Wednesday, May 31, 2006

Pre-Draft Workouts

From the Pioneer Press:
Kevin Pittsnogle was scheduled to workout yesterday but did not attend.

The team is holding workouts today with
C.J. Watson
Taquan Dean
Terence Dials
Eric Hicks

The Wolves can trade their #6 pick in this year's draft.
The Celtics won't get their first round pick from the Wolves before 2009.

Minnesota probably will wait until after the NBA draft June 28 to decide whether to pick up the second-year option on guard Bracey Wright's contract. The deadline is June 30. The free-agent negotiation period begins July 1.

Wolves Updates 5/31

Fired Raptors GM Rob Babcock could be returning to the Timberwolves. He spent yesterday at the workouts in the Target Center and may, along with Fred Hoiberg, McHale, and Jim Stack, attend next week's Orlando pre-draft camp.
"He's helping us out," Wolves general manager Jim Stack said. "It remains to be seen what that's going to germinate into. It's tentative. I think Glen (Taylor, owner) has a good comfort level with him because he's been here for a lot of years. He's a guy we feel we can work easily with, and he's eager to be here, so hopefully it will work out as we go along."

The PiPress also says that the team might pursue the Raptors' Mike James and the Hornets' Speedy Claxton.

Chances are that Marcus Banks won't be playing for the Wolves in the summer league as the "league's schedule overlaps with the initial rush of free agency, and without a deal, it's unlikely Banks would participate."

McHale on the difference between the Wolves and the teams in the playoffs right now:
"I don't see a big chasm," McHale said after working out a handful of potential second-round draft picks at Target Center. "You can make some big strides in our league very quickly by adding a player or two or three. All of the teams still playing right now have holes and weaknesses like all teams do. There is no perfect team or perfect player."
McHale, who has a handshake deal with owner Glen Taylor, reiterated that both Kevins — himself and star player Kevin Garnett — will be with the Wolves when next season begins.

Tuesday, May 30, 2006

Wolves Workouts

The Wolves held workouts today with:

Guards
Rajon Rondo (Click here for an interview)
C.J. Watson (Click here for an interview)

Forwards
Kenny Adeleke
Christian Maraker

Center
Solomon Jones

Interview With Szczerbiak

The Pioneer Press's Rick Alonzo talked to Wally Szczerbiak and got his take on topics related to his former and present teams.

On Coach Casey:
"I loved coach Casey as a coach," Szczerbiak said.
"I don't think there's any coach who prepares you better for a game," Szczerbiak said. "I know he took a lot of heat, especially after the trade, but he'll do a good job in this league for many years to come."

On his connection to Minnesota:
"I had a lot of interest in the Wolves," he said. "My parents found themselves still watching a lot of Timberwolves games. Minnesota will always have a special place in my heart; there's no question about that."

On playing with the Celtics:
"Our team was close on the road together," Szczerbiak said. "We played cards on the planes, and that was nice to get to know the guys, and I kind of fit in pretty well right away. It will be nice to have training camp and get acclimated to the system."

The Tragedy Of Kevin Garnett

Courtesy of True Hoop, a link to David Berri's blog in which "The Wages of Wins" co-author expands on the book's reasoning that KG is the most productive player in the league.

The problem for KG is not his game, but his teammates. In 2002-03 Garnett produced 31.5 wins. The rest of his team produced 15.1. The next season Garnett produced 30.5 wins while the rest of the T-Wolves produced 25.3 victories. The increased productivity of his teammates allowed the writers to notice Garnett and give him the league MVP award.

In 2004-05, as we note in the book, Garnett was essentially the same player who won the MVP. He produced 30 wins, but his teammates only produced 14.8 victories. This past season, just to make life even less fun, his teammates only produced 9.4 wins. So over the past four seasons, Garnett’s teammates have averaged 16.1 wins per year. Although Garnett is averaging close to 30 wins per season, it is not enough to overcome the performance of his co-workers.

This past season no player in the league had less productive teammates. Only two of his fellow T-Wolves posted an above average wins production per-minute played – Wally Szczerbiak and Eddie Griffin – and one of these was traded away during the season. And Griffin was only barely above average.

And that is the tragedy of Kevin Garnett. Year after year he is the most productive player in the league. And year after year he plays with many players who are not only not average, but quite a bit below average.

Sunday, May 28, 2006

Malcolm Gladwell Says KG Rocks

Thanks to Henry at True Hoop for the link and explanation of Malcolm Gladwell's blog discussion on "The Wages Of Wins." The book is by economists who, according to Gladwell, argue that

traditional talent evaluation over-rates the importance of points scored, and under-rates the importance of turnovers, rebounds and scoring percentage. Wages of Wins also obliterates the so-called NBA Efficiency rating, which is the official algorithm used by the league and many basketball experts to rank the statistical performance of players. The Efficiency rating, they argue, makes the same error. It dramatically over-rewards players who take lots and lots of shots.

The authors say that value should be accorded to NBA players based on what they term a Win Score, the number of wins for which an individual player is responsible in a season.

According to this system, Kevin Garnett has been the best player in the league for the last five years, "hands down."

One of the authors explains that what this means is that every year Garnett gets better and better, and every day the quality of the players that Kevin McHale surrounds him with gets worse and worse.

Poor Ricky Davis. Win Score rankings list him as the 10th most overrated player in the league.

Wolves Updates 5/28

The Minnesota Timberwolves announced the organization and its ownership group has taken over the sole management, promotion and booking of events at Target Center.
I don't understand the business implications of this deal but what I do get is that the group who can't fill the arena when Kevin Garnett is the headlining act is now in charge of setting up and getting people in the doors to see the Harlem Globetrotters and "Sesame Street Live."

From the New York Daily News:
Minnesota brought back assistant coach Randy Wittman, a Kevin McHale favorite who could slide into the No. 1 seat if Dwane Casey gets off to a rough start in Year 2 with Kevin Garnett. You don't hear Garnett's name in trade talks — yet — but the T-Wolves would love to move oft-injured Troy Hudson.

Draft Express lists that Eric Hicks and Allan Ray now have upcoming workouts with the Wolves.

From Sid Hartman:
Most of the potential draft choices who recently have worked out for the Timberwolves are expected to be selected in the second round. First-round possibilities, such as Duke's J.J. Redick and Shelden Williams; Memphis' Rodney Carney and Shawne Williams; Villanova's Randy Foye; Connecticut's Rudy Gay and other possible high draft choices, will work out closer to the draft.

From Charley Walters:
Brit Carlson is leaving the Vikings' marketing department to join the Timberwolves' marketing department.

Friday, May 26, 2006

Wolves Updates 5/26

According to the Pioneer Press, the Wolves are trying to trade their #6 pick for a veteran player but, because of the lack of "high impact" prospects in the draft, the team isn't having much luck doing so.

The Timberwolves Draft Central page has a video with snippets of predraft workouts from Marcus Williams, Dee Brown, Mardy Collins, and Jose Juan Barea.

Last season, the Wolves and the Trail Blazers were the two teams with the lowest season ticket base in the league.

Wednesday, May 24, 2006

Rumors From Sid Hartman

From the Star Tribune:
All indications are that Jim Stack, general manager for the Timberwolves, will become an assistant coach for the team after next month's draft. Look for Rob Babcock, who left the Wolves to become general manager of the Raptors in 2004, to return to the team in a top executive role. And it's doubtful that Johnny Davis, who was Dwane Casey's top assistant, will be back. There is a good chance that Davis will join the Orlando Magic coaching staff, where he will replace new Wolves assistant Randy Wittman.

Draft Express Predictions

The following is a list of players that Draft Express believes the Wolves will consider in the draft:

Rudy Gay
Tyrus Thomas
Shelden Williams
Patrick O'Bryant
Rodney Carney

Hoiberg Reports On Workouts

As part of his new position as "Wolves Front Office Executive", Fred Hoiberg has been organizing the player workouts.

The Timberwolves site features an interview with Hoiberg in which he talks in general about the workouts but doesn't mention specific players.

McHale And Others On The Draft

Fox Sports details the Wolves "spotty record" in the draft.


"We stayed in our pre- lottery draft slot, which is what we thought might happen," Wolves VP of Basketball Operations Kevin McHale said in a release. "We are confident that we will be able to get a solid player with the sixth selection. There will be some guys out there that can help us out at this spot."


From the Pioneer Press:
The franchise hasn't had a selection this high since Wally Szczerbiak was chosen sixth in 1999.

McHale said he thinks most teams will draft based on their needs because there aren't many can't-miss prospects.

"You'll probably see some players go earlier than expected because a team will say, 'Hey, we need a point guard or we need this or we need that,' " McHale said. "But it's going to be a draft that's going to have some depth to it."



NBA TV's Rick Kamla was on KFAN this morning, suggesting the Wolves take Andrea Bargnani in the draft if he's still available.

Wolves Updates 5/24

From the Daily Herald:
An NBA source tells us that Minnesota has no intention of trading Garnett and wouldn’t even listen to offers unless the name in return starts with something along the lines of Kobe or LeBron.

From the San Bernardino County Sun:
Lakers fans' favorite fantasy is the addition of Kevin Garnett to the roster. Somehow or other, after KG escapes Minnesota. Hate to burst another balloon, but insiders say Garnett wants nothing to do with Los Angeles or New York.

The Timberwolves are e-mailing some season-ticket holders with invitations to interactive informational meetings with Kevin McHale and Fred Hoiberg of the team's front office.

KG and T-Hud were in attendance at Seimone Augustus's regular season debut at the Target Center last night.

Tuesday, May 23, 2006

Wolves Get Sixth Pick

As expected, the Wolves drew the 6th pick in tonight's NBA draft lottery. At least we didn't fall a few spots but we should have sent Seimone instead of Zarko.

The number 1 pick went to the Raptors.


Click here for an interview with University Of Illinois' Dee Brown after his workout with the Wolves.

Click here for a post-workout interview with the University Of Connecticut's Marcus Williams.

Player Workouts

From the Pioneer Press:
This morning, four point guards are scheduled to work out for the Wolves: Northeastern's Jose Juan Barea, Illinois' Dee Brown, Temple's Mardy Collins and Connecticut's Marcus Williams.

Draft Express lists Eric Hicks as having a scheduled workout with the team.

McHale on former Gopher Vincent Grier's workout:
"He's got that funky, left-handed game that's a little bit different, but I like him," McHale said. "He's an aggressive kid, nice kid, real gentleman. He's a Gopher, so that puts him higher in my book."

Wolves Updates 5/23

Wittman interviewed for the Wolves' coaching vacancy last summer, the position Casey landed. Wittman's arrival could lead to speculation he might replace Casey down the road if the team does not turn things around after a 33-49 record in 2005-06.
Casey said he wasn't worried about that, though, and welcomed Wittman's experience to the bench.

From the Star Tribune:
Said Casey: "He brings a lot of experience to the staff. That was an area where we were lacking a little bit."
Both Casey and McHale noted the number of close games the Wolves lost. They noted Wittman's ability to teach younger players, which he did a lot of in Orlando during the past season. A year ago, Wittman left the Wolves after four seasons to take a job with the Magic and coach Brian Hill.


The Pioneer Press speculates that assistant coach Johnny Davis could be "reassigned" due to the hiring of Wittman.



T-Hud could be back for training camp according to GM Jim Stack:
"He's been working with a chiropractor and getting therapy every day and getting some shooting done," Stack said. "He says he's feeling better. We just kind of have to see how he continues to progress."

Eddie Griffin finally had laser eye surgery.

Go Zarko!

Zarko Durisic, the team's director of international scouting, will be the Wolves rep for the NBA draft lottery tonight.
Said McHale: "Jarko told me he was the luckiest person he knows. I said: 'That's all I have to hear. You're going.' "

The team has
a 5.3 percent chance of getting the number one pick
a 6.02 percent chance of getting the number two pick
a 6.96 percent chance of getting the number three pick

The 9th slot is the lowest pick the Wolves can get in the first round.

The Wolves also have three second round picks whose order will be determined in the lottery.

Wolves Vice President Kevin McHale said there are a lot of big guards/small forwards, a position at which the Wolves are relatively well-stocked.
"I don't think we'll draft toward need," Stack said. "Because, typically, when you get a young player he needs time to acclimate to the NBA."

Monday, May 22, 2006

Wolves Updates 5/22

The Wolves officially announced the hiring of Randy Wittman as an assistant coach.
"I am tremendously excited to come back to Minnesota and join Dwane Casey's coaching staff and am grateful for this opportunity," Wittman said. "I look forward to working together to get this team back in the playoffs and to develop its corps of young talent in the process."

From Mark Cuban's blog:
But what I really, really like is how much Im heckled. Some cities are great and heckle with style and humor. The Clippers have 4 guys who put on wigs and jokingly call themselves the mark cuban fan club. They are always there when we play them and they make it fun. One year they brought a chucky doll and put a black wig on him and all game long they kept on stabbing the chucky doll. It was hysterical. Utah , minnesota, Golden State are all pretty cool. They actually have people who can heckle with some wit and intellect and get laughs from the people around the bench area.


The NBA Draft Lottery is tomorrow evening.

Sunday, May 21, 2006

Wolves Over The Weekend

From the Pioneer Press:
Don't be surprised if Rob Babcock, who left the Timberwolves as player personnel director to become general manager of the Toronto Raptors, returns to the Wolves' front office.

Also from the Pioneer Press:
Timberwolves vice president Kevin McHale and general manager Jim Stack are back from Europe, where they scouted players for next month's NBA draft.


From Sid Hartman:
Anthony Carter will not return next season.

Glen Taylor says there have been no talks about a trade for Stephon Marbury.

Johnny Davis' assistant coach position will not be effected by Randy Wittman's return.

The Wolves will start working out potential draft choices Monday at the Target Center. Among the players scheduled to be on hand are former Gophers star Vincent Grier, a 6-4 guard, along with Hassan Adams, 6-4 senior from Arizona; Maurice Ager, 6-5 guard from Michigan State; Rashad Anderson, 6-5, UConn; and Richard Roby, 6-6 sophomore from Colorado.


According to Draft Express, Jose Juan Barea also has a scheduled workout with the Wolves.

Hoopsworld and many of the mock drafts suggest the Wolves should select Rudy Gay.

Friday, May 19, 2006

Happy 30th Birthday, KG!


"Da Kid"


"Da Man"


Wondering what to get Kevin Garnett on his 30th birthday? Below is a list of gift suggestions so you don't disappoint the multi-millionaire on such a significant day as this:
- A dance from Mark Madsen
- Hire someone at Gatorade to make non-creepy commercials for him
- A cameo in "Who Shot Mamba?"
- A Boof Bonser Twins t-shirt
- A new name for the Target Center
- The Answer for some of the team's problems
- A bird flu vaccination
- Something nice to put on his mantel

Thursday, May 18, 2006

Wittman's Back, Courtside Press Seats Gone

From Sid Hartman:
The Wolves are rehiring Randy Wittman in the capacity of assistant head coach. Coach Dwane Casey said "he he had invited Wittman to join the staff and welcomed him because he felt his 2005-2006 staff might have lacked some experience."

Meanwhile, the Wolves will be bringing in players to work out next week, including former Gophers guard Vincent Grier. Rudy Gay, the 6-9 former UConn forward who turned pro in April after his sophomore year, might also work out here next week.

Apparently, the Wolves will have tough competition to sign point guard Marcus Banks, who also is being pursued by the Lakers and Spurs. The Wolves have the right to match any offer for free agent forward Justin Reed, who they want to bring back.


Also from the Star Tribune:
The Timberwolves are among the growing list of teams that plan to downsize press-row seating next season and add about 16 courtside seats that will go for $1,500 per game and be sold on a season-ticket basis. (That figures to be $61,500 per seat for the regular season.)

Wolves radio analyst Billy McKinney has expressed his desire to return next season, according to team officials. The Wolves, meanwhile, are continuing to explore their options for a new radio contract. They had a one-year deal with longtime rights-holder KFAN this past season.


KFAN's Dan Barreiro on KG:
We all know what Garnett does well. We've all seen it for years. You know what we don't see? We don't see that look in his eye. If you've been watching these playoffs _ the ratings suggest you haven't _ then you know the look I'm talking about. You can see it in Duncan, Nowitzki, James, Brand, Bryant, Cassell, Billups, Nash, even Arenas.
It's the look that unmistakably says, "Gimme the damn ball and let me try to win it.''
Again. And again.
And Garnett ain't got it.

Wolves Updates 5/18

Charles Barkley on KG:
"I always tell people that Shaquille O'Neal, he and Kevin Garnett are my two favorite players, just because they have the greatest personalities," Barkley said. "They understand that the game should be fun and they have been almost been my two favorite players in the last 10 or 15 years."


From Sid Hartman:
Apparently Kevin McHale, the Timberwolves vice president of basketball operations, and General Manager Jim Stack have spent some time in Europe taking a good look at players who might be good enough to be drafted.

Former Timberwolves No. 1 draft choice Ndudi Ebi played a total of 26 minutes in two NBA Development League playoff games, scoring five points for the Fort Worth Flyers. Ebi averaged 11.4 points and 6.9 rebounds per game in 16 regular-season games.


From the Pioneer Press:
Look for the Timberwolves to announce that coach Dwane Casey has added former Wolves assistant Randy Wittman to his staff as the top assistant.
Wittman, 48, spent nine seasons with the Wolves and left in 1999 to become head coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers for two years. He spent last season as an assistant with Orlando, and the Wolves had to buy out the remaining time on his multiyear contract with the Magic.



From the New York Post:
As they do every summer, the Nets will take the pulse of the Kevin Garnett situation in Minnesota. Garnett is signed through 2009 but can opt out after '08, so the time for the 'Wolves to move him - if so inclined - would be after next season. Garnett is getting frustrated with the inertia of the 'Wolves but he hates change. Still, he'll closely monitor offseason moves.

Wednesday, May 17, 2006

All-NBA Teams, No KG!

The All-NBA Teams were announced and Kevin Garnett, the dude who led the league in efficiency and rebounds , made none of the three teams.

He was, however, at the top of the "others receiving votes" list with 94 points (no first place votes) though that's hardly any consolation. It would make sense if a player's team were a factor in the voting but that is not the case.

I demand a recount.

LeBron James was at the top of the list with 610 votes.

Click here to see the results.

Wolves Updates 5/17

The New York Daily News on possible moves Nets president Rod Thorn could make during the offseason:
Kevin Garnett's name will be mentioned because Thorn has been trying to get him for years. But the Timberwolves have not reached the point where they have decided that they will move Garnett, who turns 30 in a few days. They will listen to serious offers, but it's not as if they're shopping Garnett. The Nets have more to offer the T-Wolves than the Knicks, that's for sure.


According to Draft Express, Nick George (VA Commonwealth) has a scheduled workout with the Wolves on June 2.

From the Pioneer Press:
Former basketball Gophers Rick Rickert, Jeff Hagen and Dusty Rychart are working out regularly at their alma mater, with Rickert and Hagen hoping for NBA summer league tryouts. Rychart has signed for about $125,000 to play next season in Australia.

The newest Carnival Of The NBA is up at Deadspin.

Monday, May 15, 2006

KG Helps Build Homes

Not only did Kevin Garnett donate over a million dollars to an Oprah Winfrey organization to fund the building of houses for victims of hurricane Katrina, but he also went to Mississippi to help set them up and to "surprise some of the Katrina families who still don't know they're building their own homes!"

Seriously, how awesome is this dude...

Wolves Updates 5/15

Garnett is number 5 in SI.com's "Best Players Without An NBA Title."

Sam Smith (again) on KG:
I believe the Timberwolves will not trade him. I believe they'll trade for someone like Stephon Marbury to dress up the roster for the season ticket-holders and make it appear there's a chance when, more likely, they'll struggle to make the playoffs or miss them again. Meanwhile, they'll be wasting what's left of Garnett. I've long talked about getting Garnett, but even I admit he's a risk now. He has played more than 30,000 minutes, a career for most in the Hall of Fame, and been mostly healthy. He probably only has a few good seasons left. He's a much bigger risk now. But if the Bulls don't have to break up their team to get him, Garnett would be worth the risk. He is the hard-working, unselfish type of player they covet and could help them make a major move next season.


From the Pioneer Press:
Look for the Timberwolves to bring in former Gophers guard Vincent Grier early next week for a workout at Target Center. The Wolves like Grier's intensity and consider him a second-round pick in June's NBA draft.

Also from the Pioneer Press:
Former Mr. Basketball Minnesota and Mounds View graduate Nick Horvath successfully recruited former Moorhead State star Chris Anderson of Forest Lake to become a teammate on his Wellington, New Zealand, professional team this spring.
Look for Horvath to play for the Los Angeles Lakers' summer league team. The Timberwolves also showed interest in him.

Thursday, May 11, 2006

KG Gets Defensive Team Nod

Garnett was named to the NBA's All-Defensive Second Team along with Tim Duncan, Chauncey Billiups, Tayshaun Prince, and Marcus Camby.

Bruce Bowen, Ben Wallace, Andrei Kirilenko, Ron Artest, Kobe Bryant, and Jason Kidd received First Team honors.

For the last six seasons, Garnett had been selected to the First Team.


Gopher Vicent Grier is scheduled to work out for the Wolves.

Tuesday, May 09, 2006

Wolves Updates 5/9

The Florida Flame, the Wolves D-League affiliate team last season, is cancelling their 2006-2007 season for lack of a "suitable venue." The Sioux Falls Skyforce are the Wolves D-League affiliate this season.

The Timberwolves are among 7 teams with whom Marquette's Steve Novak has scheduled visits.

Mad Dog Forum

Mad Dog reminisces about playing with Kobe in his latest blog post:
The first year I was there, I can't tell you how many times I came into the game and Kobe tried to get me a dunk or a wide open layup to help me build some confidence. One time after a tough game at Memphis he invited me to meet up with him and his high school buddy for a steak dinner. Another time he stayed around after a game to meet up with the ten year old daughter of a buddy of mine for an autograph and a photo. Still another time when I was upset about a certain on-court team issue, Kobe took the time to listen to everything I was going through and tried to help the situation. Kobe Bryant went out of his way a lot when I was just figuring out what it was like to play in the NBA.

Madsen has also started a message board on his site. The forum is pretty innocuous thus far but that's because, at the moment, the only two registered users are the Dog and administrator.

Monday, May 08, 2006

NBA All-Caucasian Team

Mad Dog makes Nah Right's NBA All-Caucasian Team:
6th Man - Mark Madsen/Minesotta Timberwolves
Honestly, this guy made the list by default. He’s not that good but the lack of a united caucasian front in the NBA made it hard enough to find 5 players in the first place. Besides, has anyone ever seen this guy dance when he won titles with the Lakers? I think the MythBusters where trying to prove that white people don’t have rhythm and having Mark dance was all the proof needed. Seriously though, I like M&M’s game. He’s like a slow white version of Rick Mahorn minus any skills.

Szczerbiak, Kirk Hinrich, Chris Kaman, Mike Miller, and Brad Miller were also selected.

Thanks to JJ for the link.



Hoiberg For GM

From the Pioneer Press:
Don't be surprised if Fred Hoiberg, forced to retire as a player this season because of aortic surgery, is named the Timberwolves' player personnel director while being groomed for a general manager position.

There's little doubt that the Wolves will trade guard Marko Jaric this summer, but first they have to find a taker.


From The L.A. Times:
Minnesota owner Glen Taylor said he would not deal his All-Star center, and insiders say the Timberwolves are going to try to acquire Stephon Marbury to placate Garnett.


Hartford's Kenny Adeleke is scheduled to workout with the Wolves on May 30.

Saturday, May 06, 2006

Skita!

Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine that Tskitishvili would be playing in Game 7 of a playoff series. Never. Not once. Not ever. I saw it with my own eyes and still don't believe it.







From The Pioneer Press:
The Timberwolves are expected to offer Nick Horvath, 25, the 1999 Mr. Basketball Minnesota selection from Mounds View, a summer league tryout when he returns from playing in New Zealand next month. Horvath scored 10 points with eight rebounds and three blocked shots in 16 minutes in his first game for his Wellington team the other day.

Thursday, May 04, 2006

T-Hud's Back!

From the Orlando Sentinel:
Former Magic point guard Troy Hudson, who now plays for the Minnesota Timberwolves, is set to release his first hip-hop album this summer. The title is Undrafted, and he hopes to use a picture of himself in a Magic uniform alongside Michael Jordan from the 2001 season.

Wednesday, May 03, 2006

Wolves Dancers In China, Day 3

The dance team's blog is apparently just one of the ways in which we'll hear about their adventures abroad as the league is also "filming a reality show for the NBA that will show eight different segments in China."

For purposes of this show, the dancers were paired with their Shanghai Sharks counterparts and forced to play a few inane "games." The first was called "get to know the Timberwolves dancer." Next, the Wolves dancers were asked to recite a phrase in Chinese. The final task (dancer Cori's favorite) had the team bargaining with merchants to get the best deal on various purchases. All of this sounds like loads of fun for the Sharks dancers.

If the Wolves dance team is only three days into the trip and already thinks it's "very nice to see things on the menu such as: salad, ravioli, and sandwich" and has to participate in activities like the ones above, this sure to be enthralling reality show might become our second favorite viewing experience this summer.

More AI To Wolves Rumors

Trade rumor from the Pioneer Press:
Ricky Davis as part of a Timberwolves package to the 76ers for Allen Iverson.


Sam Cassell on Elton Brand receiving the Joe Dumars Trophy for sportsmanship:
"Any accomplishments, accolades, or reward he gets this year are long overdue, and I'm not just saying that because he's my teammate," point guard Sam Cassell said. "When I was with Minnesota, Kevin Garnett used to get up to play Elton. He would always say to me, 'Man, I've got Elton Brand tonight.' We used to talk about every guy he played against, and he would put Elton up there with Tim Duncan. There's no one better in this game than Kevin Garnett, as far as analyzing and studying players, he does his homework, and he put Elton up there with the best. Elton doesn't do a lot of talking, he just goes to work."

Tuesday, May 02, 2006

Wolves Dancers In China

The Timberwolves Dance Team is hanging with Vlade Divac in China to launch the NBA's Jam Van Asian tour. They're performing and holding mock auditions "to give Chinese women the ability to experience what a traditional NBA dance audition would be like." In addition, some lucky fans in China will get to chat online with the ladies.

Thankfully for us, they've decided to blog about their trip:
Neen How!! Today was our first full day here in Shanghai. I woke up feeling surprisingly well; I think my excitement is over-riding the jet-lag. All of us dancers met up at 9:00 AM to get in a work out and get our bodies started for the day. Our hotel has a great work out facility. We each hopped on a treadmill, pumped our I Pods, and got started. Then I noticed that of course, the treadmill reads in kilometers rather than miles. We had a long discussion on how to do the conversion, knowing that a 5K is about 3 miles, we decided that running at 10 km/hr was a good pace.

Wolves/Non-Wolves Updates 5/2/06

The Cavalier at YaySports is trying to raise money to facilitate the release of "Who Shot Mamba?", a 12 part "live action epic" that is sure to be not only the blockbuster hit of the summer, but also the perfect way to stave off the post- season blues.

The Jim Rome show will debut one of the two new Replacements songs on Thursday, May 4 and both Westerberg and Tommy Stinson are scheduled to call into the show.

Hoop Addict's dunk of the day featured video is of Fred Jones and the Pacers at the Wolves.

Carmelo Anthony on the Nuggets' first round elimination from the playoffs:
I don't want to be like Kevin Garnett and take eight years to get out of the first round.