Timberwolves win on road, have another chance at winning streak

The biggest news in Timberwolves land is that the team won Monday afternoon. On the road. Truly, this is a rare occurrence this season. The Minnesota Timberwolves earned only their second road victory this season in a matchup with the Golden State Warriors. It was hard fought, well-deserved and a long time in the coming. The Wolves beat the Warriors 109-108.

Ryan Gomes stepped into a leadership role that could bode greater activity from the gifted young scorer. He scored 35 points on 11-15 shooting from the field and 11-12 shooting from the line. I think Gomes has to keep shooting while not worrying if he is off the mark for stretches at a time. He has more of a scorer’s body than Rashad McCants, and I would rather see Gomes shooting than McCants. Al Jefferson also contributed big down the stretch, scoring 15 of his 21 points in the second half. The Timberwolves host the Phoenix Suns at the Target Center tonight and go for that elusive winning streak yet again. Cheap Timberwolves tickets are everywhere. It’s a perfect time to see a Timberwolves game.

Timberwolves stats through 30 games

Despite a record that looks colder than the most chilling of Minneapolis winter days, the Minnesota Timberwolves have been modestly filling out the stat sheet this season. Al Jefferson has had some truly glistening box score lines, including the December 8 win against the Phoenix Suns when Jefferson dropped 32 points, 20 rebounds and 4 steals. Jefferson also notched a twenty-twenty night on December 17 at the Miami Heat (22 points and 20 boards).

No other players on the Minnesota Timberwolves roster are averaging more than 15 points a game, but Rashad McCants is close with 14 a game. Craig Smith is third in scoring on the team with 11.1. points per game. Smith is also shooting an excellent .552 from the field, good for best on the club. Three other Timberwolves average double figures in scoring – Antoine Walker at 10.3 points per game along with Ryan Gomes and Sebastian Telfair with 10 a game. Theo Ratliff has only played in six games, but those six displayed his defensive ability, as he averaged 2.83 blocks a game. Hopefully the Timberwolves can get him back soon from injury to receive more of that kind of contribution.

Timberwolves lose to Atlanta Hawks

I went to the Timberwolves game vs. the Atlanta Hawks last night and the second half was pathetic. The first half the team looked like it was on fire. Marko Jaric was making shots like crazy and Rashad McCants looked like he had his MoJo back. At one point the Wolves had a 20 point lead, 20 points! The Wolves didn’t even bother to show up the second half and I blame the coaching staff for that. Randy Wittman has got to find a way to motivate the team and when the Hawks are marching you up and down the court, call a timeout – regroup. This young Timberwolves team keeps showing me glimpses of potential, but I don’t think Randy Wittman is the guy to bring it to the next level.

Minnesota Timberwolves Training Camp 2007

The Minnesota Timberwolves training camp is in full swing. The Wolves spent week one in Istanbul, Turkey where they practiced and then played in the first ever NBA game in Turkey. The Wolves managed to beat Efes Pilsen (Istanbul) by a score of 84-81. The Wolves then said good-bye to Turkey and hello to England, London to be exact. The Timberwolves are practicing in London’s state of the art O2 center which can seat 23,000 basketball fans and has been compared to Staples Center, home of the Los Angeles Lakers.

While in London, the Timberwolves will play Kevin Garnett and the Boston Celtics in an exhibition game this Wednesday at 1:30 p.m. on ESPN2. I know I will be tuned in to see what the Wolves look like in action.

My biggest concern for the Wolves so far (besides the fact we lost our “Big Ticket” and we are rebuilding) is that there are so many injured players. The Wolves are starting to look like the Twins did a few months back. Four Wolves players are "officially" injured - Craig Smith (sprained left ankle), Rashad McCants (sore right hamstring), Mark Madsen (right shoulder surgery) and Marko Jaric (sprained left ankle) and Randy Foye has struggled with tendinitis in his knee. Come on guys, get healthy and get ready to play some tough NBA games!

Another Fourth Quarter Collapse

The Toronto Raptors trailed the Minnesota Timberwolves by a score of 79-73 at the start of the fourth quarter, and the Minnesota Timberwolves increased their lead to 83-74 on Rashad McCants' basket with 10:39 remaining in the quarter. It was all down hill for the Minnesota Timberwolves from there. Toronto outscored Minnesota 24-6 to take control of the game. Jose Calderon's basket gave the Raptors the lead for good with 7:48 left at 86-85. Thank god for the Minnesota Timberwolves ability for fourth quarter meltdowns. Without those, the Minnesota Timberwolves would have definitely not ended the season with one of the ten worst records and that would have meant bye bye to their first round draft pick. I hope that the Timberwolves continue to choke in the fourth quarter causing them to lose the rest of their games.