Timberwolves – Page 76 – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

‘Chemistry Lesson’ Pays off Big for U

Posted on March 3, 2017March 3, 2017 by David Shama

There are multiple ways to explain the dramatic turnaround in the Gophers basketball program. Talented newcomers, and skilled and improved returnees. Better leadership from the coaches and players. Even a lucky bounce of the ball, or a fortunate call from a referee help explain how the Gophers have gone from a 2-16 Big Ten record last year to 11-6 going into Sunday’s regular season finale at Wisconsin.

But take all of the above and it leads back to the offseason when Minnesota coach Richard Pitino, his assistants and players collectively decided things had to change. Not only was the team’s overall record of 8-23 unacceptable, but there were off-court issues too. Call it culture, chemistry or whatever, but change was needed.

Pitino arranged for a lengthy list of speakers to talk with players about non-basketball subjects including sex education, how to handle the pressures of being student-athletes, and job skills to make them hirable after college. Players were also involved with community service work. Pitino said his guys wanted to change the image of Gophers basketball and become a better program on and off the court.

Former Gophers head coach Jim Dutcher acknowledged the results while talking with Sports Headliners. “The Gopher basketball (program) was featured on the front page and not the sports page. They changed that now. It’s a much closer unit. You can tell they’re having more fun playing the game.”

Spencer Tollackson, a former Gopher and now the radio analyst on games, praised the changes he has seen. “I think the team has matured a lot on and off the court,” he told Sports Headliners. “Coach has talked about some of the incidents that happened last year. They owned up to them and learned from them.”

Pitino looked back after last night’s win over Nebraska and reflected on the situation following the 2015-2016 season. “There’s a lot of players who would (have chosen to) transfer. Nate didn’t. Murph didn’t. Dupree didn’t. Bakary. All those guys believed that we were going to be better. They all took ownership.

“People (on the outside) were running for the hills with us, and I don’t blame them. But everybody sat there and we all said, listen this is on us to fix, and we’re not going to sit back and say everything is fine. We took ownership of our program and our guys deserve a lot of credit for that.”

Junior guard Nate Mason is the team’s leading scorer and seems headed toward All-Big Ten recognition. Sophomore forward Jordan Murphy has produced double-doubles in points and rebounds in six of the last seven games. Sophomore guard Dupree McBrayer willingly accepted a change from starter to valuable reserve off the bench. Junior center Bakary Konate has been another contributor off the bench. Those players have been joined by three starting newcomers this season. Junior transfer center Reggie Lynch leads the Big Ten in blocks, senior transfer guard Akeem Springs is a three point specialist and locker room leader, and freshman forward Amir Coffey excels in all kinds of ways offensively and defensively.

“They really like playing with each other,” Pitino said. “They’re committed to getting better. I keep telling them that I’ve been lucky to be around some pretty good March runs in my life—and it just ends. It all goes away, so just enjoy the journey. They’ve been really good about this. I think their mentality, more than anything, has really, really been a positive.”

The Gophers have won eight consecutive games and are a lock to make the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2013. Their winning record in Big Ten games is a first since 2005. The program has ramped up its image and won a lot of fans back.

What a difference a year makes.

Worth Noting

Early fan and media speculation has the Twins’ win total somewhere in the 70s after reaching just 59 last season. One fan placed a Las Vegas 150/1 wager on the Twins winning the World Series. He doesn’t believe it will happen but likes the odds.

The Twins’ regular season opener is April 3 against the Royals in Minneapolis and AccuWeather.com forecasts a daytime high of 54 degrees with morning flurries and “then a shower.” The game will be one of 150 televised by Fox Sports North during the regular season. Dick Bremer will be in his 34th season providing play-by-play, with various former Twins providing game analysis including Bert Blyleven and newcomers Torii Hunter (debuts April 16) and LaTroy Hawkins (May 21).

Max Kepler (photo courtesy of Minnesota Twins).

This could be the Twins’ opening day lineup: pitcher Ervin Santana; catcher Jason Castro; first base Joe Mauer; second base Brian Dozier; shortstop Jorge Polanco; third base Miguel Sano; outfielders Byron Buxton, Max Kepler and Eddie Rosario; DH ByungHo Park.

A year from now changes might include Jose Berrios as the starting pitcher, Nick Gordon moving in at shortstop with Polanco going to third base and Sano replacing Mauer at first. Mitch Garver could be a possibility to become the regular catcher.

Craig Curry, the former Gophers quarterback who rushed and passed for over 2,000 yards in 1971, was the subject of a February 23 Miami Herald front page story as part of Black History month coverage by the newspaper. In the 1960s the country, including south Florida, was wrestling with desegregation. Curry transferred from an all-black high school to all-white Coral Gables High where he became the quarterback of a state and national championship team, according to the Herald. In the story a teammate referred to Curry as “our Jackie Robinson.” Blacks often weren’t given opportunities to play quarterback on any level of football in the 1960s, but the Gophers had a reputation for fairness under coach Murray Warmath.

Duke head coach David Cutcliffe has been added to the roster of speakers for the Minnesota Football Coaches Association Clinic March 30-April 1. Cutcliffe replaces Pitt’s Pat Narduzzi, and joins such prominent names as Minnesota’s P.J. Fleck, North Dakota State’s Chris Klieman and San Diego State’s Jeff Horton. More information is available by clicking on the MFCA advertisement on this page and visiting the organization’s website.

The MFCA holds its Hall of Fame Banquet the night of April 1 at the DoubleTree Hotel in St. Louis Park. High School Division inductees are Brad Anderson, Wayzata; Richard Risbrudt, Hillcrest Lutheran; Mike Scanlan, Cretin-Derham Hall; Curtis Strand, McLeod West; and Rick Sutton, Eagan. Larry Knutson, from KQWB Radio in Breckenridge, will be inducted in the Citation Division.

Coach Tom Thibodeau, who for years has been highly publicized for his defensive instruction, is apparently making an impression on the Timberwolves in his first season as head coach. The Wolves have held opponents under 90 points in four of the last seven games. Minnesota is 9-0 when limiting the opposition to under 90 points.

Third-year Wolves forward Andrew Wiggins has scored 20 or more points in a club record 19 consecutive games. Second-year center Karl-Anthony Towns has done that in 16 straight games.

The Wolves, with a 25-36 record, are in contention to earn their way into the playoffs for the first time since 2004. They play at San Antonio tomorrow night against a Spurs team with a 46-13 record, the second best in the NBA.

Jim Robinson, the new chair of the Mr. Basketball Committee from St. Paul, has been with the group for about 10 years. He is a former Big Ten Conference basketball referee and is an evaluator of Minnesota high school basketball officials. The announcement of the 2017 Mr. Basketball winner will be made after the boys’ state tournament.

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U Recruiting Trying to Win West Division

Posted on February 1, 2017February 1, 2017 by David Shama

National Signing Day is today and the Gophers won’t top the football recruiting rankings in the Big Ten West, but in the future they might be on their way to consistently being equal to or ahead of programs like Nebraska, Wisconsin and Iowa.

New Minnesota coach P.J. Fleck has impressed those who track college football recruiting. The 36-year-old Fleck has a nonstop passion for his job and a head full of ideas including communications with recruits through social media. The January 30 issue of Sports Illustrated even devoted space to Fleck in its article about how “the recruiting game has gone digital, mobile and high concept, and any coach who wants to compete needs a hot designer on his roster.”

Creativity is a frequently used word associated with college football recruiting. Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh grabs a headline singing a rap song; Ohio State’s Urban Meyer gets into a bidding war with Texas over a graphic designer; and Nick Saban dazzles Alabama recruits with his massive home that is just a golf cart ride away from a lake.

Whether Fleck can ultimately recruit and coach at an elite level will have everything to do with the Gophers’ football future. He inherits a program and team that has been resurrected but hasn’t reached championship status. Minnesota has won two consecutive bowl games and totaled eight wins or more in three of the last four seasons. Yet the Gophers haven’t been Big Ten champs since 1967, have never won a Big Ten West Division title and hold no wins over Wisconsin since 2003.

Recruiting authority Ryan Burns has been impressed with Fleck since he was hired in early January. National recruiting websites have jumped the Gophers way ahead of where their 2017 class was ranked before Fleck arrived in Minneapolis. Fleck has out-recruited Power Five rivals for players, convincing some to commit to him without visiting the University of Minnesota campus.

Burns, publisher of the GopherIllustrated.com website, thinks Fleck’s recruiting will ultimately lead the Gophers to playing “meaningful games” in November. The GopherIllustrated website includes national team rankings from Scout which as of this morning assigns the seven Big Ten West Division programs the following rankings: Nebraska No. 18; Minnesota No. 33; Illinois No. 34, Iowa No. 41; Northwestern No. 48; Wisconsin No. 53; and Purdue No 77.

“It’s interesting to see them (the Gophers) going after kids with P-Five offers—compared to going against (programs like) Troy and Louisiana-Lafayette,” Burns told Sports Headliners. “He’s (Fleck) trying to make his stamp, and for only being here for three weeks, obviously he’s raised his class. They’re in the 30’s now (in the rankings). They’re firmly above Iowa and Wisconsin. I think that they can sustain that (in future years).

“I think that Nebraska (strong California recruiting base) is probably going to be at the top of the recruiting ranks in the Big Ten West most years but I think there is no reason that they (the Gophers) can’t come in second or third. Especially continue to beat Iowa and Wisconsin because P.J. is very charismatic once he gets in a living room. He knows how to sell. He knows how to get the job done.”

Other recruiting websites don’t have the Gophers ranked as high as Scout. Rivals, for example, has Minnesota No. 53 and trailing No. 38 Iowa and No. 45 Wisconsin. But what’s not debatable is the Gophers have shot up the recruiting charts in the short time Fleck has been head coach, including moving from No. 77 to No. 49 in Rivals’ rankings.

As signed National Letters of Intent reach the Gophers’ football office today, fans of the program can feel optimism about a class expected to include more than 25 scholarship student-athletes. When Burns looks at the incoming talent that Minnesota will officially announce later today, he offers stories that substantiate his optimism about Fleck’s recruiting.

Burns has been following and writing about Gophers recruiting for years and until now he couldn’t recall Minnesota getting a player that Notre Dame was making a run for. That’s what happened last month when Fleck received a verbal commitment from Portland, Oregon cornerback Demetrius Douglas who Burns said Oregon also wanted.

Burns also said the Gophers took a player away from the Hawkeyes in Kansas native and wide receiver Harry Van Dyne. His older brother is going to Iowa as a walk-on and Burns said the Hawkeyes coveted Harry.

Burns mentioned additional high quality players who turned down offers from other major schools including four-star safety Ken Handy-Holly from Alabama, and cornerback Adam Beck from Texas who said no thanks to schools like Colorado and flipped his original commitment to Texas Tech.

Quarterback Tanner Morgan has already enrolled at the U and Burns has high praise for the Kentucky native who reportedly turned down an offer from national power Louisville. “I think Tanner Morgan has the best quarterback tape you’ve seen from a Gopher quarterback signee in at least four or five years,” Burns said.

Burns wouldn’t be that surprised if the Kentucky native starts for Minnesota next fall. “I think if he can get down the offense, he could absolutely play from day one.”

Worth Noting

It’s interesting that in today’s high-tech world, athletes send their signed National Letters of Intent via fax to their colleges of choice. Holding up a signed fax does provide a news photo opportunity.

The Gophers have sold 253 new season tickets since Fleck was hired, according to an email from an athletic department spokesman. who noted no “aggressive ticket push” has been made so far to sell tickets.

The Big Ten Network will have National Signing Day programming from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. today.

A person who should know says it’s likely Apple Valley junior point guard Tre Jones will sign with Duke next fall, following his brother Tyus’ path to playing for legendary Blue Devils coach Mike Krzyzewski.

Richard Pitino’s Gophers have lost five consecutive games and play at Illinois Saturday afternoon. Minnesota is 1-3 at home and 2-3 on the road in Big Ten games. Earlier this season Pitino said: “In this league you better win at home. It’s extremely important.”

Four of the Gophers’ six defeats have been by seven points or fewer including overtime losses to Michigan State by one and Wisconsin by two. On the road Minnesota does have a nine point overtime win against Purdue and four point victory versus Northwestern.

Pitino had a difficult stretch with close losses two years ago when his Gophers lost eight conference games by six points or less. There were NCAA Tournament hopes before the season for that team but Minnesota finished with a 6-12 Big Ten record and didn’t play in the postseason other than the conference tournament.

The Timberwolves, who have won eight of their last 11 games, play the NBA champion Cavs tonight in Cleveland. Web rumors are Knicks basketball boss Phil Jackson is interested in acquiring Wolves point guard Ricky Rubio and Cavs power forward Kevin Love, the former Wolves star who played a key role in last year’s game seven playoff win over the Warriors. The passing skills of Rubio and Love on the Knicks would be great for Jackson’s famous triangle offense.

A record 381 MIAC student-athletes have earned Academic All-Conference recognition for their classroom work last fall. They had a cumulative grade point average of 3.5 or better on a 4.0 scale. Student-athletes must be a sophomore, junior or senior with at least one year (two semesters) at their institution to be eligible for the recognition. The MIAC saw its record total of honorees rise for the fifth straight year, exceeding by 24 the record of 357 set in 2015.

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Najarian Put Fleck in Top List for U

Posted on January 8, 2017January 10, 2017 by David Shama

Former Gophers football player Pete Najarian, who last year pursued the athletic director job at the University of Minnesota, has been following 36-year-old coach P.J. Fleck for three years. Najarian told Sports Headliners yesterday that Fleck was one of three coaches he was interested in hiring if he became the AD and the Gophers head coaching job was open.

As an ESPN game commentator, Najarian studied Fleck’s work at Western Michigan, and he was more than impressed. “I liked his energy. I liked how intense he was. I could tell that he paid attention to detail. His teams were disciplined and that was very, very apparent.”

Najarian noticed that despite the coach being in his first head coaching job, Bronco teams were well prepared and adjusted to injuries. Fleck and his staff also topped their Mid-American Conference rivals in annual recruiting rankings. “He checked about every box that you could want to check,” Najarian said.

Fleck was announced as Gophers coach on Friday while coming off of a 13-1 season at Western Michigan where his Broncos only loss was in the Cotton Bowl to Wisconsin. Fleck spoke with passion and vision at his news conference, demonstrating a leadership style that attracted national media attention at Western Michigan.

Najarian, the former Minneapolis Central star who went on to play linebacker for the Gophers, said he was self-motivated as a player but that Fleck’s ability to connect with and motivate players might “just put us (the Gophers) to the next level.” Fleck is outgoing and passionate, and he is already pitching the whole community—not just his players—to “row the boat” together. He is trying to create a buzz about Gophers football that some day may remind older fans of legendary coach Lou Holtz who in the 1980s asked for the help of “every man, woman and child” in the state. Najarian played for Holtz and said players would “sprint through a wall” for the man who could command a locker room and also charm a room full of Fortune 500 executives.

Of course it will require more than words for Fleck to eventually make the Gophers Big Ten champions for the first time since 1967. Zach Johnson is a well-known Gophers and Big Ten recruiting authority who thinks Minnesota just made a huge upgrade going from Tracy Claeys to Fleck.” We went from having the worst Big Ten West (Division) head football coach to having the best Big Ten West head football coach, as far as recruiting.”

In Rivals.com’s national recruiting rankings last Friday Western Michigan was No. 51 while Minnesota was No. 77. That all changed this weekend when six high school players switched overnight from Western Michigan commitments to Minnesota. On Saturday Minnesota was at No. 50 (tied with North Carolina State) in the Rivals rankings and Western Michigan dropped to No. 79. National Signing Day for players in 2017 is February 1.

“They (the six players) have never set foot on the campus of the University of Minnesota, and they completely flipped their college plan and their life plan to commit to Minnesota,” said Johnson who is publisher of GopherIllustrated.com. “They will move to Minnesota sight unseen and begin classes at the U on January 17.”

Johnson said Fleck will “work tirelessly at recruiting” and pursue talent within a six or seven hour drive of Minneapolis, with particular emphasis on the Chicago area. He regards Fleck as a good game and practice coach, but it is also Fleck’s personality, style and determination that Johnson predicts will be so evident in the months and years ahead. “It’s off the field that this is really a home run hire for (athletic director) Mark Coyle. It’s the energy that he is going to bring to this program,” Johnson said.

Johnson believes better days are ahead at the box office, too. Last year there was a lot of fan apathy and attendance was the lowest since moving into 50,805 seat TCF Bank Stadium in 2009. “It’s embarrassing that they can only get 30,000, 35,000, maybe 40,000 to a college football game,” Johnson said. “I think you’ll see that change. If he (Fleck) wins, and he is successful, I can’t imagine they won’t sell that place out.”

Worth Noting

Holtz had an escape clause in his Minnesota contract to pursue the Notre Dame job if it opened. That opportunity gave Holtz an easy exit after the 1985 season when he headed for Notre Dame. But Coyle told Sports Headliners there is no escape clause for another school in Fleck’s contract.

Coyle said Fleck has long wanted to coach in the Big Ten, and that Minnesota is a “good fit” for the coach and his family. “I expect him to be here a long time,” Coyle said.

Coyle speaks to the CORES lunch group on Thursday at the Knights of Columbus Hall in Bloomington, 1114 American Blvd. The deadline for reservations is Monday and a large turnout is expected. More information is available by contacting Jim Dotseth, dotseth@comcast.net.

Matt Simon, who was the tight ends and special teams coach at St. Thomas in 2011, coached the wide receivers for Fleck at Western Michigan this past season. Simon is a native of Edina.

Fleck’s agent Bryan Harlan is based in Chicago and he also represents Northwestern coach Pat Fitzgerald.

The Gophers Blake Cashman, who was the Holiday Bowl defensive MVP, was named an honorable mention linebacker on the Associated Press 2016 All-Bowl team. A sophomore last season, Cashman led the team in sacks with 7.5. The former Eden Prairie player was third on the team in tackles for loss at 43. He was selected Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week after a dominant performance in late November against Northwestern.

Chad Hartman said on WCCO Radio last week his 96-year-old father Sid Hartman is making a “remarkable recovery” from his broken hip. He added that Sid is walking almost as well now as before his accident.

Tyus Jones told Sports Headliners his confidence isn’t damaged by lack of playing time with the Timberwolves. The 2015 first round draft choice didn’t play in the team’s most recent game, a Saturday night loss to the Jazz in Minneapolis. It was the sixth consecutive night the former Apple Valley prep All-American point guard didn’t get on the court, according to ESPN.com. He has played in 21 of the Wolves 35 games, averaging 10.4 minutes, 3.1 points and 2.1 assists, per ESPN.

When asked recently if his spirits were down, Jones said, “No, not at all—just because I went through that last year. I know what that’s like. Last year I think that definitely hurt my confidence, that being the first time. I feel like I am a lot improved (now), so that’s also helped my confidence.”

Jones is a deep reserve on the roster, just like last season when he even was sent down to the NBA Development League for a brief time. He played better toward the end of the 2015-2016 NBA season and had a career high 12 assists in the final game. He finished the season appearing in 37 of 82 games, averaging 15.5 minutes, 4.2 points and 2.9 assists.

Jones mentioned his improvement includes ballhandling, shooting and assessing what needs to be done on the floor. His minutes are minimal, though, playing behind veteran point guard Ricky Rubio and 2016 rookie No. 1 draft choice Kris Dunn. At 6-1, 195-pounds, the 21-year-old Jones is small for an NBA player. Concerns about his defense have been part of the scouting report since he decided to leave Duke after his freshman season when the Blue Devils won the national championship.

Jabari Parker, who recruited Jones to Duke and is now a leading scorer on the NBA Bucks, told Sports Headliners his friend can have a long pro career. “Yup, because he’s got two things you can’t teach. He’s got heart and he’s got skill—he’s got a feel for the game.”

That feel has often been seen in Jones’ career at the biggest moments for his teams, particularly at Apple Valley and Duke. Jones, who was the Final Four MVP with Duke, is confident his composure will be there for the Wolves, too, if he given an opportunity.

“I think that’s just something that I’ve always had,” he said. “Something I’ve always prided myself on. (The) point guard has got to be a great leader on the court. To be composed, that definitely helps. …You see a strong face on the point guard, everyone else is going to follow.”

Tyus said his brother Tre Jones, the highly recruited junior point guard at Apple Valley, will wait until his senior year to choose a college. “He hasn’t narrowed it down to any specific list yet,” Tyus said.

The Twins hired new baseball executives Derek Falvey and Thad Levine away from the Indians and Rangers organizations last fall. Levine said recently on WCCO Radio’s Sports Huddle the Twins won’t hesitate to show interest in players with their former organizations and their farm systems. The club, though, is highly unlikely to pursue personnel from the front offices of the Indians and Rangers.

He also said evaluating South Korean slugger Byungho Park in his second season will be more meaningful than his struggling rookie season of 2016. The first baseman-DH hit just .191 in 215 at bats, striking out 80 times while totaling 12 home runs and 24 RBI. Allowances, Levine said, have to be made for the adjustments Park faced playing in major league baseball for the first time and coming to a new country with its language and cultural differences.

Philosophies vary among major league teams on retaining two or three catchers on rosters but Levine said the Twins plan to carry two in 2017.

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