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Game previews:
Jefferson is scheduled to have his torn anterior cruciate knee ligament surgically repaired Wednesday in New York City.
The decision on when, where and who will perform the surgery was made after Jefferson and his agent consulted with the Wolves and their team doctors.
Welcome back
Guard Kevin Ollie, out since early January because of a dislocated/fractured elbow, is expected to rejoin the team today in Washington, but is probably another 10 days to two weeks away from playing in a game again, McHale said.
Craig Smith, who missed five games because of a cracked rib suffered Feb. 3 at Indiana, practiced fully during the 100-minute workout and is expected to play Tuesday night against the Wizards off the bench as much as his conditioning and his healing rib allowed.
Smith said he still has “slight pain” that is far better than just eight days ago, when he was in too much pain to watch his team play a game at New Orleans in which they lost Al Jefferson to injury for the rest of the season.
“I’m a little surprised,” Wolves coach Kevin McHale said. “I thought it’d be a little longer, but he’s a tough kid.”
Probably Love. Listen, Westbrook has been amazing and he’s #1 on my list. He could very well win Rookie of the Year, but the ball was given to him in a sense and there were no expectations either. I think Love had a harder road because there were such unbelievable expectations, not to mention him but the team too. The team obviously fired their coach and they were really disappointed with how they did. I don’t think Oklahoma City expected to do much better, I could be wrong, but Minnesota definitely did. The fact that he had to come off the bench, and still has to come off the bench. He had to change his body so much.
He’s maybe the best rebounder we have in the NBA and he isn’t even 20 yet. That’s amazing to me. He’s an amazing player. He does a lot of little things well…
ABC/ESPN analyst Jeff Van Gundy also likes Minnesota Timberwolves forward Kevin Love, the fifth overall pick, who must shoulder more of a burden with the season-ending knee injury to teammate Al Jefferson.
“I don’t know what Kevin Love can’t do, but I know what he can do,” Van Gundy says. “That guy can rebound with anybody.”
Love has averaged 10.6 rebounds in his last 10 games.
“Kevin Love is going to be a monster,” Boston Celtics coach Doc Rivers recently told news reporters. “He’s a pain…to keep off the glass.”
The Wolves, at the moment, need healthy bodies. McHale said the team would not make a trade designed to help them only for the season’s remaining two months, but it could waive, for example, Calvin Booth and sign a young player from the NBA Development League.
McHale was named the Western Conference’s best coach for January because of a 10-4 month that followed a 2-14 December. Now, the Wolves have lost seven of their past eight, and only one of those games was with without Jefferson. McHale accepted the job begrudgingly in December and doesn’t hide his dislike for the required travel and time away from his family.
Wolves owner Glen Taylor has said McHale — who was stripped of his front-office title when Randy Wittman was fired as coach — will decide if he returns to coach next season. McHale has made every major decision for the franchise since 1995, and fans for years have clamored for his departure.
The Bleacher Bums talk to Stephen Litel about Al Jefferson’s injury, Kevin McHale as head coach, and Rashad McCants’ reduced playing time.
If the Wolves can get something for him before Thursday’s trade deadline, sure, but let’s face it: By himself, the former first-round draft choice has little or no trade value. After sitting out 12 consecutive games, McCants played in three straight leading up to the all-star break in what seemed to be an obvious bit of showcasing, despite McHale’s assertions to the contrary. In the final season of his contract, McCants’ days here are numbered, but he still might have more short-term value to this injury-strapped team than any other.
Dan Bell/Timberwolves site on head athletic trainer Gregg Farnam, strength and conditioning coach Dave Vitel and physical therapist Andre Deloya.
Lance Stephenson is trying to help Lincoln make history by becoming the first team to win four straight PSAL titles, but last night he added his name to the history book by breaking former Railsplitter Sebastian Telfair’s state career scoring record.
