Category: Timberwolves

Mention the Minnesota Muskies to Dick Jonckowski and the lively memories come back in a flash.  The team played one season at Met Center as part of the start-up American Basketball Association in 1967-68.  The Timberwolves are wearing Muskies jerseys for six games this season—including Friday night at Target Center against Dallas—for a promotion titled the “Hardwood Classic Series.”

The old Muskies were thought of as anything but classic before they moved to Florida because of fan apathy.  They were replaced by the Minnesota Pipers, another ABA club that met with similar disinterest by the public and lasted only one season at the Met.

There is an old joke—true or not—associated with both teams that Jonckowski recalls and it goes like this:  A potential ticket buyer telephones the Met Center and asks what time a Muskies or Pipers game starts?  The phone operator replies: “What time can you be here?”

Jonckowski, known now to local basketball fans as the public address voice of the Gophers, was the Muskies’ assistant public relations director.  He remembers “we couldn’t draw people no matter what we did.”

The team tried all kinds of promotions like free t-shirts, wristbands and basketballs without success.  During an interview with Sports Headliners it didn’t take much effort to prompt Jonckowski to make jokes about the team’s lack of fans.

“We had three busloads pull up (to the Met) one afternoon,” he said.  “Then we find out they only wanted to use the restroom.”

The team claimed to draw 6,000 fans for its opening game but even if accurate a more typical crowd was 2,000.  There were thousands of empty green and gold seats in the building (capacity about 15,000 for basketball).  Jonckowski recalled that general manager Eddie Holman didn’t like TV cameras showing all those empty seats.

“People would buy the cheap seats.  He (Holman) would wave the people down to sit in the front row because we only drew 2,000—maybe 3,000 people— not many,” Jonckowski said.

The problem wasn’t the Muskies weren’t a good ballclub.  The team finished second in its division and had several talented players but Minnesotans literally weren’t buying into a start-up league after having the five-time world champion Minneapolis Lakers a decade earlier.

The Muskies franchise had several owners and a general manager in Holman who Jonckowski said got the job because he was a neighbor of George Mikan, the former Laker great and ABA commissioner.  Holman, who was in the restaurant and bar business, offered free food and drink to the media at the old Eddie Webster’s near the Met Center.

“It was crazy.” Jonckowski said.  “It had to cost him a lot of money.”

Jonckowski, just beginning his career, would have liked some of that money sent his way.   “I worked for $60 a week,” he remembered.  “I just wanted to get my foot in the door in pro sports.  I didn’t even have enough money to park my car.  In those days I parked my car down on Glenwood Ave.(a long walk from the team’s offices downtown). …”

Don’t be surprised if Kevin Love turns down a contract offer from the Timberwolves today.

Why?  Perhaps Love and agent Jeff Schwartz figure the Wolves franchise needs to prove it will become a winner before the All-Star forward makes a long term commitment to staying here.

Under NBA rules, the Wolves have through today to negotiate with fourth-year players like Love. If a deal isn’t made by then, contract talks have to wait until after the league season.

The maximum contract the Wolves could extend the 23-year-old power forward is for five years at about $80 million.  The Wolves have reportedly offered four years and about $20 million less, but perhaps even the maximum deal might not convince  Love to sign a new contract, preferring to become a restricted free agent next summer.

Although the Wolves could match any deal from another NBA team next summer and retain Love, he might opt for a shorter deal and free agency in 2013.  That’s not to say Love won’t be here long term but it’s a solid gold bet he wants to play for a winning organization and he might wait to evaluate how much more his team improves this season and next offseason.

In his first three seasons with the Wolves, the team produced records of 24-58, 15-67 and 17-65.  With the addition of rookie point guard phenom Ricky Rubio and other changes, the Wolves are improved but still a project.

ESPN in-studio analyst Jon Barry believes Love is the NBA’s best power forward.  He’s a gifted scorer, rebounder and passer.  Although he’s 6-10, Love can score both inside and outside.  He’s averaging 24.9 points per game, fourth best in the league.  He’s second in NBA rebounding at 13.9.

Ask anyone around the Wolves and they will tell you Love is a person of character, a team guy and good citizen in a league where often the knuckleheads make headlines.  He’s already a star and the kind of player the Wolves would be devastated without.

The NBA is a star-driven league and the local team finally has one legit star in Love and another—Rubio—in production.  It takes at least two stars to win a championship and five years from now the Wolves need both warm weather loving players shivering through another Minneapolis winter.