Timberwolves – Page 101 – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

Owner: Wolves Have Title Aspirations

Posted on October 9, 2013October 9, 2013 by David Shama

Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor was asked this week if he expects his team to end a 10-year absence from the playoffs next spring. The Wolves had playoff potential last season but injuries ruined their season and the club finished with a 31-51 record.

“When I talk to team members and coaches and all that, their expectation is they want to prepare to win the (NBA) championship,” Taylor told Sports Headliners. “They’re not just saying they want to make the playoffs. The expectation is how deeply can they go.”

The Wolves have a nucleus of three players who are among the best in the NBA at their positions, power forward Kevin Love, point guard Ricky Rubio and center Nikola Pekovic. But the optimism coming from Wolves training camp is also based on other players including offseason acquisitions Kevin Martin at shooting guard and small forward Corey Brewer.

New president of basketball operations Flip Saunders is responsible for those moves and others. His work has impressed Taylor who gives Saunders an “A” grade since being hired last spring.

“I had high expectations of Flip and he’s made all of them come true,” Taylor said. “His level of communications is excellent and I am very appreciative of all he’s done.

“In the personnel area we had talked previously about the type of personnel he wanted. He just moved on it very quickly and found the type of players the staff wanted.”

Saunders has more than 20 years of professional basketball experience. This is his second period of employment by Taylor and the Wolves, having worked here from 1995 – 2005, first as general manager and mostly head coach. Head coaching assignments with the Pistons and Wizards followed before Taylor brought him back to his organization.

Taylor describes his top basketball executive as a “unique” hire because of their previous relationship and all of Saunders’ skills. He said Saunders’ experiences after he left the Timberwolves of working for other teams and also a short period as an NBA analyst for ESPN “rounded out his understanding of the league.”

Taylor is projecting the Wolves will make money in 2013-14 for the first time in years. “It’s not like we’ll make a lot, probably $2 or $3 million,” Taylor said.

Taylor’s other basketball team, the Lynx, is in the WNBA Finals for the third time in three years. Last year the franchise earned a profit approaching $500,000, the first time the Lynx made money, Taylor said. This year the team could finish in the black and “approach” $1 million.

Taylor said the pending deal with the city and AEG Facilities to renovate Target Center for $100 million is taking “longer than anticipated” but he remains optimistic about it being completed. After the renovation he expects Target Center to be a better arena than “over 50 percent” of the other NBA venues.

Worth Noting

New Vikings quarterback Josh Freeman had differences with his Bucs coach, Greg Schiano. Vikings coach Leslie Frazier said, however, Freeman is excited about a “fresh start” here and believes the two will “co-exist.”

Although Freeman’s career performance has been inconsistent, he was reportedly wanted by multiple NFL teams. After being released last week by the Bucs, David Steele wrote the following on Sportingnews.com: “The rest of the NFL likely doesn’t feel about him the way the Bucs do. He’s done nothing to make the entire sport give up on him now, as it did on JaMarcus Russell.”

Rib injuries are slow to heal and whether Christian Ponder is healthy enough to be an option to start on Sunday against the Panthers isn’t known. But Matt Cassel seems the more likely starter with Ponder trying to heal and Freeman too unfamiliar with the offense to start.

Ponder may soon lose his starting job for the remainder of the season. “I am a man of faith,” Ponder said. “I believe that God’s got my future in his hands. I don’t know what that means. But I am trying to get healthy and I think ultimately it will make me a better quarterback.”

Is Ponder’s confidence shaken after being replaced two weeks ago by Cassel and now the acquisition of Freeman who has started 59 NFL games dating back to his rookie season in 2009? “In my eyes I am getting prepared to play,” Ponder said. “As long as I play well, then I am the one on the field.”

Vikings defensive end Kevin Williams is a team leader and is unsure what impact Freeman will have. “I don’t know, we’ll have to see. The management made a decision, we have to go with it.”

Williams, though, knows Freeman has talent. “He’s a first rounder for a reason. He has great potential. He just has to bring it to the table and shine.”

Tomorrow the Vikings are offering “No Service Fee Day” sponsored by U.S.Bank. Fees are waived for fans purchasing single game tickets through Ticketmaster.com.

Steve LaCroix, the Vikings vice president of sales and marketing, e-mailed that tickets remain for home games against the Redskins November 7, the Eagles December 15 and the Lions December 29.

The Vikings sold “just under” 8,000 new season tickets this year, according to LaCroix.

The SportingNews college basketball yearbook ranks the best coaches in each conference. Mick Cronin is No. 4 in the American Athletic, Shaka Smart No. 1 in the Atlantic 10 and Buzz Williams No. 1 in the Big East. All had their names prominently mentioned with the Gophers’ opening last March after Tubby Smith was dismissed.

Although the magazine said it was time for Smith to move on, he is rated the third best coach in the Big 12 where he now leads the Texas Tech program. The top five coaches in the Big Ten, according to the publication that predicted the Gophers will finish ninth in the conference, are Tom Izzo, Thad Matta, John Beilein, Bo Ryan and Tom Crean.

Timberwolves players Kevin Love and Ricky Rubio bought 500 tickets to give away for last night’s Lynx WNBA Finals Game at Target Center. The Lynx, with a 2-0 series lead in the best of five series, play the Dream on Thursday night in Duluth, Georgia with ESPN 2 televising the game starting at 7:30 p.m. Minneapolis time.

It might be an interesting meeting today for Gophers football coach Jerry Kill and athletic director Norwood Teague. The two normally meet at noon on Wednesdays, and Kill suffered a seizure last week preventing him from coaching the team on Saturday at Michigan. Although Kill has experienced multiple seizures since becoming the Gophers coach, last week was the first time he missed a game.

The Gophers 0-2 start in Big Ten games isn’t pretty and neither are their offensive and defensive numbers in conference games. Minnesota ranks 10^th in rushing offense and eighth in rushing defense. The Gophers are 11^th and eighth in passing offense and defense. Minnesota is tied for last in scoring offense and ranks eighth in scoring defense.

Matt Majka speaks to the CORES group on Thursday, November 14 at the Knights of Columbus Hall in Bloomington. Majka is chief operating officer of Minnesota Sports and Entertainment, a company whose business interests include the Minnesota Wild. Reservations for the luncheon and program should be made by Monday, November 11. Anyone interested can contact Jim Dotseth, dotsethj@comcast.net.

The Wild, 0-1-1 against Winnipeg last season, play the Jets tomorrow night at Xcel Energy Center. Zach Parise has 23 points in 24 career games against the Jets, while Jason Pominville, has 23 in 27 games. Both Wild wings have played most of their NHL careers with other teams.

It’s a major disappointment for the Wild to have Charlie Coyle, the 21-year-old center with star potential, out three to four weeks with a sprained knee.

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Mauer Can Send Message for 2014

Posted on September 18, 2013September 18, 2013 by David Shama

The Twins have the wrong kind of “circle it date” coming up: September 30.

That’s the first day after their 2013 schedule ends and a time to look back on another disappointing year. The team will finish with one of the worst records in MLB for a third consecutive season.

The offseason questions (again) will be what to do about all the losing?

There are mostly no easy answers and quick fixes. A talented group of minor league prospects needs more time in the farm system. The big league club’s loudest plea for help is starting pitching but it’s a monster problem demanding a rebuilt staff. The Twins’ standard approach in the past has been not to sign big buck, long term deals with free agent players—including free agent starting pitchers—so it will be interesting if management takes a new approach this winter.

Managers who finish in last place two consecutive seasons and then move up one spot in the standings during a third year are often asked to move on. But the Twins are a different breed of organization with DNA loyalty seldom seen in professional sports. It just might be that when the Twins decision makers gather in October the guy who decides whether Ron Gardenhire returns as manager is Gardenhire.

Another manager might strategize and energize the Twins to more wins but until the talent is upgraded, particularly the starting rotation, even a miracle worker like Joe Maddon of the Rays could only do so much. Changing managers, though, is one way for the organization to say the leadership on the field is part of a new start for the Twins.

The value of that approach could be more of a marketing tool than a baseball resource. Twins fans are restless and at least one ticket holder described the last few weeks of the season as a “death march.” The organization needs to show fans leadership is serious about rebuilding the franchise and winning. Placing Minnesota baseball legend Paul Molitor in the dugout as manager will fire up some of the team’s more passionate fans and ticket holders. At least in the minds of some fans and media, Molitor has been considered for awhile the most attractive replacement for Gardenhire.

There’s another Minnesota baseball legend who can do something to help the franchise at least take small steps toward a better future starting in 2014. Joe Mauer is the face of this team and the best paid employee in the history of a franchise that started operating here in 1961.

Mauer’s $23 million salary would make original Twins owner Calvin Griffith’s head spin. That kind of money could also provoke Calvin to say what he thought and if still alive he might tell Mauer: “Get your butt out to first base next spring.”

Yeah, we all know Joe loves to catch and the position is the “quarterback spot” on a baseball field. But on a team starved for run production, the Twins can no longer place an aging Mauer behind the plate where he’s another foul ball away from a concussion or sprained finger.

Every indication is the Twins will let Mauer, a three-time American League batting champion, continue catching next season. Mauer should reach a decision long before that and hold a news conference announcing his intent to play first base.

At first base Mauer would fill a position left open by the summer departure of Justin Morneau to the Pirates. Playing first base will be much easier on Mauer’s 31-year-old legs than squatting behind the plate. A revitalized and healthier Mauer at first base could be a small but significant improvement for the club.

It’s a change that Mauer should seize—an opportunity for the soft-spoken Minnesotan to increase his leadership role with the team and in the clubhouse. By doing so he sends a message to his teammates that playing first base isn’t his preference but this is a “team first” move.

It’s a move that among all the possibilities for a better Twins future seems the easiest to implement. We’ll see soon whether Mauer catches on.

Worth Noting

Josmil Pinto, the rookie catcher who would be a candidate to take over for Mauer next season if he moves to first base, is hitting .356 with two home runs and seven RBI in 45 at bats with the Twins.

Third baseman Trevor Plouffe, who might already feel the possibility of super prospect Miguel Sano taking his job in a year or two, has hit .324 in his last 10 games.

Since the NFL-AFL merger in 1970 the Vikings are tied with the Cowboys for the fourth most wins at home, 222. The Vikings, 0-2, play their first home game of the season on Sunday against the Browns, also 0-2.

Outside rookie linebacker Barkevious Mingo of the Browns has been turning heads. Sports Illustrated’s Peter King wrote that Mingo was the “best rookie I saw in camp this year” when the magazine published its September 2 NFL preview.

Writing for Cleveland.com (Cleveland Plain Dealer) Tom Reed said last Sunday that Mingo’s first regular season game left the Ravens “trying to find ways, legal and otherwise, to slow down the No. 6 overall pick in the NFL Draft.” Reed reported Mingo had a sack on his first snap, “deflected a Joe Flacco pass and drew two holding penalties in showcasing his speed and athleticism.”

Minnesota-based prep football authority Zach Johnson knows it’s too early to evaluate the Gophers 2014 recruiting class but he’s impressed with players who have verbally committed so far including Texas offensive lineman Connor Mayes, Washburn running back Jeff Jones and Chicago defensive tackle Steven Richardson.

Johnson said Mayes could have chosen many other college programs including those in Texas. Jones is the only four-star recruit among the six high school players Rivals.com lists as part of the 2014 Minnesota class. “Definitely one that everyone should be excited about if he sticks with that commitment,” Johnson told Sports Headliners about Jones.

Richardson is the only two-star recruit among the six verbal commitments, with four others labeled three-stars. Johnson said Richardson is “a little undersized at 5-11” but he likes the Mount Carmel High School lineman. “One of those guys who will just be a solid plug on the defensive line up the middle,” Johnson said.

The two FBS opponents the Gophers have defeated in nonconference games this season are a combined 1-5. UNLV (1-2) defeated Central Michigan last Saturday after losses to Minnesota and Arizona when the Rebels were outscored by 73 points. New Mexico State (0-3) has lost to Texas, Minnesota and UTEP by a total of 99 points.

Gophers coach Jerry Kill indicated yesterday running backs Donnell Kirkwood and Berkley Edwards have recovered enough to perhaps play in Saturday’s final nonconference game at TCF Bank Stadium against San Jose State. He wouldn’t say whether Philip Nelson (hamstring) or Mitch Leidner will start at quarterback. The guess here is if Nelson isn’t near 100 percent he won’t play unless Leidner is injured or plays ineffectively.

Columnist Phil Taylor writes in last week’s issue of Sports Illustrated that Jason Collins, who announced earlier this year he is gay, has not been offered a contract by a NBA team. Collins, a 34-year-old 7-foot center, has played for seven NBA teams including the Timberwolves. Although Collins is an aging player who will demand a higher salary than some other players, Taylor writes that it’s “impossible to ignore the obvious question” of whether sexual orientation is a reason NBA clubs aren’t interested. Taylor reports that Collins doesn’t think so.

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Tamp Down Hype on Gophers Speedster

Posted on August 14, 2013August 14, 2013 by David Shama

Don’t get too excited too soon about Gophers freshman running back Berkley Edwards. The advice is targeted at the most rabid Gophers fans who are looking hard for players to be passionate about.

Edwards has for months been advertised as a breakaway runner and he provided the most electrifying play of the day in a recent scrimmage when he ran up the middle for a 70-yard touchdown. Coach Jerry Kill said on National Signing Day back in February that Edwards was one of the top track sprinters in the country and the type of runner the Gophers could hand the ball to and say, “Goodnight.”

But there are reasons to tamp down expectations for now about Edwards (not highly recruited by other Big Ten schools) and his first-season impact for Minnesota. While Kill likes Edwards’ toughness, the Novi, Michigan native doesn’t have big legs, or a lot of size at 5-9, 190 pounds. In last Saturday’s scrimmage he didn’t have much success moving tacklers when his holes were minimal.

The coaching staff is likely to use Edwards in spot situations. His breakaway speed is an effective contrast to last year’s top backs, Donnell Kirkwood and Rodrick Williams, both of whom are power runners figuring to play much more than Edwards.

Edwards might see the field in early games similar to how the Gophers sometimes used 5-10, 197-pound speedster KJ Maye last season when he was a freshman. Maye, now a full-time wide receiver, saw spot duty in the backfield during 2012. He had four carries against New Hampshire and six versus Syracuse during the nonconference season. Look for Edwards to far exceed the 17 total carries Maye had as both a receiver and running back last season.

The Gophers could make good use of Edwards’ speed on draw plays, pitchouts, swing passes and reverses. More limited duty of that kind will also give him time to better understand the responsibilities of a college running back that range from pass protecting to having the playbook down cold.

Kill is optimistic about the learning curve. “He’s a pretty quick learner,” Kill said.

Edwards is part of an intriguing class of newcomers that includes freshmen and junior college transfers. It’s only Kill’s second full recruiting class. “We got some good young talent. We just gotta develop them and coach them,” Kill said.

First impressions include the running ability of many in the group. Freshmen quarterbacks Chris Streveler and Donovahn Jones are athletic and fast enough to break off long runs. Either or both might have an opportunity to do that as wide receivers before they play quarterback in a game.

The speed factor is noticeable even in bigger players like 6-5, 251-pound defensive end Hendrick Ekpe. “Hank can really run but he’s just raw,” Kill said. “He’s done some good things. I am excited about seeing how he matures over the next couple weeks because he’s a big physical specimen.”

Worth Noting

Oddsshark.com has the Gophers as 14 point favorites to defeat UNLV on August 29 at TCF Bank Stadium.

That game begins at 6:07 p.m. on a weekday night and fans will encounter challenges with traffic and parking. School won’t be in session at the University but there will be the usual rush hour and construction hassles, plus the Vikings play that evening at Mall of America Field and the State Fair will be in day eight. The Twins have a game the afternoon of August 29 at Target Field, adding a third event within a short drive of TCF Bank Stadium.

Gophers athletic director Norwood Teague said on WCCO Radio’s Sid Hartman show this morning that his department is working on making a telecast of Minnesota’s game at New Mexico State on September 7 available in this market. As reported earlier by Sports Headliners, the game is already scheduled for airing in parts of the Southwest including New Mexico.

When Vince Taylor was an assistant coach to Tubby Smith with the Gophers, Taylor had a strong recruiting relationship with former Robbinsdale Cooper shooting guard Rashad Vaughn who will play his senior season for Findlay Prep in Las Vegas. Taylor is now an assistant to Smith at Texas Tech and a high school recruiting authority told Sports Headliners Taylor is recruiting Vaughn but doesn’t think the Minnesota native will sign with the Red Raiders.

The Gophers, with an average attendance of 12,580 per game, finished No. 23 in the nation and No. 7 in the Big Ten in college basketball attendance last season, according to figures recently made available by the NCAA.

Minnesota Mr. Basketball president Ken Lien emailed that Matt Fletcher, who has coached at Anoka High School and Bethel University, has accepted an assistant’s position at Upper Iowa University.

Timberwolves president of basketball operations Flip Saunders welcomed new shooting guard Kevin Martin to town this week. Saunders said Martin is not only an outstanding three-point shooter but goes to the foul line “seven-plus times per game.”

Martin is admired for his professionalism, including how he trains. “He’s in phenomenal shape,” Saunders said.

Martin reached out to Shabazz Muhammad following the rookie’s incident where he reportedly had an unapproved female guest in his hotel room while attending an NBA seminar to teach new players proper behavior.

Saunders, a part owner in the Timberwolves, didn’t have an update on when the deal between the franchise and the city to renovate Target Center will be finished.

Saunders talking about ongoing contract negotiations with restricted free agent Wolves center Nikola Pekovic: “Every player, when you’re not signed, you want to be signed. You’re walking around without a contract. It’s like having a powerball in your pocket. You don’t want to throw your jeans in the washer and all of a sudden you don’t have it (powerball ticket) anymore.”

Stillwater-based Creative Charters is offering a five-day, four-night trip to London to watch the Vikings and Steelers in a regular season game on September 29. Former Viking Bob Lurtsema is the travel host. More at creativecharter.com.

Creative Charters is selling packages covering transportation, lodging and more but if you’re wondering what a bargain rate is just for a good hotel room in London, try $320 per night.

Francisco Liriano is tied for second in the National League for most wins with his 12-5 record with the Pirates. Traded by the Twins last season to the White Sox, Liriano’s success with the Pirates is an embarrassment to both Minnesota and Chicago. Liriano has reportedly changed his mix of two-seam and four-seam fast balls to help turn his career around.

Rookie center fielder Aaron Hicks, sent down by the Twins on August 1 to Triple-A Rochester after hitting .192 for the season, is only batting .209 in 12 games with the Red Wings. Pitcher Scott Diamond, also demoted to Rochester on August 1, is 1-0 with a 2.40 ERA.

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