David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

Rosas Shadow Hangs Over Wolves

Posted on March 21, 2022March 21, 2022 by David Shama

Enjoy a Monday notes column:

Gersson Rosas, a candidate for NBA Executive of the Year? Could have been if the Timberwolves hadn’t fired him last September for reportedly having an inappropriate relationship with an office employee and fostering a tense office environment.

The Wolves rank among the surprise teams in the NBA after a 23-49 record last season. The Wolves, 42-30, are 26-10 since January 2 and driving toward an April spot in the playoffs for just the second time since 2004.

Rosas, hired in May of 2019 as president of basketball operations, has his “fingerprints” all over the Wolves dossier. He inherited center Karl-Anthony Towns but the other members of the “big three,” guards Anthony Edwards and D’Angelo Russell, came through moves made by Rosas and his staff.

Edwards was the NBA’s overall No. 1 draft choice in 2020. Russell and several other contributors, including talented young forward Jaden McDaniels, came via trades. Those players include starting power forward Jared Vanderbilt and guard Patrick Beverley, a catalyst either starting or coming off the bench.

Role players off the bench who came via swaps and have helped improve Minnesota are three-point shooting specialist Malik Beasley and power forward Taurean Prince. Contributors acquired through free agency are center Naz Reid and playmaking guard Jordan McLaughlin.

Rosas, who did fail on 2019 first round pick Jarrett Culver, made a shrewd move hiring Chris Finch as head coach in February 2021. Finch seems to be an effective communicator who listens to players and lets them know what is expected.

So when Rosas departed he left in place a roster and coaching structure that has blossomed after going a combined 42-94 the two previous seasons. Rosas, though, won’t be picking up any awards for his trophy case and reportedly is working in a consulting role with the NBA Knicks.

Rosas’ home overlooking Bde Maka Ska is on the market for $4 million, per Jay Boller from Racketmn.com. The stunning contemporary property at 3817 Sheridan Avenue South was purchased in 2019 by Rosas for $2.42 million and has been renovated since, according to Boller.

New Wolves’ minority owner Marc Lore doesn’t miss a beat. He told WCCO Radio’s Vineeta Sawkar last week he started taking basketball lessons about six months ago to better understand the game.

Despite box office competition from home games involving the Timberwolves, Wild and Loons, the hockey Gophers, playing Michigan Saturday night for the Big Ten Tournament title, drew a record crowd of 10,774 at 3M Arena at Mariucci. Standing room tickets sold for $30 as the Gophers changed the all too frequent narrative of playing in front of empty seats.

In a big move the Wild has acquired 37-year-old goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury from the Blackhawks in exchange for a conditional first-round selection in the 2022 NHL Draft. In 45 games this season he has a 2.95 goals-against-average.

Per a statement from the club: “In the event Minnesota advances to the Western Conference Final and Marc-Andre Fleury is the winning goalie of record in a minimum of four games in the first and second rounds combined, Chicago will receive Minnesota’s first-round selection in the 2022 NHL Draft. In the event both conditions are not satisfied, Chicago will receive Minnesota’s second-round selection in the 2022 NHL Draft. In addition, Chicago will retain 50% of Marc-Andre Fleury’s contract.”

The Wild also announced this morning the acquisition of a second-round selection in the 2022 NHL Draft from the Coyotes (previously acquired from the Canucks) in exchange for forward Jack McBain.

Former Timberwolves executive Ted Johnson, now CEO of Norden Strategies, is a senior advisor to the group pursuing Expo 2027 for Minnesota. Bloomington would be the host city for the global event that Johnson said can have a $2 billion economic impact running over 90 days.

The Minnesota effort is a joint venture with the U.S. State Department and the American theme is “Healthy People, Healthy Planet.” Other countries bidding for the event are Thailand, Spain, Serbia and Argentina.

Congratulations to Pete Chubb of Minneapolis who was recognized recently for 50 years working in event management at University of Minnesota basketball games. Many of those seasons his assignment was to provide security near the visiting team’s bench. In 50 years he didn’t receive an increase on his $12 per hour rate but the work was a labor of love.

Chubb’s memories include the infamous game when Northwestern coach Ricky Byrdsong left the bench and walked up into the stands. Whether prompted by mental fatigue, or using a psychological ploy on his team, the incident is remembered as bizarre by fans in attendance.

Indiana coach Bobby Knight was known for his hot temper and foul language. He was a villain at Williams Arena, but Chubb saw a different side to Knight who took an interest in developmentally disabled young adults. “He would take them down in the locker room and show them around. …He was very, very nice to them,” Chubb said.

Dick Jonckowski will emcee Thursday’s reunion luncheon recognizing individuals who played on boys’ state tournament basketball teams from the last decade of the one-class tournament format (1960-1970).

Before the luncheon at The Graduate Hotel honorees will visit Williams Arena where their state tournament games were played and each will walk out on the floor to be recognized by Jonckowski.
Jeff McCarron, from the 1970 Sherburn team that won the last one-class state title, is one of the reunion organizers.

Have to wonder if the warm-blooded L.A. Dodgers are already packing mittens for their two-game series in Minneapolis against the Twins April 12 (night) and April 13 (day).

Twins promotions at Target Field in 2022 include bobblehead giveaways of Jim Kaat, July 16; Tony Oliva, August 6; and Byron Buxton, August 27. Selected Fridays are “all you can eat” games.

Former Vikings superstar RB Adrian Peterson turns 37 today and reportedly wants to continue his NFL career. He is a free agent after the Seahawks let him go.

Look for the new Four Seasons to host visiting professional teams after Minneapolis’ only five-star hotel opens in June.

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20 Years Ago Twins Almost Kaput

Posted on March 15, 2022March 22, 2022 by David Shama

Think Minnesota Twins fans were worried about a 2022 Major League Baseball season happening because of stalled labor negotiations that weren’t resolved until last week?

For sure, but the angst was nowhere near as dramatic as a couple of decades ago.

After the 2001 season MLB owners voted to contract two franchises, the Twins and Montreal Expos. It looked like there would be no 2002 season—or any beyond that—for these clubs. They were struggling financially and other MLB franchises were weary of financial subsidies for bottom feeders Minnesota and Montreal.

Twins owner Carl Pohlad and MLB commissioner Bud Selig were close friends. Conjecture is Pohlad would have received up to $250 million for folding up his franchise. He had purchased the team in 1984 for a reported $34 to $36 million. Pohlad liked making money and contraction looked like a profitable escape route.

Pohlad and his brain trust were frustrated in 2001 after years of failed efforts to earn support for a new ballpark to replace the outdated Metrodome. Opposition to public funding was intense. Phone lines to the state capitol once shut down because of so many calls coming into legislators from stadium opponents.

A source close to the Twins franchise back then remembers the stadium squabble that went on for years. “The organization had been trying for a decade or so to get a new ballpark. It just wasn’t getting any traction,” he told Sports Headliners.

In 1997 Pohlad threatened to sell the team, with the new owner relocating the franchise to North Carolina. To this day the threat is regarded as contrived and a strategy to get the Twins out of the Metrodome and into a new stadium. “…All of the information that came out afterwards, there wasn’t a lot of substance to the threat to move,” the source said.

The Twins won the 1991 World Series and had drawn almost 2.5 million fans in 1992. The club went into decline starting with the 1993 season and played losing baseball through 2000, with the Twins struggling to draw over 1 million fans that year.

Still, the Twins had shown improvement on the field in the first half of 2001 and looked like a team trending upward after finishing 85-77. That improvement was part of the reason those passionate about the team were stunned in the fall of 2001 when contraction was near reality.

“It was really traumatic,” the source said. “First of all, it was our livelihood, but even more so…this was an institution. This was the Minnesota Twins. This wasn’t some corner pizza shop. People over the five-state region followed the Minnesota Twins and grew up with the team. (They) created many special memories. You felt that. You knew what it meant if this were to go away.”

Opponents of MLB contraction included the players’ union and the Metropolitan Sports Facilities Commission whose leaders filed a lawsuit in Hennepin County asking that the Twins fulfill their Metrodome lease. Judge Harry Crump ruled the Twins had to honor their lease and play the 2002 season in the dome. Selig, Pohlad and others had to backtrack on contraction.

The 2002 Twins won the American League Central Division and saw home attendance total nearly 2 million customers, the best year at the gate since 1993. In 2010 the club moved into outdoor Target Field, funded by Hennepin County and the Twins.

Worth Noting

The men’s basketball Golden Gophers aren’t in the NCAA Tournament, and neither are coach Ben Johnson’s three most recent predecessors. Dan Monson’s Long Beach State team is in the NIT, Tubby Smith is retiring after his High Point Panthers went 14-18 and Richard Pitino also had a losing season, 13-19, at New Mexico.

Colorado State coach Niko Medved, a student manager under Clem Haskins in the 1990s, has his Rams in the tournament with an opening game Thursday against Michigan. Minneapolis native David Roddy, the Mountain West Player of the Year, is the Rams’ best player.

Good guy Dave Wright, a familiar public address voice at Twin Cities hockey and basketball games for decades, started doing P.A. work in high school. This is year 53 for him, with commitments next week to work seven games at the boys’ basketball tournament. “It is still a big thrill,” Wright said via email. “I am always nervous 5-10 minutes before the first game. Once we start, however, the adrenalin starts to flow; you kick into automatic pilot and just do it.”

Timberwolves minority owners Marc Lore and Alex Rodriguez are investing in a new company that will allow fans to wager on athletes like football players based on their on-field performance. Mojo will launch an app that could be out by year’s end, per Front Office Sports.

If Minneapolis media legend Sid Hartman was still alive, he would be 102 today.

The Twin Cities Dunkers, the sports-focused group Hartman helped lead for decades, is moving its meetings from the Minneapolis Club to Interlachen Country Club.

College football players, with 50.6 percent, have earned the most compensation from Name, Image and Likeness since the July 2021 startup, according to Opendorse and Axios Sports. Next in NIL money are women’s basketball players at 18.5 percent, with male counterparts third at 15 percent.

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Expert(?) Bracket Advice Offered Here

Posted on March 13, 2022March 13, 2022 by David Shama

It’s almost un-American not to fill out an NCAA Tournament bracket. So stand up for your country and get busy tonight or tomorrow morning. Become the basketball savant in the office pool, or with other friends afflicted with “March Madness.”

Nobody asked but here are suggestions for filling out your bracket:

Think about who your bracket rivals are and their biases. If, for example, they are focused on Big Ten teams, go in another direction. If teams appear relatively similar, select differently than you anticipate others will do. You can only win by having more success than they do, but don’t get crazy about upsets in making picks.

Look for teams that are elite at doing something—shooting, defense, forcing turnovers, rebounding etc. Dig a bit deep with research and see what teams do special things. It might be three-point shooting proficiency, or a defense that guards beyond the arc like nobody else in the country.

Does a team have a stud closer? Pardon the baseball analogy, but a Kirby Puckett type who says, “Jump on my back. I’m driving the bus tonight.” A Mr. Clutch who wants the basketball in the last minutes and delivers.

Doesn’t matter if a team checks a lot of boxes for success but is without its key players. March illness and injuries can crush your Cinderella team, dark horse or tourney lock to win the NCAA title. Do your homework.

This advice isn’t for the birds. Image credit: Jim Carter.

Forget spending much time guessing about what teams can become Cinderella and go deep into the tournament. But identifying dark horses is a smart move because those teams are much more likely to advance beyond the first weekend.

A team seeded No. 7 or lower has made the Elite Eight in nine of the last 10 tournaments. Andy Wittry, writing on NCAA.com last week, pointed that out, and also reminded that in the 2021 tournament two dark horses from the Pac-12, No. 11 UCLA and No. 12 Oregon State, surprised by advancing to the Elite Eight. The Bruins even made the Final Four. (A mention of 2022 potential upstarts offered later in the column.)

Strength of schedule matters a lot to the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee in seeding the teams. It’s a factor worth looking at for fans and their brackets, but not a “crystal ball” except for predicting Final Four teams. Finalists are almost always high seeds and champions come from the elite basketball conferences including the ACC, Big-12, Big East and SEC.

It also matters if a team has a coach with NCAA Tournament experience. Great coaches make a difference at tournament time with scouting, preparation, game plans and in-game adjustments. Those responsibilities come in a pressure cooker environment and success can be more likely if this isn’t a coach’s “first dance.”

Gonzaga, from the not so competitive West Coast Conference, will try to become an NCAA champion outlier. The Zags, with freshman All-American Chet Holmgren from Minnehaha Academy, have been No. 1 in the AP poll of late. They will have a lot of fans rooting for them—from Spokane to Minneapolis.

Superb coach in Mark Few and lots of talent, but I don’t believe in junior All-American Drew Timme as the Zags’ closer. Holmgren, despite his inexperience, might emerge as the key guy. Call me a “homer” but I am predicting the Zags to pick off their first national title ever.

Duke could win the grand prize in Coach K’s last dance but the Blue Devils will have to step up their game. They are an inexperienced bunch with immense talent and the skill-sets to stop varied offenses. Paolo Banchero is a big time scorer. Mike Krzyzewski is closing out his coaching career and the master teacher might have his team saving its best basketball for early April and the national championship game.

The Big Ten likes to thump its chest every year but no team from the conference has won the national championship since Michigan State in 2000. It won’t happen this year because of too many flaws in the league’s best teams.

The Big Ten club likely to make headlines? Maybe Ohio State. The Buckeyes have fallen out of favor (here’s a dark horse) but they have a special talent in E.J. Widdell, an emerging star in freshman Malaki Branham, solid role players and a top coach in Chris Holtmann. Other March Madness upstarts to consider include Alabama with its weird results of elite wins and ugly losses, ACC Tournament champion Virginia Tech (over Duke), and those three-point sharp shooters from South Dakota State.

Baylor won the NCAA title last year and the Bears remain successful, talented and coached by Scott Drew, one of the best in the business. But no team has repeated as NCAA champs since Florida in 2007.

UCLA could be a trendy pick to make the Final Four again but I don’t see it. The Bruins aren’t overly talented, just experienced and solid in multiple ways. They found tourney magic last year but doubtful they can find such a path in 2022.

A dark horse for the title? Consider the Arkansas Razorbacks and coach Eric Musselman—the ultimate competitor and motivator. If Ukraine had 100 Mussy’s they would send Putin’s thugs back to Moscow by mid-week. His Hogs are 25-8 and winners five times in their last eight games.

And finally there is this: the underdog Loyola Ramblers are back in the tournament with 102-year-old icon Sister Jean praying for them. Have faith in your bracket, now that you have expert advice.

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