A Rebuild In Progress

[mfbmike]

A Rebuild In Progress

If the NBA gave out an award for "Best Offseason Executive", you'd be hard pressed not to include Minnesota Timberwolves President David Kahn in that discussion. Maybe he even takes home the hardware.

Since taking over for the Wolves in May, Kahn has basically overhauled an entire roster, coaching staff and front office all for the betterment of saving face from finishing 24-58 last season. Forget pieces of a puzzle. While this jigsaw won't contend anytime soon, at least the picture in Minnesota is easier on the eyes now compared to Kevin McHale's five-straight postseason drought.

The Wolves aren't going to win a championship. It's unlikely that they'll even get into the playoffs. No-one really expects that. But they do expect improvement. A sign that this rebuilding mode is working, that they are moving back towards relevance again.

Now, no one is going to confuse them with Boston, Cleveland, Los Angeles or Orlando. But this entire offseason for the Wolves has been dedicated to getting better later by making adjustments now.

It's all part of the Minnesota makeover.

Goals For The 2009-10 Season:

- Win 30-35 games
- Al Jefferson named to All-Star team
- Jonny Flynn in top 5 of Rookie of the Year voting
- Corey Brewer in top 5 of Most Improved Player voting
- Acquire a defensive minded big to play behind Kevin Love
- Develop young talent

Settings:

Season Length: 82 games
Team Chemistry: On
Player Roles: On
Progressive Fatigue: On
Trade Deadline: On
Trade Override: Off
Allow CPU Trades: On
Preseason Games: On
Injuries: On
Fantasy Draft: Off
Customize League: Off
Playoff Format: 7-7-7-7
Quarter Length: 12 Minutes
Difficulty: Hall Of Fame/Custom Sliders​

 

[mfbmike]

Starters:

PG #7 Ramon Sessions

SG #3 Damien Wilkins

SF #22 Corey Brewer

PF #42 Kevin Love

C #25 Al Jefferson

Reserves:

Jonny Flynn
Wayne Ellington
Ryan Gomes
Ryan Hollins
Aleksander Pavlovic
Brian Cardinal
Oleksiy Pecherov
Antonio Daniels
Mark Blount
Ricky Rubio*
Henk Norel*

* - Unsigned draft pick​

 

[Houston]

I was hoping this was gonna be on the Rockets.

 

[Kia Kaha]

you know ill follow.
Who are you thinking about getting as your defensive big man?

 

[LC AAU]

Sean Williams is going to be on the Timberwolves.

You heard it here first.

 

[Woy]

Sean Williams is going to be on the Timberwolves.

You heard it here first.

Well he sure as hell isn't getting Dermarr Johnson. :tongue:

Beast with Ellington. I'm glad I'll be able to follow from day one with this one.

 

[Justo]

lookin forward to this mike.... beast it up with Sessions

 

[SuperNova854]

Following, what happened tot he other thread

 

[DJ Rhude]

Yes, give my man Flynn some burnage.....I envisioned him as a Knick but alas.......following as usual

 

[mfbmike]

As opposed to quoting each and every one of you, I went ahead and put together a little article in regards to your comments thus far.

Thanks for following guys! This is gonna be dooooooopppppppe.

 

[mfbmike]

Rambis, Kahn Hold Presser To Address Media Before Season Kickoff

The Timberwolves held a press conference today to answer some of the questions surrounding the starting lineup that Rambis plans on using for the team's season opener against the Nets.

Rambis intends on using a lineup consisting of Ramon Sessions at the helm, Damien Wilkins and Corew Brewer on the wings and Kevin Love and Al Jefferson rounding out the frontcourt.

The Syracuse and UNC faithful were quick to question Rambis' decision to bring rookies Jonny Flynn and Wayne Ellington off the bench.

"Jonny will see significant time out there. Don't worry," explained Rambis. "We believe Jonny and Ramon can co-exist out there. Both of these guys have displayed extreme speed on the fastbreak. We will likely slide Ramon over to the 2 when Jonny steps on the floor to take advantage of that."

"Wayne has been flying under the radar but his ability to catch and knock down shots is going to be big for us this year. I consider Wayne an off guard. They generally need a dominant ball handler to feed them the ball. Do we have capable ball handlers in Jonny and Ramon? I think so."

Rambis went on to add, "this starting lineup isn't set it stone. The guys know that. If I wasn't putting this team in a position to win, I wouldn't be doing my job."

Wolves GM David Kahn also went on to say that the team is actively seeking a defensive minded big man to play behind Kevin Love. And just as quickly as those words came out of his mouth, reporters wanted to know who Kahn had in mind.

One reporter jokingly blurted out, "Sean Williams is going to be on the Timberwolves. You heard it here first."

Kahn grinned. And with that, the press conference was over.​

 

[LC AAU]

What a silly reporter making comments like that.

:shifty:

 

[Sharkweather]

I'll be to follow this one from the start as opposed to the Pacers one. Cant wait Mike.

 

[Gonzo]

This is looking great, I'm pretty siked about it, and I'm not even playing the damn game.

 

[James2Stapleton]

following fo sho

I got a feeling this season is gonna be difficult

 

[RockSteady]

Of course I'll be following!

Do work with my boy Jonny

 

[mfbmike]

Timberwolves Issue Updates Regarding Daniels, Blount

The Minnesota Timberwolves announced today that the team has mutually agreed to part ways with Antonio Daniels and Mark Blount.

Daniels and Blount's agents have the team's permission to pursue a trade, and have agreed to accept a buyout for both players in the event that a trade cannot be consummated.

"I understand Antonio and Mark's desire to be assured of playing time this season, and that this is especially important to them in light of the fact that this is the final year of their contracts," said Wolves GM David Kahn.

"However, given the circumstances, it would be extremely difficult to find a significant role for either of them, and they both deserve the opportunity to be a part of someone's rotation for the upcoming season. One of our main priorities this season is to accelerate the development of our young talent. This is a critical year for our team, and I believe that it is best to relieve the team of any potential distractions before the start of the season."

Daniels was acquired in a trade with New Orleans on September 9th. A move that eliminated the Wolves from the financial obligations of Darius Songaila's contract for the 2010-11 season.

Blount was acquired in a trade with Miami involving Quentin Richardson on August 13.​

 

[mfbmike]

Developmental Drills (October/November):

Ramon Sessions

Shooting: Failed!
Shot Medium: 66>66
Offensive Awareness: 75>75
Shoot Off Dribble: 69>69

Corey Brewer

Attack Basket: Success!
Layup: 68>71
Dunk 72>75
Vertical: 81>83​

 

[mfbmike]

Jefferson Drops 23, Wolves Scrape Out Narrow Win Over Nets In Season Opener

Starting Lineups:
Ramon Sessions PG Devin Harris
Damien Wilkins SG Courtney Lee
Corey Brewer SF Bobby Simmons
Kevin Love PF Yi Jianlian
Al Jefferson C Brook Lopez

(0-0) 105

vs.

102 (0-0)

Al Jefferson looks to have fully recovered from the Torn ACL he suffered a season ago, racking up a double double in the Wolves victory.

[table="head;autonumtitle=rank;width=30em"]|1|2|3|4|Final
MIN|22|26|31|26|105
NJN|20|33|26|23|102[/table]

[table="head;autonumtitle=rank;width=50em"]|Pts|Reb|Ast|Stl|Blk|FG-A|3PT-A|FT-A
A. Jefferson|23|13|2|1|0|11-15|0-0|1-1
C. Brewer|18|5|3|0|0|9-19|0-1|0-0
R. Sessions|16|6|9|1|0|6-16|1-4|3-4
K. Love|13|13|4|3|0|5-11|0-0|3-4
J. Flynn|11|0|8|3|0|5-14|1-3|0-1
R. Gomes|10|2|5|1|1|4-8|2-3|0-0[/table]

[table="head;autonumtitle=rank;width=50em"]|Pts|Reb|Ast|Stl|Blk|FG-A|3PT-A|FT-A
Y. Jianlian|27|8|0|1|2|13-20|0-0|1-1
D. Harris|16|4|13|2|0|6-14|1-4|3-4
K. Dooling|14|2|2|1|1|6-11|1-2|1-1
C. Lee|10|1|4|1|0|5-12|0-3|0-0
B. Lopez|8|12|0|0|3|4-7|0-0|0-0[/table]

Player Of The Game:

Al Jefferson

Quote Of The Game:
"It seems like we were trailing the whole game but we never let them take a lead of more than 6 or 7 points. There are definitely some things we need to work on but these guys did a hell of a job never letting go of that rope tonight." - Wolves Head Coach Kurt Rambis

Next Game:

 

[mfbmike]

Injuries:

Bad news for Antonio Mcdyess of the Spurs as he suffered a separated shoulder last night. The Spurs are expecting him to miss 2-4 weeks.

Other News:

- Melo posts 26 as Nuggets top Trailblazers 117-108
- Raptors sneak by Cavaliers with 86-85 win
- Clippers' Griffin to play through Strained Hamstring
- Heat's O' Neal does not want to sit to rest Plant Faciitis​