Number 5: Timberwolves inaugural season
One of the great insults in Minnesota sports history—and there have
been many—is the departure of the NBA’s Minneapolis Lakers to Los
Angeles. Some 30 years later, the Minnesota Timberwolves brought
professional basketball back to the Twin Cities, and for the team’s
first year, the home games were played in the Dome. One November 8,
1989, Michael Jordan scored 45 points as the Bulls beat the Woofies
96-84, but the crowds kept coming. April 17, 1990, saw the
third-largest crowd in NBA history—49,551—flock to what was a
surprisingly decent basketball venue. That season, the T’Wolves drew
1,072,572 fans total, an NBA record that may never be broken.
million contract buyout from the Timberwolves this year, will receive
an additional $1.2 million to play for Golden State this season.
Former Gophers basketball assistant Jimmy Williams, in town the other day working out new Timberwolf Gerald Green, told friends
the 6-foot-8 forward will be the best shooter on the team, if he isn’t
already. Williams successfully recruited Green out of Gulf Shores
Academy High for Oklahoma State before Green opted for the NBA draft
and was chosen by the Boston Celtics.
KSTP-AM sports talk whiz Matt Thomas no longer is under consideration for the Timberwolves’ radio play-by-play job.