Timberwolves – Page 4 – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

Call Me “Doubtful Dave,” But No LeBron to Minneapolis

Posted on July 10, 2026July 10, 2026 by David Shama

LeBron James playing for the Timberwolves next season?

Chances are slim and none.

And slim just left the building at 600 First Avenue North.

James, the greatest age 40-plus player in NBA history, is looking for a new home after playing his last eight seasons with the Lakers. Reportedly 27 of 30 league teams have contacted James’ agent about his availability after averaging 20.9 points, 6.1 rebounds and 7.2 assists in 60 games last season.

Rich Paul, James’ agent, revealed a shorter list of possibilities earlier this month that included the Timberwolves. Local fans are hopeful the 41-year-old will fill the team’s glaring need for a power forward and join a four-some of Anthony Edwards, LaMelo Ball, Jaden McDaniels and Rudy Gobert in a lineup that could propel the Wolves into a top five NBA team.

Fuhgeddaboudit.

If I am wrong I will push a basketball with my nose on the sidewalk outside Target Center before the start of next season.

ESPN insider Shams Charania said recently the Cleveland Cavaliers, Miami Heat and the Philadelphia 76ers are the top three choices for landing spots. I would throw in the Golden State Warriors for a top four of possibilities.

All of the above, except perhaps the Warriors, make so much more sense than the Wolves. An Akron, Ohio native, James could close the circle of his career by joining the Cavs, the team that drafted him in 2003. He’s never severed his northeast Ohio ties and besides the emotional connection the Cavs have a talented roster.

In Miami, James would experience another homecoming. He played for Heat front office legend Pat Riley and head coach Erik Spoelstra. They are still running the show in south Florida and James could form a Herculean front line with Giannis Antetokounmpo and Bam Adebayo. The Heat, with that threesome, would join the top five gang, too.

Nobody is blowing smoke to speculate James would elevate the 76ers to elite title contenders. A starting lineup of stars would include guards Jaylen Brown and Tyrese Maxey, center Joel Embiid and James. The offensive might of that group probably moves the 76ers ahead of the World Champion New York Knicks as Eastern Conference favorites in 2027.

A title would be much more difficult to attain if James goes to San Francisco and joins the Warriors. Coach Steve Kerr’s team has a big need for James, and he could be part of a dynamic duo with superstar guard Steph Curry, his former Olympic teammate. Then, too, forward Draymond Green is one of James’ best friends. James has a passion for golf and some of the world’s best are in the Bay Area, but Warrior fans are probably whistling on the water about getting the “King.”

Regardless of who James signs a deal with, his compensation will be drastically reduced from past earnings. That’s because of the NBA salary cap, with estimates he can earn between $3.9 million and about $16 million next season. The Wolves could offer only $3.9 million, per a story today by ESPN.com’s Bobby Marks and Brian Windhorst.

Your nose-pushing basketball writer believes in storybook endings and thinks James will choose a return to Ohio where he has a mansion and all kinds of favorite things including Ohio State football.

Timberwolves owner Alex Rodrgiuez — Alex Rodriguez

Sorry, the Wolves connections to James run a wee bit less. Owner Alex Rodriguez has a relationship with Paul and his Klutch Sports Group.

It’s a tantalizing treat, though, to think of James in a Wolves uniform. His ability to run the floor, outlet pass to teammates, power his way to the basket with brute strength, deliver thunderous dunks and float three-point shots into the basket would have brought the house down at the old gym on First Avenue.

It would be the “ShowTime Wolves” with the jaw dropping passes from James and newly acquired point guard Ball. And imagine, too, the acrobatic show of Edwards swooping to the rim or cross over dribbling, the two-way athleticism of McDaniels and the in your face defense of Gobert.

The James impact on team leadership and decision-making would have been less subtle but just as valued. Known as a team that self-inflicts problems, the unselfish James would make the Wolves far more consistent and intelligent in their play.

Alas, at what might have been.

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Best of Gurus See Eight Wins for Vikings 2026 Season

Posted on July 1, 2026July 1, 2026 by David Shama

Enjoy a Wednesday notes column.

Get used to the number 8, Vikings fans.

A search of the most authoritative annual prognosticators of NFL team records turns up a lot of eights for the 2026 Vikings season. Here’s a sample of the usually most accurate swamis.

NFL Network analytics expert Cynthia Frelund: 8.7 wins.

Public analytical database Nfelo: 8.5 wins.

FanDuel Sportsbook: 8.5 wins.

ESPN’s Football Power Index: 8 wins.

Sports Headliners: 10 wins.

Why 10?

To make you feel better.

There was an Arizona Cardinals airplane parked at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport last Wednesday. Perhaps it was in town relative to Minneapolis-born and raised Larry Fitzgerald Jr. being inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame next month.

Fitzgerald was a Vikings ball boy in his youth and idolized Randy Moss who was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2018. Fitzgerald played his entire 17-year NFL career with the Cardinals where his pass catching skills ranked with the best in NFL history.

Bill Guerin, named NHL General Manger of the Year last week, is believed to earn “north” of $2 million with the Wild. NHL GM jobs don’t pay the kind of money their NBA counterparts make. The Timberwolves’ Tim Connelly reportedly makes $8 million annually.

Guerin was hired in August of 2018, and his work has helped create a Stanley Cup contender. A former NHL player, he prioritizes communications.

Wild GM Bill Guerin — Guerin photo by Marshall Tanick

“…Because I feel now, like more than ever, the coach, the general manager we’re not so much in a position to say, do this, do that. It’s how can we help you get better? What can we do for you to help you carry out our game plan? We’re here for them,” he told Sports Headliners last year.

The annual Big Ten Football Media Days will be held July 28-30 in Chicago and televised by the Big Ten Network. The Golden Gophers will be one of the programs focused on July 29 at the Hilton Hotel. The three-day event allows media members to meet with coaches and student-athletes prior to the season.

Minnesota opens its season September 3 at home against Eastern Illinois. Peacock will televise the 7 p.m. kickoff nonconference game.

Sources disagree on who is the tallest goalie ever to play in the NHL, referring to 6-7 or 6-8 goalies. Either way the Wild has a solid entry in the competition with 2026 fifth round draft choice Filip Ruzicka from Trinec, Czechia. He is listed at 6-8 and 229 pounds and will certainly be noticed if he ever plays in the NHL.

“Filip is an extra-large goalie with athletic abilities,” said Wild goaltending coach Frederic Chabot in a club statement. “He has good hands for a guy that big and had a nice progression last season after taking over the No. 1 job in Brandon (Wheat Kings of the WHL).”

Before last night’s game against the Astros, the Twins had played 26 games in June. Their slugging percentage of .476 ranked second-best in baseball to the Rockies at .492. The Twins had homered in all but four of their last 23 games since June 4, hitting 42. Since that date, Minnesota ranked second in homers, trailing the Athletics (43), going into last evening.

Last Sunday at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship at Hazeltine Golf Club, South Korea’s Hae Ran Ryu took home $1,950,00 for winning her first major title. Scottie Scheffler, the men’s No. 1 in the world, will try to win $1,584,000 at the 3M Tournament July 23-26 at TPC Twin Cities in Blaine.

The Lynx announced today star forward Napheesa Collier, after undergoing surgeries on both her right and left ankles during the offseason, has returned to team practice and continues to progress as expected.

Medical research confirms spectators watching events like the emotion-stoked World Cup experience cardiovascular issues and even deadly heart attacks.

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LaMelo Ball’s Injury History Casts Shadow on Wolves Trade

Posted on June 25, 2026June 25, 2026 by David Shama

High risk and high reward.

That’s the only way to look at the Timberwolves acquisition of All-Star guard LaMelo Ball in a trade that sends fan favorite and forward Naz Reid to the Hornets.

Wolves’ front office leader Tim Connelly has been searching for a quality point guard to lead his team and take the playmaking burden off superstar Anthony Edwards. Ball is a spectacular playmaker that can have teammates and fans marveling at his showmanship performances.

The concern is availability. Since being drafted by the Hornets in 2020 (he went No. 3 overall and Edwards No. 1), he has missed a lot of games. Last season he played a near career high of 72 out of 82 games but previous seasons the totals were: 47, 22, 36 , 75 and 51.

Ankle injuries have been troublesome. That’s a worrisome history for a 24-year-old, with logic suggesting lower body injuries can become more frequent and last longer as an athlete ages.

Connelly is banking on Ball continuing the trend of the 2025-2026 season. Playing most of the season, he averaged 20.2 points per game and 7.1 assists. The 6-7 veteran also averaged nearly 5 rebounds per game.

The acquisition of Ball gives the Wolves an athletic and young starting core, other than 7-1 center Rudy Gobert who turns 34 tomorrow. Guard Ayo Dosunmu and forward Jaden McDaniels, ages 24 and 25 respectively, would be part of the starting five if Minnesota were to play a game today. Edwards, one of the league’s top players, is also 24.

As the roster is constructed now, Connelly is taking the risk that by trading two power forwards this month in Reid and Julius Randle, the Wolves will still have enough size to rebound and defend effectively. Right now McDaniels, listed at 6-9 and 185 pounds, looks like the new power forward while the 6-4 Edwards may slide into the small forward position.

Anthony Edwards, Timberwolves player — Anthony Edwards photo courtesy of Minnesota Timberwolves

A basketball insider told Sports Headliners he didn’t think the transition would be a problem for Edwards and that he can benefit from the presence of an elite point guard. “No question he’s the guy that stirs the drink for them,” he said speaking anonymously.

The source faulted the Wolves for not playing hard enough and lacking togetherness in the playoffs last spring as they won an opening series but then lost to the Spurs in the next round. “They had to make some (personnel) moves,” he said.

With Connelly in power there could be other transactions coming. He showed from his first months on the job in 2022 a willingness to make bold moves when he made the blockbuster trade bringing Gobert to Minneapolis while sending a boatload of players and draft choices to the Jazz.

Worth Noting

Ari Peterson, the basketball player who is transferring from Minnetonka High School to a national prep power in New York, has the admiration of former Skippers coach Brian Cosgriff who raves about her athleticism. Peterson, the daughter of Vikings legend Adrian Peterson, will be a junior next school year at Long Island Lutheran in Brookville.

The school plays a national schedule and produces McDonald’s All-Americans. Peterson may flourish in her new home, but she will face challenges. “I am a little nervous for her because I hope she goes on to do great things,” said Cosgriff who coached Peterson as a ninth grader. “It’s risky to some degree, in my opinion. …”

Maddyn Greenway, daughter of former Viking linebacker Chad Greenway, recently was named the 2025-2026 MaxPreps Female National Athlete of the Year. At Providence Academy she won 13 state titles in three sports including basketball and this fall will be at Kentucky on a basketball scholarship.

Cosgriff, retired from coaching after winning eight girls basketball state championships at Hopkins and Minnetonka, knew Greenway as a seventh grader at Providence Academy where he was a teacher. He said she could have been a “great receiver” in football. “I had her in gym class and when we played football, she was the best player out there, boys or girls.”

Congratulations to Mr. Baseball and Ms. Softball Award winners Connor Finn, the left-handed pitcher from Mahtomedi High School (committed to Texas Tech University) and Avery Muellner, the right-handed pitcher and first baseman from Forest Lake High School (committed to the University of St. Thomas). They were honored after the Minnesota Twins Community Fund and Minnesota All Sports Alliance had announced 16 finalists for the awards earlier in the month.

Fox 9 sports reporter and anchor Dawn Mitchell will have a feature on Minnesota sports icon Dick Jonckowski starting at 10:30 p.m. on July 3.

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