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Game previews:
The Wolves (7-28) are convinced they are a different team from the one that lost by 41 points to the Warriors on Nov. 9 in Oakland. Kevin Love missed that game with a broken bone in his left hand, and Wolves players were still trying to make sense out of coach Kurt Rambis’ triangle offense.

Twenty-five games later, Rambis and his players say the offense is running much smoother and Love’s rebounding presence has helped improve the Wolves’ defense. It’s a safe conclusion that the Wolves are determined to show Golden State their new look.

“This team blew us out by 41,” center Al Jefferson said of the Warriors. “If that don’t motivate us, I don’t know what will.”
No. 25 reflected on his 25th birthday at the practice facility on Tuesday afternoon. Al Jefferson proved to the league last year that he is one of the preeminent post players in the NBA. After making the gigantic leap from high school to the pros, Jefferson is now entering his prime with a solid perspective on his career.

“Yeah, it went by fast though,” Jefferson said. “It doesn’t seem like it’s been six years but I just have to take advantage of it because before you know it, I will be 30 or 33, on my way out of here. You don’t want to look back and accomplish nothing or not take advantage because this is the best time in the world to play this game and you can’t play forever. Five out my six years have been losing but it’s still a blessing to be in this game and in this league and play. This is the best job in the world.”
If the Timberwolves get the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft this June and Kentucky’s dynamic point guard John Wall is the no-brain consensus choice, will they take him?

Flynn met the question head-on.

“In the NBA, you always have to look at that. There’s 60 guys coming in every year who could take your spot,” he said. “Whatever a franchise can do to get better, they’re going to do it. No matter if they drafted you last year. I just try to take care of the things I can take care of, and that’s here at practice every day.”

Again, that every-two-weeks direct deposit is a marvelous anesthetic. Even the lowest-paid rookie receives $5,580 per game. But the system also creates bizarre inefficiencies, forcing teams to make decisions contrary to their basketball goals, at least in the short term, and players to perform (or, in some cases, not perform) for teams that want them for their contracts, not their skills.

Minnesota, of course, is Exhibit A of this phenomenon, at least during the early stages of David Kahn’s roster remodeling. Want proof? After Al Jefferson’s $12 million salary, the highest-paid Wolves this season are Mark Blount ($7.96 million), Cardinal ($6.75 million) and Antonio Daniels ($5.86 million).

Blount is on the roster, but has been excused from the team. Daniels, acquired as a way to remove Darius Songalia’s two-year contract, was bought out in training camp. And Cardinal, who has played a grand total of 143 minutes this year, is stuck in limbo because of his contract.

Christopher (Duluth, MN)
Who’s a better SG fit for the Wolves come draft time, Henry or Turner?
Chad Ford
(1:49 PM)
If Evan Turner’s back is healed and there will be no long term problems … he’s awfully good. However, the Wolves really need a shooter and that’s Turner’s weakness. Henry, on the other hand, has deep range. I’d say they’d probably lean toward Xavier Henry.
The Timberwolves, although often pathetic on the court, now have a coach who holds his players accountable; high draft picks in the immediate future; plenty of cap space; the emergence of Kevin Love as a potential star; and a general manager willing to at least attempt cleansing the toxic mess made by his predecessors.
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