found guys at the basket. And we were able to open it back up again."
"I think we moved the ball pretty good tonight without Ricky," Barea noted. "Ricky does a good job of that. Now I think everybody has to step up."
Now, Sacramento may not be much of a test. But that probably was a good thing for the season opener at home. And remember that every victory without Love and Rubio is a major accomplishment.
twincities.com/sports/ci_21918930/tom-po...berwolves?source=rss 
