STEPHEN LITEL: \"Rashad McCants had a spotty performance in Las Vegas during the summer league. Is that an indication of a tough season ahead for him? Do you believe McCants will be fighting for playing time against Gerald Green?\"

JIM PETE: \"The sky is the limit for Rashad. He was the Wolves 2nd best player during his rookie season; if he can just get healthy, he could be great. He is a much more polished player than Gerald Green at this point, and will be given an opportunity to play big minutes. His biggest obstacle will be shooting more consistently and not getting sticky fingers. Rashad’s jumper has not been finding the inside of the net very often and he tends to try to go one-on-one too often. If he doesn’t move the ball Randy Wittman will have him sitting on the bench quickly.\"

STEPHEN LITEL: Is Al Jefferson a “franchise” player and, if he is not, do you believe that he will become one?

JIM PETE: Al Jefferson is a big time player. I think Big Al is a franchise player to the extent you think Rasheed Wallace and Marcus Camby are “franchise players.” He obviously has different skill sets than these two guys, but he has the ability to impact the game to the degree Wallace and Camby impact a game for their team. Average fans don’t know he has one of the most polished low post games in the entire NBA, and will give the Wolves a counter to heavy weights like Tim Duncan, Dwight Howard and Amare Stoudemire in the low post. He will command a double-team down low, grab offensive rebounds and give the Wolves a “toughness” they haven¹t had before.

Two things could keep him from becoming a franchise type player. The first are his chronic ankle injuries...the second is staying in shape. If he can stay healthy and keep his weight down, at the very least he has the ability to become an All Star type player and a guy you can count on to ease the pain of not having Kevin Garnett stuffing the stat sheet every night.

LITEL: Is Randy Foye the Timberwolves point guard five years down the road? Why or why not?

JIM PETE: The answer to your question depends on Foye’s learning curve. Will he be more like Deron Williams, who made a huge leap in point guard development between his first and second season or will he be more like Chauncey Billups, who took five years and his fifth team to figure out how to become an NBA point guard.

At this point Randy’s real strength is putting it through the hoop and playing off the ball more like Dwayne Wade. He can initiate the offense and distribute the basketball to a degree, but not well enough to keep pace with players like Tony Parker, Deron Williams, Steve Nash, Chris Paul and Baron Davis in the West. I think he has the physical gifts and work ethic to become whatever he wishes to become, so I am hopeful for his future.