Click here for the forum’s thread for tonight’s game against Denver
Game previews:
Recently, Kurt Rambis has given court time to Tucker while Wayne Ellington sits out with injury, but what does it mean for Tucker now that Ellington will be back? If he sits at the end of Minnesota’s bench for the remainder of the year unable to show his value to his current team, it may be best for him to move on to yet another team.
“You know, that would totally depend on the moves they make in the summer or if they have big aspirations for me here in the upcoming season. Of course, my agent will look into some things, but I’d love to come back. I love all these guys, they work hard and they’re trying to learn it all together. It totally depends on who they’re going to have here because I feel like I can play and that’s what I want to do. I want to be able to help a team, so if I can help this team out in any type of way from this point on, that’s what I plan on doing.”
Whatever happens for Alando Tucker this summer, one thing is for sure. He will handle it as a professional and with a great attitude.
“You know, that would totally depend on the moves they make in the summer or if they have big aspirations for me here in the upcoming season. Of course, my agent will look into some things, but I’d love to come back. I love all these guys, they work hard and they’re trying to learn it all together. It totally depends on who they’re going to have here because I feel like I can play and that’s what I want to do. I want to be able to help a team, so if I can help this team out in any type of way from this point on, that’s what I plan on doing.”
Whatever happens for Alando Tucker this summer, one thing is for sure. He will handle it as a professional and with a great attitude.
From Britt Robson/SI.com: Ranking the rookie point guards
6. Jonny Flynn, Minnesota Timberwolves
Flynn, the No. 6 pick, has been a disappointment. The conventional wisdom is that he’s been hamstrung by coach Kurt Rambis’ triangle offense, but the numbers don’t back it up. Among rookie point guards, only Evans and Jennings have attempted more shots per minute than Flynn (yes, the deadeye Curry shoots less often) and Flynn leads all rookies in turnovers per minute — triangle or not, he’s hardly disengaged from those half-court sets.
TrueHoop talks to David Kahn about the team’s ‘Run with the Pack’ ticket sales and renewal campaign
I don’t want to say anything in defiance of the League’s wishes that we stay quiet on collective bargaining. But I’ll echo what the commissioner said at All-Star, there should be a more robust revenue-sharing program out of this agreement. I will say though, that having worked at Indiana for nine years, and now here, there’s no question that he difference in broadcast markets has an impact on your revenues. I mean, that’s just obvious. New York, L.A., Chicago, the Bay Area, they’re in the top ten, and especially those first three, have the opportunity to drive revenues that simply don’t exist for the rest of us. TV, radio, cable and even new media now … ticket prices have always been a way for other markets to keep pace, but that’s difficult to have that persist over a long period of time, whether there’s an economic downturn or not. [In small markets] you ultimately have fewer consumers and have to keep raising prices to keep up.
I’m hopeful that the end result here is that the pricing decrease here will be made up with a fuller building and more buyers, and a better atmosphere for our team and our fans.
And I want to say this to you, really seriously. I get asked this a lot, by people as I travel with the team. How has attendance been this year? I actually think is has been better than I anticipated. I thought it would be a more difficult picture. With the exception of two or three home games, I think it has been reasonably OK. But no question, we can do better, and this is one way to do so.
And I want to say this to you, really seriously. I get asked this a lot, by people as I travel with the team. How has attendance been this year? I actually think is has been better than I anticipated. I thought it would be a more difficult picture. With the exception of two or three home games, I think it has been reasonably OK. But no question, we can do better, and this is one way to do so.
From Matthew Hayden/Bleacher Report: Keys To the Wolf Den: A Young, Still Growing, Al Jefferson’s Potential
From Matt Watson/Fanhouse: Jefferson Tries to Make Up for Lost Time
The Wolves (14-50) have not won since Feb. 23 at Miami. Monday’s home loss to Dallas featured 25 turnovers, including 15 in the first half. The turnovers led to the perception of a lack of focus among Wolves players, but coach Kurt Rambis said he’s not going to let the team “play out the rest of the season.”
“We don’t want them flushing it,” Rambis said of the final 18 games. “That’s not how we’re approaching it as a coaching staff. We’re encouraging the guys to use the last month and a half to continue to develop and get better, and learn as much as they can. We want the guys to keep working hard.”
There is also the evaluation factor. How players perform over the final weeks could affect their future with the team. Rambis put the players through a rigorous two-hour practice Tuesday in preparation for tonight’s game against Denver at Target Center. Passing drills were a key part of the practice to help deal with the surge in turnovers.