2008 Woodie Awards
Young Timberwolves begin to show promise
Alex Voigt
Issue date: 1/28/08 Section: Sports
Timberwolves fans looking for an update on the team's return-on-investment for Kevin Garnett got exactly that Friday night.
That night, the last-place Wolves took on Garnett's first-place Celtics in Boston.
On paper, the game looked an extreme mismatch. The Celtics are bludgeoning opponents in near-record fashion and have a trio of All-Stars, whereas the Timberwolves are losing in near-record fashion and have their fans calling for Kevin McHale's head.
However, the game was far from a blowout. Minnesota hung with the playoff-bound Celtics and were leading with less than a minute left in the game.
It wasn't until a last-second steal from our old pal Garnett that the Celtics finally escaped with an 87-86 victory.
The Timberwolves may have lost the game, but their match up with the Celtics gave a possible look into the future with happier times on the way for Minnesota. The young players brought over in the Garnett trade all showed up to play against their former team Friday.
Sebastian Telfair, the much maligned point guard with a questionable attitude, looked like he was back on the playgrounds in Brooklyn with 18 points and several crowd-silencing jumpers late in the game.
Telfair will never be mistaken for Chris Paul at the point, but he's shown flashes of brilliance lately to indicate that he might be a useful player down the road for Minnesota.
Ryan Gomes is another young player brought over from Boston who's shown a lot of promise lately.
The 6'7 forward scored 13 points Friday night and has averaged 16 per game in January, with a career-high 35 points against Golden State last week. Gomes has benefited from increased playing time and a shift to the power forward position that has created mismatches against bigger, slower players.
Of course, the real prized youngster for the Wolves has been the centerpiece of the Garnett trade: Al Jefferson.
The 6'10 center has been every bit the franchise player McHale thought he would be, averaging more than 20 points and 10 rebounds for the season and giving the Timberwolves a dominating presence in the post to build around.
That night, the last-place Wolves took on Garnett's first-place Celtics in Boston.
On paper, the game looked an extreme mismatch. The Celtics are bludgeoning opponents in near-record fashion and have a trio of All-Stars, whereas the Timberwolves are losing in near-record fashion and have their fans calling for Kevin McHale's head.
However, the game was far from a blowout. Minnesota hung with the playoff-bound Celtics and were leading with less than a minute left in the game.
It wasn't until a last-second steal from our old pal Garnett that the Celtics finally escaped with an 87-86 victory.
The Timberwolves may have lost the game, but their match up with the Celtics gave a possible look into the future with happier times on the way for Minnesota. The young players brought over in the Garnett trade all showed up to play against their former team Friday.
Sebastian Telfair, the much maligned point guard with a questionable attitude, looked like he was back on the playgrounds in Brooklyn with 18 points and several crowd-silencing jumpers late in the game.
Telfair will never be mistaken for Chris Paul at the point, but he's shown flashes of brilliance lately to indicate that he might be a useful player down the road for Minnesota.
Ryan Gomes is another young player brought over from Boston who's shown a lot of promise lately.
The 6'7 forward scored 13 points Friday night and has averaged 16 per game in January, with a career-high 35 points against Golden State last week. Gomes has benefited from increased playing time and a shift to the power forward position that has created mismatches against bigger, slower players.
Of course, the real prized youngster for the Wolves has been the centerpiece of the Garnett trade: Al Jefferson.
The 6'10 center has been every bit the franchise player McHale thought he would be, averaging more than 20 points and 10 rebounds for the season and giving the Timberwolves a dominating presence in the post to build around.