Sports News and Trade Rumors: Pro Sports Daily

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November 19

Minneapolis Star Tribune

"Timberwolves coach Kurt Rambis claims he has an inspirational speech tucked away in his pocket, but he's not using it. Not now. Not yet. Not even after a 97-84 loss to Houston at Target Center on Wednesday night made his team 1-11 to start the season. "It's not my job to provide them with a Knute Rockne speech every single practice, every single game, every single halftime," he said about a team that lost 11 consecutive games and hasn't won since opening night against New Jersey three weeks ago. "I can do that once in a while, but that stuff gets really old." In the movies, Old Knute continued on well beyond those opening three lines in urging his boys to win one in trying circumstances ..."

Jefferson returns to lineup after time of grief

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November 19

Minneapolis Star Tribune

"Al Jefferson returned to the Timberwolves and the starting lineup on Wednesday night against Houston after a two-game absence to be with his grandmother, who died in Florida on Thursday. Jefferson left the team after last Wednesday's home loss to Portland and arrived in Fort Lauderdale in the afternoon a week ago today, 30 minutes before Annie Bell Randolph, 83, died. He left when he did rather than wait for an off day on Sunday at the suggestion of Wolves head coach Kurt Rambis. Jefferson missed losses Friday against Dallas at Target Center and Saturday at Memphis. The team sent player development assistant coach Darrick Martin and an assistant strength coach to Florida to work him out ..."

Where's the fire? Kurt Rambis asks

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November 19

St. Paul Pioneer Press

"The Timberwolves' 11th straight loss generated a new level of concern for coach Kurt Rambis. In his easygoing, mild-mannered style of communicating, Rambis might have delivered his most scathing criticism of the Wolves after a 97-84 loss to the Houston Rockets on Wednesday night at Target Center. "A true professional brings it every night," Rambis said. "It's not my job to provide them with a Knute Rockne speech every game. It gets old. On a day like this, it was their job ... their responsibility to be ready to play." Here's what bothered Rambis the most about the loss: The Wolves (1-11) hadn't played since Saturday at Memphis, while Houston put up a spirited battle Tuesday night at home ..."

Timberwolves' Kurt Rambis, Rockets' Trevor Ariza reconnect

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November 19

St. Paul Pioneer Press

"After Houston's Trevor Ariza completed his pregame warm-ups Wednesday night at Target Center, he asked a Wolves official to escort him into the team's locker room. He wanted to say hellow to someone. "He was such a joy to work with," Wolves coach Kurt Rambis said of his relationship with Ariza during his three-year career with the Los Angeles Lakers. "He's a unique individual and a terrific human being." Ariza, who signed with Houston as a free agent after last season, chatted for several minutes with Rambis, then led Houston to a 97-84 victory. Rambis and Ariza developed a close relationship while Rambis was a Lakers assistant. Since joining Houston, the 6-foot-8 Ariza has become a go-to ..."

Rockets bounce back against Timberwolves 97-84

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November 19

Houston Chronicle

"If Wednesday is any indication, by Saturday night, Rick Adelman will be hoarse and worn out. With Rockets weary on the second half of a back-to-back, and struggling to put away the Timberwolves, Adelman was up and loud, pushing hard and taking no chances. Finally, Luis Scola looked over and said, "It's all right, it's all right," then made sure it was, as the Rockets brushed aside the Timberwolves in the fourth quarter, extending their winning streak against Minnesota to nine games with a 97-84 win, pushing the Minnesota losing streak since their opening-night win to 11 games. "I thought we were really sluggish in the first half especially," Adelman said of his more animated, high-volume ..."

David Kahn defends Wolves' roster moves

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November 18

St. Paul Pioneer Press

"The Timberwolves' 10-game losing streak has not led to second thoughts from team president of basketball operations David Kahn about the possibility that he made too many offseason deals for salary cap reasons. Kahn, hired in May to replace general manager Kevin McHale, stood by the trades and roster moves that retained only five players from last year's team. He also stressed that management did not sacrifice the season to put the Wolves in position to be serious players in a highquality free-agent market next summer. "It's very easy for people, ourselves included, to get sucked into the day-to-day disappointments," Kahn said Tuesday. "What's important to me is that we keep getting ..."

Mysterious Triangle

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November 18

Minneapolis Star Tribune

"Whether in Bermuda or Minnesota, there's just something mystifying about a triangle. Basketball is a relatively simple endeavor, but introduce the concept of geometry into its equation and heads explode, particularly those of sportswriters. David Kahn promised his Timberwolves would run and run after he was introduced as the team's new basketball boss last spring. Eleven games and 10 consecutive losses into a fresh season, the Wolves are waiting for Kevin Love's first appearance and laboring to learn new coach Kurt Rambis' complex system of play that, depending on who you ask, may or may not be the renown triangle offense he learned under mentor Phil Jackson in Los Angeles. "I probably ..."

Timberwolves' losing streak hits 10 games in Memphis

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November 16

St. Paul Pioneer Press

"The Timberwolves lost their 10th straight game Saturday, falling 97-87 to the Memphis Grizzlies. Though they were without forwards Al Jefferson and Kevin Love, they had their chances against a team that had been struggling equally. "When you have two key components out, it's very difficult to get wins," coach Kurt Rambis said. "But again, I just admire the guys who went out there and played hard. They did a lot of good things out there. Our problem is, just not enough." Minnesota played to a 45-45 tie at halftime, then slowly succumbed to Memphis, which snapped a seven-game losing streak and improved to 2-8. The Timberwolves pulled to within 87-80 on a three-point play by Corey Brewer ..."

Kahn again writes to fans after poor start

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November 15

Minneapolis Star Tribune

"Timberwolves president of basketball operations David Kahn sat nine rows from the court Saturday night at FedEx Forum and consumed all the pageantry of the 1-8 Grizzlies battling the 1-9 Wolves. His predecessor, Kevin McHale, seldom traveled with the team unless there were special circumstances. Kahn, only six months on the job, plans to be with the team pretty much wherever they go, home or away. "I'm new," he said. "There's a learning curve. It's one thing to be watching games on film. It's another thing to be with a group of guys day in and day out. There's more for me to do with the team than being back home because I'm not the type of GM who will always be out scouting college ..."

Wolves drop 10th in a row

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November 15

Minneapolis Star Tribune

"So where will it end? The Timberwolves lost their 10th consecutive game Saturday night, a 97-87 decision to a Memphis team that, much like them, had only won once in its first nine games. Playing without Al Jefferson and Kevin Love for the second consecutive night, the Wolves now are three more consecutive losses away from the franchise's all-time worst start, a 1-13 beginning to the 1994-95 season that delivered a fifth overall pick named Kevin Garnett the next summer. Two seasons ago, the Wolves also started 1-10, in their first month without Garnett. This time, they trailed by as many as 14 points and lost by 10 to a Memphis team with only one previous victory, over Toronto in the ..."

Grizzlies pick up second win of season by beating Timberwolves, 97-87

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November 15

Memphis Commercial Appeal

"The Grizzlies showed up for work with only one thing in mind: redemption. And no one had that word ingrained in his head more than second-year starting center Marc Gasol. The 7-footer sat in the visitor's locker room Wednesday and blamed himself for a loss at Houston. It was Gasol's worst and only bad performance so far this season. On Saturday night, the Minnesota Timberwolves were pummeled by some of Gasol's best work. The Spaniard finished with 17 points and 16 rebounds in helping the Griz end a seven-game losing streak with a 97-87 victory in FedExForum. "After Houston, I felt I didn't play good and I let my team down," Gasol said. "I just felt like I could have played better." Gasol ..."

David Kahn appeals to Timberwolves fans in an open letter

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November 15

St. Paul Pioneer Press

"The Timberwolves are not the worst team in the NBA, but they're close. Worse, they haven't yet shown they'll get much better this season. Maybe that's why David Kahn believed he had to reach out Saturday. In an open letter released to newspapers, the Timberwolves' president of basketball operations told the team's fans that losing "will not be accepted" and that as a franchise, "We need to do more." "We all recognized when we signed up for this mission that it takes a Herculean effort, from all corners, to turn around a franchise and make it championship-caliber," Kahn wrote. "We obviously are not working hard enough yet. We need to do more. And we will." Kahn was hired during the summer ..."

Timberwolves forward Oleksiy Pecherov struggling with inconsistency

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November 15

St. Paul Pioneer Press

"When a reporter requests an interview with Oleksiy Pecherov on Saturday, the Timberwolves forward stops practicing his shot and begins walking off the court at FedEx Arena. That's not fast enough for coach Kurt Rambis. "If you run," Rambis says, shooing the 7-footer off the floor, "you'll get there faster." Pecherov can't seem to do anything right these days, which is why his playing time has plummeted. It was just over a week ago that Pecherov had a team-high 24 points and eight rebounds in a close loss to the Boston Celtics. Since then, he has averaged 3.4 points a game, and his playing time has dipped considerably. He had nine points and five boards in 15 minutes in Friday's 89-77 loss ..."

Timberwolves' losing streak hits 10 games in Memphis

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November 15

St. Paul Pioneer Press

"The Timberwolves lost their 10th straight game Saturday, falling 97-87 to the Memphis Grizzlies. Though they were without forwards Al Jefferson and Kevin Love, they had their chances against a team that had been struggling equally. "When you have two key components out, it's very difficult to get wins," coach Kurt Rambis said. "But again, I just admire the guys who went out there and played hard. They did a lot of good things out there. Our problem is, just not enough." Minnesota played to a 45-45 tie at halftime, then slowly succumbed to Memphis, which snapped a seven-game losing streak and improved to 2-8. The Timberwolves pulled to within 87-80 on a three-point play by Corey Brewer and ..."

Rambis not known as 'Mr. T'

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November 14

Minneapolis Star Tribune

"It's just an experiment, Kurt Rambis said, an extra weapon to use against teams that employ a quick-but-small lineup. So he's not ready to label Friday's two-point-guard lineup a failure. But the Wolves' coach didn't sound enthusiastic about its prospects, either. "I'll give it a resounding 'OK,' " Rambis said after playing starter Jonny Flynn and backup Ramon Sessions for the final 8:13 of the first half. "It's not jumping out at me as one of my favorite things." That might have something to do with the fact that the Timberwolves were outscored 17-7 in that span, and 13-2 over the last five minutes. The Timberwolves made only four of 23 shots in the period. Worse, the lineup forced ..."

Wolves show fire, then crash

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November 14

Minneapolis Star Tribune

"They won't be pushed around, these Timberwolves. They won't back away from a challenge. Well, unless the challenge involves basketball. The Timberwolves showed commendable spirit and admirable solidarity when Friday's game devolved into a shoving and shouting match. Unfortunately, Dallas displayed its superior ability to turn pique into points, and the result was the Wolves' ninth consecutive loss, 89-77 at Target Center. Ryan Hollins, a Maverick himself for 27 games last season, became the first Timberwolves player to be ejected in two seasons. His feisty attitude (and errant elbows) in the third quarter earned two technical fouls, not to mention Dirk Nowitzki's fury. "Situations like ..."

Previewing tonight's Grizzlies-Timberwolves game

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November 14

Memphis Commercial Appeal

"INSIDE THE NUMBERS The Grizzlies rank fourth in the league in rebounding (44.7). They are first in offensive rebounding (14 per game) and fifth in opponents' rebounds per game (38.9). Memphis' rebounding margin (plus-5.8) is the third-best in the NBA. ... Gay leads the NBA in total minutes played (358); Mayo ranks third (334). ... Randolph, who is averaging a career-high 10.8 rebounds, leads the NBA in offensive rebounding with five per game. He is also tied for the league lead in double-doubles with six and is on pace to double up 55 times this season, which would shatter the season franchise record of 41 set by Shareef Abdur-Rahim in 1999-2000. THE SKINNY Memphis is 15-39 all-time ..."

Flynn-Sessions combo gets a long look in Wolves' loss

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November 14

St. Paul Pioneer Press

"Timberwolves coach Kurt Rambis has resisted playing point guards Jonny Flynn and Ramon Sessions together, but he used the combination for an extended period in the second half of Dallas' 89-77 win Friday night at Target Center. Dallas coach Rick Carlisle went to a smaller lineup on occasions with guards Jason Kidd, Jason Terry and Rodrique Beaubois. Rambis, however, is not sold on the idea of making Flynn and Sessions a regular tandem. "I'll just give a resounding 'OK,' " Rambis said of Flynn and Sessions. "We wanted to experiment a little tonight. When teams go small, we can do this sometimes." Sessions, who has been Flynn's backup, played 25 minutes and finished with seven points, three ..."

Mavericks hand Timberwolves ninth straight loss

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November 14

St. Paul Pioneer Press

"Perhaps when the Timberwolves become more experienced, they will get inspired by minor skirmishes and put that emotion to good use. Friday night against the Dallas Mavericks, they weren't yet ready to do that. Two flare-ups in the third quarter, the second resulting in the ejection of starting forward Ryan Hollins, triggered an 89-77 win for Dallas in front of 12,372 at Target Center and led to the Wolves' ninth straight loss. Dallas followed up the tense moments with a 16-7 run and led by 20 in the fourth quarter, when all-star forward Dirk Nowitzki, one of the Wolves' agitators, didn't even play. Nowitzki had done enough damage with a game-high 20 points, 11 rebounds and three of the ..."

Jefferson is given family leave

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November 13

Minneapolis Star Tribune

"Al Jefferson flew to Florida on Thursday morning, his mind on matters more important than an eight-game losing streak. The Wolves forward has been excused from the team's home game tonight against Dallas and Saturday's trip to Memphis to deal with a family member's illness. Jefferson will return to the 1-8 Wolves next week, the team announced. "He's got to take care of things, [and] we all just have to step up" in his absence, guard Jonny Flynn said. Replacing the sixth-year forward's team-high 15.1 points won't be easy, but "we've got Nathan Jawai, who's a pretty athletic post player. We've got Ryan Hollins and Oleksiy Pecherov, and those guys just have to combine to put up Al numbers as ..."

Rambis wants moping to cease

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November 13

St. Paul Pioneer Press

"During the Timberwolves' eight-game losing streak, there have been stretches where the team has played well and even built a double-digit lead. All of a sudden, the opposing team regroups, and the Wolves are unable to counter. Turnovers, missed shots and defensive breakdowns turn a Wolves lead into a deficit. Spirits sink, and heads drop. The body language of Wolves players indicates where the game is heading, and coach Kurt Rambis has yet to come up with a solution to keep his players from caving in to open displays of misery. "We have to stop doing that," Wolves forward Ryan Gomes said. "We can't showcase our frustration where teams can feel it. When teams see that, that's when they ..."

Timberwolves half as bad this time in 23-point loss to Trail Blazers

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November 12

St. Paul Pioneer Press

"A number of explanations have been applied to the Timberwolves' sluggish start this season — from youth and inexperience to the complexities of coach Kurt Rambis' offense and defense. Another factor might have surfaced Wednesday night after the Wolves' 107-84 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers in front of 13,555 fans at Target Center. "I think we're putting too much pressure on ourselves," Wolves forward Al Jefferson said. "Guys need to relax. Mistakes are part of the game." In the Wolves' case, the mistakes have added up to an eight-game losing streak and the revelation of a troubling trend. Whenever the Wolves (1-8) face tough stretches in games, heads and the intensity level drop, ..."

Wolves coach looking for growth

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November 12

St. Paul Pioneer Press

columnist Tom Powers

"My new approach to watching the Timberwolves is to concentrate on just one thing. Trying to grapple with the big picture can lead to a severe migraine or perhaps even nausea. So I'm focusing on one target while waiting for the Wolves' three-year — or is it five-year? — plan to kick in. On Wednesday, as the Wolves got hammered by the Portland Trail Blazers, that target was Nathan Jawai. The big Australian is very Oliver Miller-like, or maybe Stanley Roberts-like, in terms of heft. It's physically impossible for his shirt to remain tucked in. He's also very polite, saying "sub please" when checking in at the scorer's table. Best of all, he has an interesting shot that never seems to get more ..."

Stuck on the dunk tank

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November 12

Minneapolis Star Tribune

"After so much change, the Timberwolves are exactly where they were a year ago: 1-8, with an eight-game losing streak after Wednesday night's 107-84 loss to Portland at Target Center. Two nights after they tied two franchise records in a 146-105 loss at Golden State, the Wolves led by seven points early, then got outscored 67-38 over the next two quarters to a Blazers team that beat them for the 10th consecutive time. "I mean, get beat by 40-some points?" Wolves forward Al Jefferson said when asked to compare efforts from one game to the next. "Believe it or not, I think we made some steps up tonight." Often sullen and short-answered after losses, Jefferson was introspective and expansive ..."

Golden State tape provides painful sort of instruction

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November 12

Minneapolis Star Tribune

"The Timberwolves' gameday morning film session and shootaround expanded Wednesday from its usual 75 minutes or so into a two-hour-plus tutorial that included more than an hour of watching Monday's 146-105 loss at Golden State again. "Oh, man, it was a lot of people with hands on their faces, towels on their heads," Wolves rookie point guard Jonny Flynn said. "But you need to see stuff like that. You need to be embarrassed. You need coach to call you out to really switch things around. I think we saw a lot of things we did wrong. "Our defense was horrible. It was unbelievable." Somebody asked Wolves coach Kurt Rambis if he had raised his voice to his team since the loss that tied franchise ..."

Portland 107, Minnesota 84: Greg Oden shows he can run the fast break, too

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November 12

Oregonian

"Greg Oden has shown a lot in this early season for the Trail Blazers. A new spin move. A smooth and effective jump hook. Quicker feet. Better stamina. But nobody expected to see what the Blazers center did Wednesday during yet another validation that Oden is on his way to living up to the hype and expectations of being the former No. 1 pick. Oden led the Blazers in scoring (18 points) and rebounding (11). But the talk of the night was his leading a 2-on-1 fast break with LaMarcus Aldridge, which Oden finished with a two-handed dunk after Aldridge delivered a soft lob pass. The play, generated by an Andre Miller steal at halfcourt, ended a game-changing 11-2 run in the second quarter, ..."

It's Oden again leading the way

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November 12

Portland Tribune

"Portland beat up on its perennial punching bag again Wednesday night, breaking away from the Timberwolves in the third quarter en route to a 107-84 victory. It was the fourth straight victory for the Blazers (6-3) and their second in a row on this five-game road trip, which continues Thursday at New Orleans. Portland beat the Timberwolves 116-93 at the Rose Garden Sunday night. The Blazers, who won at Memphis Tuesday night, moved into a tie with Denver for the lead in the Northwest Division. Minnesota is 1-8 after winning its opener against New Jersey. The Blazers trailed through most of the early going. Minnesota led 26-18 early in the second quarter when Portland, behind Oden and Travis ..."

Minnesota Timberwolves' cave-in 'inexcusable,' David Kahn says

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November 11

St. Paul Pioneer Press

"Timberwolves president of basketball operations David Kahn was in Oracle Arena on Monday night for a close-up view of the team's record-tying loss to the Golden State Warriors. The Wolves' 41-point loss in Oakland, Calif., matched the worst defeat in franchise history, a 113-72 rout at Miami on March 5, 1996, and led to strong criticism from Kahn about the players' competitiveness and a subtle warning if he senses a trend. "I don't want to sugarcoat what I feel was a lack of fight from our team Monday night," Kahn said of the Wolves' 146-105 loss. "It's inexcusable and unacceptable, for any one game, for us not to put up the requisite fight. I hope it does not become a pattern. If it does, ..."

Journeyman Nathan Jawai hits jackpot with Timberwolves

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November 10

St. Paul Pioneer Press

"Nathan Jawai is barely 23 years old, yet the Timberwolves power forward has a stickered suitcase worthy of an NBA journeyman. Minnesota is his fifth team after Indiana drafted Jawai out of Australia in the second round (41st overall) in 2008. He played six games with Toronto last season following a stint with the Idaho Stampede, the Raptors' developmental league affiliate. The Timberwolves acquired him from the Dallas Mavericks on Oct. 20 for a conditional draft choice. They believe they have a versatile big man who can plug holes while forward Kevin Love recovers from a broken hand and center Al Jefferson deliberately works himself back from reconstructive knee surgery. Jawai played 22 ..."

Timberwolves match history with 41-point loss to Warriors

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November 10

St. Paul Pioneer Press

"Inexperienced roster. Soft defense. Mounting losses. Growing frustration. The aforementioned maladies aptly would have described the Timberwolves or Golden State Warriors before the two Western Conference bottom feeders squared off Monday night at Oracle Arena. Just when it appeared the Wolves had met an ideal match for ending a prolonging losing streak that is becoming uglier by the day, along came the equally confounded Warriors, who took out a month's worth of frustration on the NBA's punching bag. Golden State, a young, rebuilding club that lost four of its first five games, made its 146-105 pounding of Minnesota look routine and, in the process, laid a record-tying beat down on the ..."

Warriors race past Timberwolves by 41

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November 10

San Francisco Chronicle

"With Stephen Jackson's agent publicly spitting venom at their coach and their franchise, and a five-game road trip looming without their starting center, the Warriors responded with their best game of the young season Monday night. The Warriors needed this one, and they played like it. With Stephen Jackson's agent publicly spitting venom at their coach and their franchise, and a five-game road trip looming without their starting center, the Warriors responded with their best game of the young season Monday night. Monta Ellis got it going, Corey Maggette kept it going and Kelenna Azubuike made sure he isn't going anywhere as the Warriors dismantled Minnesota 146-105 in front of 15,468 at ..."

Checking on first-round point guards

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November 9

San Francisco Chronicle

"The 11 point guards selected in the first round of the 2009 draft will be compared and contrasted for a long time. The Warriors get a look at four of the top five this week. Stephen Curry (No. 7 overall) and Sacramento's Tyreke Evans (No. 4) went at it Sunday. Minnesota's Jonny Flynn (No. 6) will play at Oracle tonight, and the Warriors will visit Milwaukee and Brandon Jennings (No. 10) on Saturday. They'll also see New York's Toney Douglas (No. 29) on Friday. "That class of rookies looks really good right now," coach Don Nelson said. "They're all doing well." Coming into Sunday's game, Curry ranked among the top seven rookies in six categories, including holding the top spot in assists ..."

Blazers unleash fast-break speed, race past Timberwolves

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November 9

Oregonian

"After years of talking about pushing the tempo, the Trail Blazers are finally doing it, and it's no coincidence that the new fast-break Trail Blazers are being led by point guard Andre Miller. With long passes, and urgent dribbling, Miller continued to change the look and style of the Blazers on Sunday as the Blazers amassed 21 fast-break points during a runaway 116-93 win over Minnesota in front of a Rose Garden sellout of 20,306. In the first five games of the season, when Miller was coming off the bench, the Blazers had 19 fast-break points, compared to 62 by their opponents. In the two games since he was inserted into the starting lineup, giving the Blazers a three-guard attack, the ..."

Blazer attack gets big assist, as Miller fuels big win over outmanned Minnesota

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November 9

Portland Tribune

"The statistics Sunday night at the Rose Garden were a bit unusual, to say the least. Brandon Roy scored two points - the fewest he has scored since the fifth game of his rookie season, when he played fewer than seven minutes because of injury. The Trail Blazers ran out to 21 fastbreak points - 16 in the first half - after averaging an NBA-low 5.2 the first six games of the season. Portland dished out a season-high 35 assists and shot .500 from the field - that after averaging 17.8 and shooting .424 in the first six games. And the Blazers, who had scored more than 100 points only once and were averaging 94.5, had 92 by the end of the third quarter. The result was an ..."

Comparing rookie point guards 'not fair'

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November 7

Minneapolis Star Tribune

"Like Brandon Roy and Randy Foye before them, the Timberwolves' Jonny Flynn and Milwaukee's Brandon Jennings might be forever compared, because they play the same position and were selected four spots apart in this year's NBA draft. At least their surnames don't rhyme. Jennings had fairly amazed in his first three NBA games, delivering a near triple-double (17 points, nine assists, nine rebounds) one night and a 25-point game another that already might have Wolves fans alarmed. Don't be, Kurt Rambis said. "It's not fair," the Wolves coach said of such comparisons. "[Jennings] has a lot more freedom than Jonny has. I'm asking Jonny to do a lot more things. He's in a much more complicated ..."

Lifeless Wolves fall apart in second half vs. Bucks

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November 7

Minneapolis Star Tribune

"Timberwolves coach Kurt Rambis needed a strong lozenge after Friday night's disjointed 87-72 loss to Milwaukee at Target Center. His team simply needs a victory. After a season-opening comeback over New Jersey, the Wolves today take a five-game losing streak out onto the road for a two-game trip to Portland and Golden State. Friday's streak-busting possibilities vanished when the Bucks outscored them 31-14 in the third quarter. His voice raw from unsuccessfully urging his team to move the ball all night, Rambis watched a team that played with so much vigor in Wednesday's 92-90 home loss to Boston and Kevin Garnett play with so little on Friday, particularly in the third quarter. That's ..."

Timberwolves' Darrick Martin eager to work with Jonny Flynn

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November 7

St. Paul Pioneer Press

"Former Timberwolves guard Darrick Martin, the team's new assistant coach for player development, is delighted that his first NBA coaching job is with the team that gave him his best opportunity as a player. Martin played parts of three seasons with the Wolves: 1995-96, 1996-97 and 2003-04 — the year the Wolves advanced to the Western Conference finals. "This is a blessing to be back where it started for me," Martin said before Friday night's Wolves-Milwaukee game at Target Center. "I got the coaching bug during my last three years with Toronto." Martin, 38, retired after the 2007-08 season. As a point guard, he had an edge over other candidates who interviewed to be an assistant to J.B. ..."

Timberwolves' latest loss points up shortage of leaders

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November 7

St. Paul Pioneer Press

"Another deficiency with the Timberwolves might have surfaced Friday night, and there's not much coach Kurt Rambis can do or say about it. Rambis tried to talk his players out of their sporadic pace, and he got a sore throat. He waited for one of them to step up during a timeout to urge the team to play harder, to play with more passion and energy, and it didn't happen. One of the lingering realities from the Wolves' 87-72 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks at Target Center is that the team appears to have a shortage of leadership, a major concern for Rambis after the Wolves' fifth straight loss. "There's not a true leader on this team right now," Rambis said. "It's one of the things we're trying ..."

Timberwolves' Pecherov making the most of his opportunity at power forward

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November 6

St. Paul Pioneer Press

"In less than a week, Oleksiy Pecherov has gone through a surprising transformation in the Timberwolves' offense — from unnoticed to almost irreplaceable. The 7-foot Pecherov was the only Wolves player to play the entire fourth quarter in the team's 92-90 loss to Boston on Wednesday night at Target Center. He took the most shots in the fourth (six) and scored 10 of the team's 18 points in the period. Pecherov's quick rise to clutch stature had teammates wishing they could have gotten the ball to him more often in the closing minutes. The surge in confidence from teammates and the coaching staff gave the Ukraine native a warm feeling. "I feel trusted," Pecherov said after Thursday's ..."

Wolves' 'parasite' racks up points on a busy night

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November 6

Minneapolis Star Tribune

"Timberwolves coach Kurt Rambis has a name for the kind of player Oleksiy Pecherov is, or is on his way toward becoming. "The term I use is a parasite," Rambis said. Let Rambis explain before you get this mental image of some creature that populates gastro-intestinal tracts. "A lot of guys in the league are parasites," he said. "They survive off the creative ability of other players. Other players collapse defenses and kick the ball out to them, or it's our offense that creates the shot for them. It's not a matter of putting the ball in their hands and they create a shot for us. He's not at that stage." Oleksiy, a 7-foot Ukrainian forward acquired from Washington in last summer's Randy ..."

Young Timberwolves appear on right track

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November 6

Minneapolis Star Tribune

columnist Sid Hartman

"You have to take your hat off to Timberwolves president David Kahn and Kurt Rambis and his coaching staff for the way the young, inexperienced team has played in the past three games. They lost by a total of 13 points against the Suns and the Clippers on the road and the Celtics here on Wednesday night. True, the Celtics had played the night before in Philadelphia while the Wolves rested, and Boston didn't get to the Twin Cities until way past midnight, but you had to admire how the Timberwolves played Kevin Garnett and company, losing by two points after leading most of the way. Had Kevin Love been healthy, the Wolves might have won the Clippers and Celtics games. They have played a lot ..."

Brewer brings energy even if his shot is still a work in progress

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November 5

Minneapolis Star Tribune

"Corey Brewer was the seventh overall selection in the 2007 NBA draft. He was such a bricklayer as a rookie that there was the impression the Timberwolves had spent this lofty choice on a player destined to be a defensive specialist. The Wolves talked up Brewer's improvement in 2008 training camp, and then he played only 15 games before being injured. He underwent season-ending surgery on his right knee. There was a massive restructuring during the offseason that included the trade of Randy Foye and Mike Miller to Washington. Foye was erratic and Miller was reluctant as shooters last season, but they still appeared to be the Wolves' best options to make some jump shots from the off-guard ..."

Celtics able to keep the Timberwolves away from the door

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November 5

Boston Globe

"The Minnesota Timberwolves finally solved the Celtics' defensive puzzle. They shot 52 percent from the field last night - the first time an opponent bettered 42 percent this season - but it wasn't enough as Boston took a 92-90 victory at the Target Center."

Celtics survive a scare

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November 5

Boston Herald

"They couldn't stop Al Jefferson- or Oleksiy Pecherov. All that needs to be said about the offense is that Paul Pierce and Ray Allen shot a combined 9-for-25. But that's where experience comes in. The Celtics, still undefeated, pulled out last night's 92-90 win over Minnesota with very little of anything working. And that should be considered a good thing. On the nights when life is a desert and everything comes up dry, the Celtics still have enough of a second sense to win. "That definitely played a role tonight," said coach Doc Rivers. "It showed when we didn't get too excited. We just stayed kind of even. Nobody panicked. At times I wanted them to get excited, but this was definitely a ..."

Timberwolves exercise options on Kevin Love, Corey Brewer

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November 3

St. Paul Pioneer Press

"The Timberwolves exercised contract options on guard/forward Corey Brewer and forward Kevin Love before Monday night's game against the Los Angeles Clippers, keeping both players from becoming free agents after the season. For now, Brewer and Love are under contract through the 2010-11 season. The Wolves exercised the fourth-year option on Brewer and the third-year option on Love. "It's always good to have a guaranteed deal for next season; at least you know you'll have a job," Brewer said. "I want to be a Timberwolf. I feel like we're building something good here." A 2010-11 option on forward Oleksiy Pecherov's contract was not picked up. President of basketball operations David Kahn said ..."

Al Jefferson's 24 not enough for Timberwolves as Clippers get first win

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November 3

St. Paul Pioneer Press

"Kurt Rambis was an assistant coach, assistant general manager and head coach with the Los Angeles Lakers for 10 years, all at Staples Center. But when he showed up here Monday, he couldn't find his locker room. "I did have to ask somebody where the visiting locker room was," he said. "I didn't know where it was." Yes, it's a new world for the Timberwolves' new coach, who helped lead finely tuned, star-studded Lakers teams to four NBA Finals and two championships. Now he's trying to rebuild a franchise that was never all that built to begin with. The Timberwolves showed considerable life Monday, and often looked good, but in the end they became the Los Angeles Clippers' first victim of the ..."

Clippers put this 1 in the win column, beat Minnesota, 93-90

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November 3

Los Angeles Times

"Finally, a winning finish. It may have been a wavering one against a non-playoff team playing its second game in two nights, but the Clippers managed to stagger across the finish line into the win column with a 93-90 victory against Minnesota on Monday at Staples Center. Easy? Of course not. Would you expect anything else the way things have gone for the Clippers this last week or year(s)? They were up by 13 points against the Timberwolves early in the third quarter and let the lead shrivel and watched it eventually disappear by the opening seconds of the fourth, but they hung on. What stopped the bleeding, among other things, was the continued excellence of center Chris Kaman, who was 10 ..."

Good effort in loss to Suns is a start for young Timberwolves

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November 2

St. Paul Pioneer Press

"This is a work in progress, Kurt Rambis reminds us. And he's OK with that. "As long as I see the light bulb turning on, and I see they're understanding," the first-year Timberwolves coach said. "And even more than anything else, I just want to see them play hard." So Rambis felt pretty good Sunday night, even as his young team learned a hard lesson from the Phoenix Suns, who showed them what a veteran, well-schooled team does in a 120-112 victory at U.S. Airways Center. The Timberwolves played well enough for a young team learning the ropes, and still were no match for Phoenix. Channing Frye made 6 of 10 shots from three-point range, and Steve Nash had 14 points and 14 assists as the Suns ..."

For Timberwolves, triangle is still a work in progress

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November 2

St. Paul Pioneer Press

"For Kurt Rambis, the triangle offense is one of those 19th-century nostrums, a magic potion that will cure the gout and improve your disposition. Only his is designed specially for basketball players. All the Timberwolves have to do is buy it. "It will make them better basketball players," the Wolves' head coach said Sunday. "It helps them understand the game better. It helps them to play with the ball and helps them to play without the ball. It helps them to pass and to dribble — all of these good fundamental skills. It makes them better basketball players." No word yet on whether it will cure plantar fasciitis. The triangle's guru is Tex Winter, who learned it while playing for Sam Barry ..."

Kahn must decide on offers for Love, Brewer, Pecherov

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November 2

Minneapolis Star Tribune

"Wolves boss David Kahn must decide by today whether to offer Kevin Love, Corey Brewer and Oleksiy Pecherov contract extensions for the 2010-11 season. On Sunday, Kahn wasn't saying what he'll do. Kahn said during training camp that extending Love a $3.64 million salary for next season is a "no-brainer." At that same time, he said he "couldn't fathom" not extending Brewer -- the seventh pick in the 2007 draft -- a $3.7 million offer. If Kahn doesn't extend Brewer or Pecherov ($2.38 million), he would save $6 million and give the Wolves even more salary-cap flexibility -- with the option of signing multiple free agents, including perhaps one to a maximum contract -- for a long-awaited ..."

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