The 2013 Minnesota Timberwolves Preview

By Jody Wagner
Saturday, July 27th, 2013

The Minnesota Timberwolves will be the most underrated team prior to the 2013-2014 NBA season.  Many analysts, especially at ESPN, won't give the Wolves much credit.  The Wolves had a terrible record last year.  There were a good number of reasons for that, and they've all been corrected.  After the first month of the 2013-2014 season, reporters will be asking where the Timberwolves came from.

The Timberwolves have grown, gotten healthy, and made some good moves this off-season.  I'm going to predict the Timberwolves will make a good run this year.  Not only will the Wolves make the playoffs, but they'll also win at least one series in the playoffs.

Free Agent/Trade Additions: SG Kevin Martin, SF/SG Corey Brewer, C/PF Ronny Turiaf

Draft Additions: SG/SF Shabazz Muhammad, C Gorgui Dieng

Departures: SF/PF Andrei Kirilenko, PG Luke Ridnour, C Greg Stiemsma, SG Brandon Roy, PG/SG Malcolm Lee, SF/SG Mikael Gelabale

Center: Nikola Pekovic is the starter here.
 

Nikola Pekovic is the enforcer.  He is possibly the strongest and toughest man in the NBA today.  He goes where he wants to on the court, and nobody can stop him.  He's gotten better year after year, and expect him to be even better this year.  The Timberwolves have added three point snipers to the roster, including Kevin Love coming back.  This will open up the middle for Pekovic.

Ronny Turiaf is coming in to take over for the departed Greg Stiemsma.  Turiaf is a tough, hard-nosed big man who will mentor incoming rookie center Gorgui Dieng.  Chris Johnson may also see time here.

Power Forward: Kevin Love is the starter here.
 

 Kevin Love is an All Star.  Kevin Love is a Gold Medal Olympian.  Kevin Love is so good, he can get 31 points and 31 rebounds in one game.  Kevin Love has so much range, he won the 2012 three point shooting contest.  Kevin Love is so tough, he can jump in a frozen lake. Kevin Love can box out a sumo wrestler.   Kevin Love is such a beast, he'll break the backboard, or he'll crush you if you get in his way.  Kevin Love is why the Timberwolves will make a run in the playoffs this year.  He missed most of last year due to a hand injury.  He'll be healthy this year, and he'll lead the Timberwolves into the playoffs.  In Love's absence, most of last years PF minutes went to Derrick Williams and Dante Cunningham.  Kevin Love is a huge upgrade over what was out there last season.

Backing up Kevin Love are Derrick Williams and Dante Cunningham.  Williams, the 2011 2nd overall pick in the draft, may also see some time at SF, due to Kevin Love being at PF.  Williams improved his numbers in his second season last year and always puts in his work.  Dante Cunningham is a high energy guy and a very good guy to have coming off the bench.  The Timberwolves have a lot of depth at PF.

Small Forward: Corey Brewer is probably the starter here.


Corey Brewer might start for his ability to shut people down on defense.  The other thing he can do really well is catch alley-oops from Rubio.  He also hit over 40% from the corners on 3 pointers.

If Corey Brewer starts, Chase Budinger and Derrick Williams will back him up.  It is possible that either of those guys could also start. Chase Budinger is a favorite of mine. Whether he's in the dunk contest or popping threes, he's impressive.  These guys are all an upgrade over Kirilenko, in the sense that they fit Adelman's system better.  The good news for Wolves fans is that the Wolves have a lot of depth here, and can go with whomever has the hot hand at the moment.

Shooting Guard:  Kevin Martin is the starter here.


Kevin Martin is the Timberwolves' big off-season move.  It was a great move by the new President of Operations, Flip Saunders.  He gives the Timberwolves exactly what the team needed, a scorer.  He can hit 3's, he can drive, and more importantly he will take the pressure off Kevin Love and Ricky Rubio.  Other teams are going to have to respect him.  He's a huge upgrade over Brandon Roy who didn't hardly play last year, and Luke Ridnour, who played much of the SG minutes, but was playing out of position.

Rookie Shabazz Muhammad could be the back-up here.  Shabazz is a scorer and can possibly be instant offense off the bench.  The Timberwolves could also go with Alexey Shved and/or Chase Budinger here as a back-up, depending on what happens with Derrick Williams' playing time at SF, or if the Wolves want to go with a 3-man rotation at SF/SG with Martin, Brewer, and Budinger.  It will all depend on how Williams and Muhammad impress Coach Rick Adelman.

Point Guard:  Ricky Rubio is the starter here.


Ricky Rubio missed the first month of the season.  Then it took him a while to get back into the flow of things.  When he did, he was very good.  Ricky Rubio is a magician with the basketball.  It's just too bad he can't have the nickname Magic.  Maybe wizard?  Rubio will be even more magical this year.  Kevin Love and Kevin Martin will spread the defense out opening up the middle for Rubio to operate.  Rubio will also have more athletes to bring some lob city to Mpls with Corey Brewer and Chase Budinger here full time this season. Ricky Rubio has become a team leader. I expect Rubio and Love to really take this team over this year and lead this team into the playoffs.

JJ Barea will be the primary back-up PG.  He is a spark plug off the bench. Alexey Shved could also see some time at PG.

Coaching: Rick Adelman is back.


Rick Adelman coming back is huge for the Timberwolves. He missed a bunch of games last year due to the health of his wife. She has gotten much better by all reports and Adelman will be back. The Timberwolves didn't do well in his absence. With his return, the Wolves will make a nice run this year.

The Draft:


1. (14) SG/SF Shabazz Muhammad
1. (21) C Gorgui Dieng
2. (52) PG Lorenzo Brown
2. (59) C Bojan Dubljevic

Shabazz Muhammad is instant offense.  He will be a back-up, and his minutes will depend on training camp and how much he impresses head Coach Rick Adelman.  The Wolves have a deep bench and Muhammad could be brought along slowly.

"Brought along slowly" could be the theme of this years draft class.  Gorgui Dieng, a very good shot blocker, will probably be behind Pekovic and Turiaf on the depth chart.  He'll get his minutes if he impresses early, but don't count on it.  He's going to be good eventually, just don't expect it to come right away.

Lorenzo Brown and Bojan Dubljevic will probably play overseas this year.

Fox Sports NBA analyst Marques Johnson said the Timberwolves were the winner of the 2013 NBA Draft. NBA TV analysts Greg Anthony and David Aldridge loved the Wolves' draft.  Greg Anthony even went as far as to say the Wolves were the winner of the 2013 NBA draft.

What to Expect:  
The Timberwolves are coming together as a team.  Pieces were added this off-season that compliment the other pieces on the team.  Ricky Rubio, Kevin Love, and Nikola Pekovic are good at what they do, but they  needed a scoring shooting guard.  Flip Saunders went out and got Kevin Martin.  The team felt like it needed more defense and Kevin Martin helped recruit Corey Brewer here.  All of these pieces are fitting together nicely.  All of these players want to be here and they want to play together.  It all gets this fan excited as to what could possibly happen.

The Timberwolves are going to put up a lot of high scoring games this year.  Expect a lot of dunks and a lot of three pointers. The two Kevin's will get their 20 points per game.

Rick Adelman has his hands full though.  He has one of those issues that every coach wouldn't mind having.  He has so many good players, that there could be complaints about playing time.  Shabazz Muhammad was a star just 2 years ago in high school.  He was a star last year at UCLA.  This year he'll probably have to share time with Brewer, Budinger, Williams, Shved, and Martin.  At power forward, we have Love, Williams, Cunningham, and Johnson.  Williams and Cunningham both deserve to play, but someone won't be happy with a lack of playing time.  There just won't be enough minutes to go around.

This is why I think there could be a trade before the season starts, or some time before the trade deadline.  It would make sense to package a couple of good players for a really good player.  If the right deal presents itself, a move could/should be made.

The Lakers lost Dwight Howard.  Pau Gasol and Kobe Bryant are both a year older and injuries are starting to catch up with them.  The Nuggets lost Andre Iguodala.  That will really hurt them.  The Utah Jazz lost Al Jefferson and Paul Milsap.  That will hurt them. The Timberwolves have gotten better.  You combine the Wolves' improvement with the decline of the Lakers, Jazz, and the Nuggets, expect a huge jump in the standings from the Timberwolves.

Ali vs Frazier I: A Look Back

Many people at this time were against Muhammad Ali for refusing to be inducted into the army. They were also against him for being a Muslim.  I've always wondered if that affected some of the judges and referee's decision.  A few years back, I watched this fight and scored it round by round.  I thought Ali won.  I just watched it again, scoring it again.  I still have Ali winning the fight.  This is how I scored it.

Round 1          Ali landed some real good shots.  Frazier got one good hook to the head and a good body shot.  That’s it.  About 11 seconds left in round 1 and the announcer said, "It's been a fairly close round.”  What fight was he watching?  Ali out-landed Frazier about 29-7 at the point the announcer said that, including some real good shots.  It wasn’t even close.

                        Ali 10-9

                        In between rounds, the announcers were saying Frazier is making the fight.  This is driving me nuts.  They clearly came into the fight against Ali.

Round 2          Ali rocked Frazier with some huge shots in this round.  Frazier landed a couple good shots as well.  I had the landed punches at about 36-7 when the announcer says, “It has been a dandy.”  If he meant Ali owning this fight easily, then he was right.  I don’t think that’s what he meant.  This was an easy round for Ali.  It wasn’t even close.  Ali dominated the round.

                        Ali 20-18

                        In between rounds Joe Frazier was spitting up blood.

Round 3          At the beginning of the round, the announcer says, “This fight ranks up there with the great ones.”  What?  Ali’s dominated the fight so far.  You think this announcer came in biased at all? Wow!  The announcer then says, “Frazier’s not getting that clean shot in on the body like he did in round 2.”  What?  He landed a maybe a couple body shots in round 2.  What is this announcer talking about and what fight is he watching?

                        Ali lands two huge uppercuts that don’t move Frazier.  Frazier is taking the shots hard, meanwhile Ali is rolling with the shots Frazier is landing, which makes it look like the shots are rocking Ali more than they really are.

                        Frazier lunged in and Ali landed a hard right hook.  I’m not sure how Frazier stayed up.  Ali’s holding Frazier’s head down when he comes in so he can’t load up on the body shots.  Frazier just head-butted Ali to the chin.  That was very dirty.  It looked completely intentional.

Frazier landed a big shot late, but Ali blocked most of those late Frazier punches.  Ali easily won this round.

Ali 30-27

Round 4          Ali rocked Frazier’s head a couple times early in this round.  Most of the shots by Frazier in this fight have been slipped or blocked by Ali.  The shots Frazier has landed, Ali has rolled with most of them.  Ali is fighting a masterpiece so far.  Two left jabs just shook Frazier’s head again.  Frazier is taking a brutal beating.  A combination by Ali just landed on Frazier and he keeps coming forward.  This is like a Rocky fight. Ali is landing at will.  Ali is looking a little winded, but it’s from landed shots.  He’s not dancing much and he’s landing most of his punches.  The fans go crazy when Frazier lands a punch, even though it’s such a rarity.  I wonder if that’s affecting the judges at all.  Frazier looks like he’s slowing down also.  Frazier landed about 4 hard shots this round.  Ali landed many times more shots, including some hard shots.  Frazier’s big shots landed late, making me wonder if that has affected the judges score cards.  This was Ali’s round.

                        Ali 40-36

Round 5          Ali comes out dancing.  Frazier was getting drilled with shots and he smiles at Ali.  Frazier’s very wild this round, swinging wild shots and mostly missing.  This was a very easy round for Ali.

                        Ali 50-45

                        After the bell rang, Frazier through his hand in the air as if he won the round.  Delusional?  He’s lost EVERY round so far.

Round 6          Frazier comes out landing a bunch of body shots and slipping Ali’s jabs.  He looks like he found a second wind.  Frazier’s landing an occasional shot up stairs.  Frazier lands some more body shots.  Frazier is just overwhelming Ali this round.  Ali is trying to keep Frazier off with his reach but Frazier is fighting through it.  Easy round for Frazier.

                        Ali 59-55

Round 7          Frazier walked right into a huge right hook about halfway through the round.  Ali scored with a jab and a good combination.  Ali hit Frazier with another good combination and another good hook.  It was a pretty close round.  I’ll give this round to Ali.

                        Ali 69-64

                        The fans are starting to cheer for Ali now.  He’s earned it.  He’s up 6 rounds to 1 and he’s been beating Frazier down for most of the fight.

Round 8          Ali took the round off.  It looked like he was trying to wear Frazier out a little bit this round, sitting on the ropes, trying to get Frazier to punch himself out.  It was a pretty easy round to score for Frazier.

                        Ali 78-74

                        In between rounds the fans are now cheering for Frazier. 

Round 9          Ali comes out looking to fight again.  He’s peppering Frazier with jabs, blocking Frazier’s punches.  Ali’s really picked it up this round and has owned Frazier in the first half of the round.  Frazier finally lands a couple of punches, but they are on the hips, below the belt.  Frazier lands a good left hook.  Ali starts clowning and Frazier lands another good left hook.  Ali catches Frazier with a good right, and then a good combo.  Another good combo.  Ali hits Frazier with a good shot, slips a Frazier punch, and hits Frazier with another good shot.  Ali then bombs Frazier with 2 left hooks in a row.  That’s easily an Ali round.  Don’t let 2 good shots by Frazier fool you.  Ali was all over Frazier in that round.

                        Ali 88-83

                        Between rounds the announcers said that it was a desperation round for Ali?  Are you kidding me?  Ali was up 6 rounds to 2 before this round, and now he should be up 7 rounds to 2.  I think this is one of those fights you have to watch it with the volume down.  Don’t let the announcers and fans fool you.  Ali is easily winning this fight up until this point.

Round 10        Frazier lands some good shots early, but the fans are oooooing and aaaaahing after a few shots that were blocked by Ali.  Ali landed some good hooks, Frazier also got one in.  Ali landed a four punch combination.  Ali just battering Frazier now.  He lands a bunch of punches in a row.  Frazier at times looks helpless.  He’s been there to be hit all night long.  Ali’s round.

                        Ali 98-92

Round 11        Ali down early in the round.  The ref calls it a slip.  Frazier seems more active this round.  Ali seems to be resting a bit.  Ali and Frazier exchange bombs.  Frazier with a huge left hook, landed on Ali.  That rocked him a bit.  Another left hook staggered Ali into the ropes.  It was somewhat of a close round until the last minute of the round.  Then it was all Frazier.  It’s easily Frazier’s round.

                        Ali 107-102

                        During the replay of the round, they showed in slow motion, a nasty head butt by Frazier.  He ducked under Ali’s chin, and then lifted his head violently.  It was just a dirty shot I missed in real time.

Round 12        Frazier lands a good left hook early.  Frazier looks very confident now.  He keeps moving forward and Ali is having a hard time keeping him off.  Ali is coming back now.  He’s slipping Frazier’s punches a little bit more now, and landing some of his own.  Ali landed a huge right as Frazier came in.  That was a close round.  I’ll give it to Frazier.

                        Ali 116-112

Round 13        Ali lands about 3 to 1 in punches to start the round and Frazier leads with his head again, and gets Ali on the jaw.  Ali lands three shots in a row.  Ali lands another 3 punch combination.  How is Frazier standing?  They aren’t pitty-pat punches.  These are big shots.  Ali lands a big right hook, and then a big left hook.  Ali is landing 3-5 more punches in every exchange this round.  Frazier butts again.  Frazier leads with his head again, but this time brought a left hook behind the head-butt.  I haven’t seen him warned once for the head-butts.  Most of Frazier’s punches are tangled up in Ali’s arms and aren’t real clean.  He did just land a good left hook.  Ali’s round.

                        Ali 126-121

Round 14        The referee warns Ali for holding, but hasn’t warned Frazier about the head-butts.  I’m starting to wonder why.  You’d think a head-butt would call for a warning before holding.  Ali lands about 6 punches to Frazier’s 1.  Ali caught Frazier with a nice right hook.  Frazier tried to head butt again but only got Ali on the chest.  Ali’s round.

                        Ali 136-130

Round 15        A huge left hook by Frazier and Ali goes down!  Ali’s holding on now.  Frazier keeps hooking away.  Ali keeps trying to hang on.  This is a 10-8 round for Frazier.

                        Ali 144-140

                        If you’re scoring by rounds, as they did for this fight, Ali wins 10-5.

The judges:

Judge: Artie Aidala 9-6 (Frazier)

Judge: Bill Recht 11-4 (Frazier)

Judge: Arthur Mercante 8-6 (Frazier)

Ali easily won the first five rounds and he easily won the ninth.  How on earth did Bill Recht only give Ali 4 rounds?  He must have been counting Frazier’s shots on Ali’s arms as landed punches, and didn’t count all of the landed shots Ali had on Frazier’s head.