Former NBA players aren’t the only people pursuing the Wolves’ sixth assistant coach position, one devoted exclusively to working with players individually on their skills.

Rob McClanaghan was in town Wednesday to audition for Rambis and assistant coach/player development director J.B. Bickerstaff.

McClanaghan, a player at Syracuse in the early 2000s, has become a player development guru. He prepares college players for the NBA draft through Wasserman Media Group and NBA super-agent Arn Tellem.

He worked with current Wolves forward Ryan Gomes when he was a junior at Providence in 2003-04.

From Jonah Ballow/Timberwolves site: Wednesday Practice Report

Rambis on the progression of Flynn:
“[Flynn] is trying to learn the most difficult position in the NBA to learn. Offensively and defensively it’s going to be tough for him. I keep encouraging him to execute our offense. That’s the initial phase of our offensive thrust is to get us organized so everybody knows how we are playing and spots on the floor. I need him to be a leader on the floor and to show his team how to play and how to execute and how to play together, that’s part of his role as a leader and an orchestrator out there.”

Kevin Love – playing with the White team – was hit in the throat while posting up underneath one of the baskets near the end of the scrimmage. He received treatment from the training staff, including taking several deep breaths and holding a small bag of ice just under his chin, before being taken from the facility to be seen by a doctor. Coach Kurt Rambis said he expects Love to be fine.
In other injury news, 7-footer Oleksiy Pecherov (fractured left wrist) participated in the scrimmage a day after just working out with assistant coach Reggie Theus following a lengthy practice. Rambis said Tuesday he does not expect Pecherov to play in Friday’s preseason game against Toronto.
Cardinal has been a backup with each of his five NBA teams, including the Wolves last season. He has never averaged more than 9.6 points in a season, but his value is measured more in work ethic and a lead-by-example attitude.

“I can’t dunk on anybody, but the game is far bigger than being the greatest athlete or having a muscled-up body,” Cardinal said. “It’s about playing smart and doing the right things. That’s why I’ve been fortunate to play this long.”

Even if Cardinal makes the Wolves’ final roster, he knows most of the playing time at power forward will be divided between Al Jefferson and Kevin Love.

From David Aldridge/NBA.com:Rambis comes full circle, anticipates chance to lead Wolves
“He carries himself like a head coach already,” Kahn said. “You get the sense that he’s done this for years. There isn’t anything about him that would lead you to think this guy hasn’t been a head coach the last several years. He has great command. He’s self-confident in a good way. He’s very calm, very serene. You have the sense that this guy has been doing it for a long time…we were fortunate that we caught him when he was really ready to do this.”

And Rambis was fortunate that Kahn is walking the walk when it comes to giving his new coach security, to the point where he offered four guaranteed years, twice the traditional length for a bad NBA job. Both Rambis and Kahn say that the idea for four years was Minnesota’s idea, not Rambis’ or his agent’s.

Player development is crucial to Kahn’s vision of team building.

From Paul Logothetis/Associated Press: Ricky Rubio talked up by NBA rivals in waiting
The Spaniard’s decision to play at least two more years at home despite being drafted fifth overall by the Minnesota Timberwolves in June had left many in North America puzzled.

But for some NBA players the move made sense.

“He’s still so young. It’s good for him to get a couple of more years playing over here and then make the transition over,” Utah Jazz point guard Deron Williams said Wednesday as his team prepared for a preseason game against Real Madrid.

“I think he’s a great player. He’s definitely going to be a good player in our league, he has all the skills — ball handling, court vision, he knows how to lead a team. It’s just a matter of maturing and becoming a better player.”