David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

3 Names May Top Wolves Coach List

Posted on May 19, 2014May 19, 2014 by David Shama

Will the next Timberwolves coach be Flip Saunders, Fred Hoiberg or George Karl?

Speculation continues that Saunders, now the team’s president of basketball operations, wants to coach, too. Why both jobs? Because he enjoys coaching, and maybe at age 59 he wants his legacy to be more than being fired in each of his previous NBA head coaching stops.

Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor is on record preferring to have Saunders in the front office with another individual coaching. Taylor told Sports Headliners awhile ago front office executives have long term views and coaches make decisions based on what’s best now. He wants both outlooks for his franchise that hasn’t been to the playoffs since 2004.

Saunders, if he wants to coach again, will have a sales job to do with Taylor. He might get it done because Saunders is a persuasive guy, and although the Wolves, Pistons and Wizards all dismissed him, he knows how to coach. It’s believed, too, Saunders could be effective in convincing All-Star forward Kevin Love to re-sign with the Wolves next year.

Hoiberg spent two seasons playing for the Wolves and four more as a front office executive before taking his first head coaching position in 2010 at Iowa State, his alma mater. Hoiberg was well liked as a Wolves executive and the guess is Taylor is fond of him.

A Sports Headliners source believes Hoiberg is interested in the Wolves job. There are several reasons this could be true, including the possibility he doesn’t care much for recruiting. That’s no easy job at Iowa State, a school where Hoiberg has built his program by dodging potential problems with talented transfers who had alleged issues at other schools. Winning in Ames is no gimme and you wonder if he wants the dual role of recruiter and babysitter.

Iowa State loyalists want to believe Hoiberg—who grew up in Ames and is one of the state’s biggest heroes—will never leave his home town. He might not leave for a college job but the NBA could be different. If that’s not true, then why is his contractual buyout to leave for the pros reportedly $500,000 while the buyout for another college position is $2 million? Consider, too, recent Internet reports that had Hoiberg’s name linked to the Warriors job that was filled last week and the opening with the Knicks for head coach.

Hoiberg likes his team to play at a fast pace and that’s more doable in the NBA than in college. He played with a 24 second shot clock in the NBA and wants to see the college shot clock go from 35 seconds to 18 seconds, according to Internet reports last week.

Lifestyle and security might lure the 41-year-old Hoiberg back to Minneapolis, too. In Ames he’s a celebrity wherever he goes but in Minneapolis he and his family would enjoy much more privacy. The Hoibergs might be Iowans but they have Minnesota roots, too, from their years in the state, and they still have a cabin in central Minnesota.

The Wolves could offer a contract that sets Hoiberg up for life. A five-year $25 million deal, along with his NBA pension someday, would provide the personable coach with a lot of financial security. He reportedly earns $2.6 million annually at Iowa State as part of a contract through 2023.

Hoiberg or any new Wolves coach will inherit a roster with multiple weaknesses that is not ready to make a deep playoff run, assuming the team can even qualify for the postseason next year. Still, if Hoiberg got all that he could out of the Wolves during the next several seasons it would be a credit, not a blemish, to his coaching reputation.

As for Karl, he is 63 and is sixth among NBA coaches in all-time wins with 1,131. He is friendly with Saunders and the two likely would work effectively together. Karl is an advocate of up-tempo offense and sharing the basketball. That’s a style, of course, players say makes the game fun but with Karl it won’t be an anything goes environment. He will push players to play hard and nobody is advised to fall into disfavor.

Karl, who will demand plenty of his players defensively too, went through a difficult period a few years ago with head and neck cancer. That illness and his age could make NBA teams with coaching openings perhaps think twice about him.

The search for the next Wolves coach has been quiet for a few weeks. Taylor said by e-mail Saunders will pick the next coach but there’s no doubt the owner will have plenty of say, too.

Worth Noting

Taylor said in the same e-mail that despite other reports, he isn’t trying to sell his controlling interest in the Wolves. He is open to inquiries about minority ownership.

The NBA Draft Lottery from New York is tomorrow night and ESPN will televise starting at 7 p.m. Minneapolis time. Because of their 40-42 regular season record, the Wolves presently are assigned the No. 13 pick for the first round of the June 26 NBA Draft. The Wolves are one of 14 teams in the lottery which determines the top three positions in the draft. Minnesota has a 2.18% chance of obtaining a top-three slot in the draft.

The Wolves will have three second round selections in the June 26 draft—No. 40, 44 and 53.

Twins second baseman Brian Dozier is third in American League home runs with 11, second in stolen bases with 12 and first in runs scored with 40.

Yangervis Solarte, the 26-year-old Yankees rookie second baseman who is among the American League leaders in batting average, is from Venezuela and was in the Twins organization for several years until 2011.

Gophers football coach Jerry Kill again showed his remarkable generosity last week donating $100,000 to the Epilepsy Foundation of Minnesota and $5,000 to the Bolder Options youth mentoring program.

Vikings rookie quarterback Teddy Bridgewater after being asked if he feels overwhelmed by the team playbook: “Not at all. Me just being the guy that I am, everything comes easy to me. But at the same time it’s also a challenge to actually just get better each and everyday because the guys around you are continually getting better also.”

The Minute Men, the volunteer organization supporting Minnesota sports for more than 50 years, will honor the Mr. Lacrosse and Ms. Lacrosse winners at a noon banquet June 15 at the Crowne Plaza St. Paul-Riverfront Hotel. Also on June 15 the organization will honor the Mr. Baseball and Ms. Softball winners at a 6 p.m. banquet at Jax Café. More at Minnesotaminutemen.com.

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GM on Bridgewater: ‘Baker’s Mitts Okay’

Posted on May 16, 2014May 16, 2014 by David Shama

The Vikings open their rookie minicamp today and it’s expected first round draft choice Teddy Bridgewater will be wearing gloves. He wore gloves while playing quarterback at Louisville and during private workouts before the NFL Draft but didn’t during his disappointing pro day performance in March.

Josh Katzowitz from Cbssports.com wrote this week that Bridgewater didn’t wear gloves at the pro day because the weather was warm. “He learned that if he became one of the best college players in America when he wore gloves, maybe he should wear the gloves when he’s auditioning for the pros,” Katzowitz wrote on Monday.

Bridgewater had a difficult pro day but in a private workout impressed Vikings general manager Rick Spielman who has no problem with gloves, even if many quarterbacks don’t wear them. “I don’t care if you put on baker’s mitts,” Spielman told Sports Headliners. “If you can throw best with baker’s mitts on, then do that. It’s what’s the result? That’s all we’re concerned about.”

There is speculation Bridgewater wears gloves because his hands are small and they help him grip the football better. Spielman said it’s not true, and that Bridgewater’s hands measure an acceptable 9 ¼ or 9 ½ inches in width.

“Everybody is acting like his hands are like tiny,” Spielman said. “They’re not tiny. They’re just a ¼ of an inch below what everybody thinks a quarterback’s hands should be. …

“You see a lot of these quarterbacks now in the NFL, especially on colder days, are wearing those gloves. I think Philip Rivers has done it. I think (Tom) Brady has done it a few times to help with their grip. But we have no concerns about that (Bridgewater wearing gloves).”

Spielman said in the scouting process he became convinced Bridgewater can properly grip the football and throw it. “No question. We spent a lot of time with that and saw it personally.”

At Louisville Bridgewater, who earned his degree in sports administration in three years, had impressive passing stats including with his accuracy. Last season, for example, he threw 31 touchdown passes and was intercepted only four times. In 35 games over three seasons as a starter, he led the Cardinals to a 27-8 record.

Bridgewater made a lot of plays in college from the shotgun formation, instead of taking the ball from under center. At his pro day he took many snaps under center and that impacted his performance too, according to Katzowitz’s story.

Before the pro day there was speculation Bridgewater would be the first quarterback drafted and maybe even the overall No. 1 pick. Katzowitz quotes legendary personnel authority Gil Brandt as saying that didn’t make sense.

“If you asked the coaches or scouts ahead of time just how good he was, nobody would have said he’s the first pick of the draft,” Brandt said. “It was a media creation.”

The Vikings found Bridgewater available at the last slot in the first round. Two other quarterbacks, Blake Bortles at No. 3, and Johnny Manziel at No. 22, went ahead of Bridgewater.

Still, with gloves or baker’s mitts, the Vikings think they may have found their quarterback of the future. They will learn more in the days and weeks ahead.

Worth Noting

The Vikings three day rookie minicamp that starts today will see media attention focused on Bridgewater and the team’s other No. 1 draft choice, linebacker Anthony Barr from UCLA. Spielman has seen so much of Bridgewater and Barr through the scouting process he has more anticipation about watching players selected deeper in the draft and also free agents.

Barr, 6-5 and 255 pounds, has extraordinary speed for a man his size and has reportedly run 4.45 in the 40-yard dash. He was among the elite pass rushing prospects in the draft despite playing linebacker for only two years in college.

New Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer is a defensive specialist while new offensive coordinator Norv Turner is a quarterback authority so it will be interesting to see the results of their individual instructional work with players between now and the start of the season in September. Look for multiple Vikings to have fundamentals evaluated and improved.

Although the Vikings didn’t draft Brock Vereen, the former Gophers safety made a lasting impression on Spielman during the scouting process. “As first class of a kid as I’ve ever been around and he’s a good football player, too,” said Spielman about Vereen who was selected by the Bears on the fourth round.

The NFL owners vote on Tuesday whether to award the 2018 Super Bowl to Indianapolis, Minneapolis or New Orleans. Dave Mona, the longtime Minneapolis public relations executive who was involved with the successful drive to bring the 1992 Super Bowl to the Metrodome, said Minnesota’s winter weather reputation won’t place fear in the NFL if the city is chosen to host the game.

“The NFL will not let it (Super Bowl game) fail. They will solve all the logistical problems,” Mona told Sports Headliners while noting this area knows how to successfully deal with winter storms.

Carlos Gomez, who couldn’t win the full-time center field job with the Twins, is on the cover of this week’s Sports Illustrated. A story on the Brewers center fielder refers to his impressive start this season and being an early candidate for American League MVP. The article also describes the lack of patience at the plate that has characterized much of his baseball career including with the Twins. The story quotes Twins manager Ron Gardenhire in 2009: “We’ve been trying to get him to calm down and get him to control the situation, and sometimes the situation controls him.”

Hockey authority Lou Nanne will talk to the CORES group on September 11 and Bethel football coach Steve Johnson will speak on November 13. Both luncheon programs will be at the Knights of Columbus Hall in Bloomington. CORES is an acronym for coaches, officials, reporters, educators and sports fans.

CORES emcee Dick Jonckowski is the public address announcer for Shakopee High School softball and baseball games, plus Gophers baseball. Jonckowski also is the longtime public address announcer for Gophers basketball.

The MIAC 2014 top baseball award winners are MVP, Tyler Peterson, St. Thomas first baseman; Pitcher of the Year, Justin Thompson, Saint John’s; Rookie of the Year, Ben Buerkle, Saint Mary’s outfielder; and Coach of the Year, Nick Winecke, Saint Mary’s.

The league’s softball award winners are: MVP, Lexi Alm, Saint Benedict outfielder; Pitcher of the Year, Kendra Bowe, St. Thomas; Rookie of the Year, Hannah Heacox, Gustavus Adolphus pitcher; and Coach of the Year, John Tschida, St. Thomas.

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Fans Wild about Minnesota Wild Playoffs

Posted on May 14, 2014May 14, 2014 by David Shama

In one day a sportswriter saw more people wearing Wild clothing and caps than he observed in a month this winter. Whether it’s extra chatter in office cubicles or via social media, or record TV viewership and game attendance, the Wild has captured a large audience this spring with its surprising Stanley Cup playoff performance.

Last night the Wild lost 2-1 in overtime to the Blackhawks in game six of their second round playoff series. The best of seven series is over with the Blackhawks winning four games to two but the impact of the Wild’s popularity on Minnesota sports fans, both passionate and casual, is evident.

Until this spring Minnesota had missed the playoffs five of the previous six seasons. But in April and May of this year the Wild played like one of the NHL’s better teams, defeating the Avalanche in a seven game series and playing impressively against the defending Stanley Cup champion Blackhawks.

In Wild franchise history dating back to 2000-2001 the club has advanced beyond the first round of the playoffs only twice, in 2003 and 2014. Last year Minnesota lost its opening series to the Blackhawks in five games. This year the Wild put up a much stronger fight, particularly at home feeding off the energy of frenzied fans.

Wild radio analyst Tom Reid has followed the franchise since its inception. “The interest level is phenomenal with this team,” he told Sports Headliners.

Wild telecasts attracted much larger audiences than normal. For example, the team’s game seven final last month against the Avalanche had a 16.4 household rating in the Minneapolis–St. Paul area — a record for a sports telecast by Fox Sports North. The previous record, a 15.3 rating, was in August of 2010 for a Twins-White Sox game.

In the Minneapolis–St. Paul market 17,280 households represent one rating point. Over 283,390 households tuned in to that Avalanche-Wild game. The telecast received a 32 share, signifying 32 percent of the viewing audience in the Twins Cities area was watching.

For game three of the Blackhawks series the Wild had a record home attendance of 19,416 at Xcel Energy Center, breaking the prior playoff record of 19,396 set last month against Avalanche and exceeding a regular season crowd of 19,409 earlier this spring. Game four against the Blackhawks at Xcel Energy attracted 19,405 and last night attendance was 19,396. The arena’s official capacity for hockey is 17,954.

A Wild spokesman e-mailed late last week the team has added more than 23,000 new followers on Twitter since the end of March, leading all NHL teams in percentage growth of audience during that period. Total followers are 224,000. The Wild’s website attracted more than 700,000 unique visitors during April, an all-time high.

Last night the Wild players left theirs hearts on the ice in the overtime playoff ending loss. The fans, standing and cheering the home team after the game ended, left their hearts in the stands.

Worth Noting

Reid, who played in the NHL for 11 seasons, believes third-year Wild coach Mike Yeo “has really come a long way over the last 18 months,” and is impressed with his composure during games. “What I like about Mike is he doesn’t get rattled — because that also transcends to the players,” Reid said. “If they see a coach that is up there screaming and hollering and jumping all over the place, that’s not a good sign. I played for coaches like that.”

New Vikings quarterback Teddy Bridgewater, who at one time was projected to be the first quarterback taken in the 2014 NFL Draft, is likely to receive about $14 million less on his contract than the Jaguars Blake Bortles. Jason Belzer from Forbes.com wrote last Friday he is estimating Bortles, the first quarterback chosen in the draft, will receive $20,654,810. Bortles was the third player selected during the draft’s first round while Bridgewater was the last at No. 32 and his contract is projected at $6,849,502.

Rumors had the Vikings trying to move up during the first round to obtain the Browns’ pick at No. 22 and draft quarterback Johnny Manziel. Instead, the Browns kept the pick and selected Manziel who will receive an estimated $8,247,250 on his contract.

The Vikings top draft choice, linebacker Anthony Barr, was selected ninth during the first round and Belzer has his contract at $12,743,500. Belzer’s contract projections for first round draft choices are based on the NFL’s salary cap and rookie compensation pool that this year is expected to total $955 million and be split among all 32 league teams.

Vikings general manager Rick Spielman has made some outstanding draft choices in recent years but knows his reputation has a lot to do with whether the team solves its quarterback problem. “You are always going to be judged by the quarterback,” Spielman said.

Last week’s draft was the first for Spielman working with new head coach Mike Zimmer. Spielman was the boss regarding who the Vikings selected. “There was not a lot of discussion,” he said.

Tomorrow night Gophers football coach Jerry Kill delivers the commencement address at Mariucci Arena to undergraduate students from the University of Minnesota’s College of Education and Human Development, and then attends the 20th anniversary Bolder Options celebration at TCF Bank Stadium’s DQ Room where he will give the keynote address.

Among the entrants in next month’s Tapemark Charity Pro-Am at Southview Country Club in West St. Paul will be Edina resident Chris Meyer who has been playing on the PGA’s Latin America tour. Meyer, 23, played in the Tapemark last year but didn’t make the cut after graduating from the University of Wisconsin. “My guess is he will be very competitive this year,” said Pro-Am president Phil Callen who noted Meyer is the Tapemark’s first current pro ever from the Latin America tour.

The defending Tapemark champion is Ryan Helminen from Ridgeway Country Club in Neenah, Wisconsin. Helminen also won the tournament in 2010. He attended the University of Wisconsin with Gophers golf coach John Carlson who is also playing in this year’s tournament. Carlson won the Tapemark in 2007 and 2008.

The Southview course is short and hilly, requiring adjustments for long hitters. “Even really talented guys have to change their games,” Callen said. “There are a limited number of holes you can use your driver.”

Tapemark dates for the men’s tournament are June 6, 7 and 8. The women’s event is June 5 and 8, also at Southview. The tournament, now in its 43rd year, benefits people with developmental disabilities. Registration for pros and amateurs is still open. More at Tapemarkgolf.org.

Canterbury Park begins its live racing season on Friday as part of a 69-day race meet through September 13. The 10,000 Lakes Stakes and the Lady Slipper Stakes, both $60,000 sprint races, will be this Friday and Saturday. Saturday attractions include a simulcast of the 139th Preakness Stakes, the second leg of the Triple Crown.

Canterbury Park’s nearly 1,600 horse stalls will be at capacity for only the second time since 1991 because of a cooperative marketing and purse enhancement agreement made in 2012 with the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community. SMSC will contribute $75 million to the horsemen’s purse structure over the deal’s 10-year span. Purses are projected to total a record $13 million this season.

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