Another Setback
February 27, 2010
The latest chapter in the sorry story of the Minnesota Timberwolves unfolded not with the team’s forgettable 110-91 home loss to the Portland Trailblazers but some three hours later when star power forward Al Jefferson found himself under arrest.
Possibly celebrating his 19-point, 11-rebound performance against the Blazers, Jefferson drove his Range Rover vehicle away from downtown Minneapolis at an excessive rate of speed shortly after bar-closing time in the city. On I-394, Jefferson’s car was observed by a patrolman to be drifting away from the driving lane then abruptly changing lanes. The trooper used his vehicle, siren, and flashing lights to pull over the Range Rover. Jefferson failed a field sobriety test and was escorted to jail. He faces up to 90 days in jail and a $1,000 fine. Oh yes, the Timberwolves suspended Jefferson for two games, which will cost Big Al nearly $300,000.
The incident is typical of a season gone wrong at Target Center. The loss was Minnesota’s 47th in 61 games. Jefferson’s absence in upcoming games against Dallas and Houston is not likely to matter because the Wolves aren’t expected to win either contest.
After a competitive start to the game, Minnesota could not establish offensive flow in the second period, shooting an abominable 23.5 percent from the floor. In the period, the Wolves scored only 10 points and trailed at halftime by 47-33.
“During the last five minutes of the second quarter, they just got on this little roll, we couldn’t find a way to stop them, and they came out in the third quarter and just punched the game away for us,” head coach Kurt Rambis told reporters after the game.
In the third quarter, the chief culprit in burying the Timberwolves was Portland’s unheralded 6-8 forward from France, Nicolas Batum. Although he entered the game with a modest 8.1 points-per-game scoring average, Minnesota seemed determined to turn him into the next Dirk Nowitske. Batum was allowed free range and scored 22 points in the third quarter alone. Batum finished with a career high 31 points.
“Their shooters have size and are able to see over things,” Rambis said. The “things” Rambis referred to were his players who apparently are incapable of playing defense. Incidentally, two other players of size for the Trailblazers, Greg Oden and Joel Pryzbilla, did not play. Portland’s best player, Brandon Roy, was content to settle for seven points and spent nearly a dozen minutes of game time on the bench. The Blazers simply didn’t need him.
The final score of 110-91 didn’t come close to revealing how one-sided the game was. Garbage time started in the third quarter with Portland up by 80-50.
During the first period, both teams mainly concentrated on producing inside the paint. Throughout the early stages of the game, Jefferson tallied 13 first quarter points by attacking the Blazers’ Marcus Camby. After that, the air left the balloon, and Minnesota floundered. As Rambis observed, the Wolves are consistent by being an inconsistent lot.
For the game, Minnesota amassed a total of 17 free throws. The Blazers spent considerable time at the line with 35 shots.
“I told our team after the ball game to use the rest of the season as a learning opportunity,” Rambis said. Jefferson apparently took that to mean learning more about downtown nightlife.