Wolves Snooze, Lose
February 27, 2009
He shambled into the Timberwolves’ media room, his limp more pronounced. His countenance was gray. The bags under his eyes stood out. He looked to be 10 years older than the age listed in his biography. Kevin McHale had experienced a rough night.
“That was the worst game,” he mumbled to a Wolves’ staffer as he approached the speaker’s podium. The team McHale is forced to coach, the Minnesota Timberwolves, had just finished stinking out the Target Center in downtown Minneapolis.
Minnesota was taken to the wood shed by the Portland Trail Blazers, 102-82. The game was not as close as the final score indicated. To make matters worse, Portland had administered the drubbing minus seven-foot rookie sensation Greg Oden. Filling in for Oden was erstwhile Minnesota Gopher Joel Przybilla, who snared eight rebounds and blocked three shots.
“We couldn’t muster any energy,” said McHale, who was drained himself. Indeed, the Timberwolves joined their hockey-playing counterparts from across the river, the Minnesota Wild, in employing the talents of players who apparently lack the stamina to face the rigors of an 82-game schedule.
Early in the third quarter, Minnesota point guard Sebastian Telfair lost possession of the ball for the Wolves’ 10th turnover of the night. Portland’s LaMarcus Aldridge scored on a layup to give the Blazers a 13-point lead, and, according to McHale, his team started feeling sorry for themselves. “We got frustrated and didn’t scrap for loose balls. We caved in.”
In a display more familiar to fans of mid-level college ball, Minnesota committed 18 turnovers on the evening. “We over-dribble,” McHale observed. “Also, there’s too much searching on offense, too many passes.”
Minnesota’s prize rookie, UCLA’s Kevin Love, had a bumpy night. One might say he was nearly invisible on and off the court. Love had only two points and three boards in nearly 29 minutes of play. “Every player has games like that,” McHale said. “If they tell you otherwise, they’re lying. Love will bounce back from this.”
Love wasn’t the only Wolf without a pulse. Randy Foye and Mike Miller were forced to score 16 of Minnesota’s 18 third-quarter points while Love, Telfair, Ryan Gomes, Jason Collins, Craig Smith, and Brian Cardinal displayed all the life signs of zombies.
Miller finished with 16 points, five rebounds, and four assists. He hit on six of seven shots from the field and made all four of his free throws.
In its eighth straight loss at home, Minnesota’s lackluster defense allowed the Blazers to shoot a 44.4 percent behind the arc. Brandon Roy led all scorers with 18 points against the team that traded him for Foye on draft night in 2006.
In his first opportunity to play significant minutes with Minnesota since coming over from a trade with Sacramento, Bobby Brown scored 15 points on six-of-eight shooting. Another former King, Shelden Williams, took the court for the first time in a Wolves jersey and made three of four free throw attempts.
The announced crowd of 17,017, many of them there due to a special promotion, came to life only at halftime, cheering on various teams’ mascots during a slam-dunk contest. Surprisingly, most spectators chose to remain in their seats until this one-side game came to a merciful conclusion. Maybe they were asleep.