Winning Now vs. Building for the Future

After this summer's exile, which saw Ricky Davis, Mark Blount, Juwan Howard, Trenton Hassell, Troy Hudson, Mike James, and Kevin Garnett all come-and-go, it was widely believed that Minnesota was ready to start fresh and rebuild with young, exciting players. Through six games, Minnesota stands at 1-5 with their only win taking place at home against the 2-6 Sacramento Kings.

Some may say it is too early for a team to throw in the towel on a season and begin exclusively playing young players. In Minnesota, I say it is time to do so. Attempt to package Theo Ratliff's $11,666,666 salary with Antoine Walker ($8,547,000 with one year after this remaining). Look to move Marko Jaric (about $27,000,000 over the next four years) to a team looking for scoring from the point guard position. If they cannot move Walker, then it is time to buy him out. Minnesota should target a young wing player who can score or a legitimate center that can help them in the future.

Among the team leaders in minutes played, Ratliff, Greg Buckner, and Marko Jaric all fall in the top seven. Why? Why is Walker getting more than 15 minutes per game? The Timberwolves have put together a nice, promising core that needs experience and growth. Al Jefferson, Sebastian Telfair, Ryan Gomes, Randy Foye, Rashad McCants, Corey Brewer, Craig Smith, and Gerald Green are all promising players all 25 years old or younger.

The coaches and management need to let these kids play together for extended time. This way, after the season, Kevin McHale and the rest of the management can accurately access what they have. Each one of these players have questions around them, but if they do not get extended time this year, then they will not be able to answer them:

• Can Jefferson be a superstar or more of a second leading scorer?
• Can Telfair run an NBA team
• Is Gomes more than just a hustle player?
• Is Foye a point guard or undersized shooting guard?
• Will McCants ever be more than what he is today?
• Can Brewer be counted on to score consistently in the NBA?
• Do Smith's abilities extend beyond rebounding and post defense?
• Is Green a potential 20 point per night guy?

However, if Minnesota continues to play some of their veterans significant minutes, then the team will not be able to determine what they have and what they need. This is an important season for Minnesota in the start of their rebuilding and they cannot waste it away.

Camp lures NBA clientele

OFFSEASON INVESTMENT: Camp lures NBA clientele

Garnett, Billups, others get custom workouts at local Abunassar center

By TODD DEWEY
REVIEW-JOURNAL
Take a summer basketball camp and replace the usual wannabes with about 50 actual NBA players, sprinkling in a handful of stars.

Add some high-tech exercise equipment and innovative training techniques tailored to each athlete.

Arm the coaching staff with certified trainers and physical therapists, and have nutritionists on hand to create customized workout recovery shakes and meals for each player.

Turn the intensity level and music on high, and the finished product is Abunassar Impact Basketball.

Former NBA Most Valuable Player Kevin Garnett and former NBA Finals MVP Chauncey Billups led a parade of 47 players who worked out up to six hours per day, six days per week during the offseason at AIB, located near Palace Station.

Other players who participated included Ron Artest, Al Harrington, Antoine Walker, Cuttino Mobley and Tayshaun Prince.

Previous camp alumni include Andrei Kirilenko, Vince Carter, Baron Davis, Chris Bosh and Paul Pierce.

Joe Abunassar, a former student assistant at Indiana under Bobby Knight and assistant coach at Wyoming, founded AIB, which costs $25,000 per year for NBA players.

The program is apparently well worth it, because Detroit Pistons guard Billups and others say Abunassar has played a key role in making them better players.

"Coming into the league, my skills were good, but they needed a lot of honing," Billups said last month. "(Abunassar) took me from jumping around the league the first couple years to climbing that mountain to being where I got to today."

Abunassar trained five of this year's top 11 NBA Draft picks -- including No. 7 choice Corey Brewer, No. 9 Joakim Noah and No. 11 Acie Law -- and 20 of the 60 overall picks.

"We can change their body composition and we can change their game in six weeks," said Abunassar, who has built an impressive clientele mostly through word of mouth. "(The NBA) is such a big difference from college basketball."

Prince of the Pistons said the camp provides the perfect situation for players trying to make the transition from college to the NBA.

"You get good individual instruction on and off the court, and you're going against guys at your position who are just as good or even more talented than you are," he said. "It gives you the opportunity to get better and, at the same time, to stay healthy."

A typical daily regimen at the camp consists of 90 minutes of performance training, or strength training and conditioning, and 90 minutes of on-court skills drills in the morning.

A specialized lunch precedes afternoon 5-on-5 scrimmages that are arguably the best pickup basketball games in the world.

"We compete at a very high level, whether it's one-on-one drills, individual work or 5-on-5," Billups said. "We're here mostly all day, and when we go home we're pretty tired and burnt out."

Abunassar has created basketball-specific drills to mirror each player's movements in an actual game.

In a dribbling drill, for example, Billups is connected to a Bungee cord with resistance behind him, forcing him to stay low and in control as he brings the ball up the court.

In another exercise designed for big men, Garnett wears a belt tied to a Bungee cord and tries to maintain his post position and keep the ball under control. All the while, one coach pulls the cord in different directions to try to knock him off balance and another tries to steal the ball.

Players also can experience high altitude training in a glass-enclosed chamber simulating conditions at 9,000 feet.


http://www.lvrj.com/sports/10597212.html

Oct. 17, 2007
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

Without KG, What's Left in Minnesota?

This week, Minnesota traded superstar Kevin Garnett to the Boston Celtics for forwards Al Jefferson, Ryan Gomes and Gerald Green, center Theo Ratliff, guard Sebastian Telfair and two future first round NBA draft picks. After giving up Garnett, Minnesota clearly got a lot of players in return, but what do they really have left?

Players Coming Off the Salary Cap After This Season:
Theo Ratliff - $11,666,666
Ricky Davis - $6,817,500
Eddie Griffin - $2,900,000
Ryan Gomes - $770,610
Craig Smith - $687,456

Comments: Minnesota will most likely look to bring back Gomes and Smith. Minnesota will have more than $20,000,000 come off their payroll after this season since they certainly will not bring back Ratliff, Davis, or Griffin.

Veterans Minnesota Will Try To Move:
Juwan Howard - Two years and more than $13,000,000 remaining
Mark Blount - Three years and more than $20,000,000 remaining
Marko Jaric - Four years and more than $26,000,000 remaining
Mark Madsen - Three years and more than $7,000,000 remaining

Comments: Now that Garnett is gone, there is certainly no need for Howard and Jaric. I would look for Minnesota to be successful in trading Howard soon. Blount is productive enough to probably stay with the Timberwolves. Madsen will most likely be included in a trade at some point.

Building Blocks for the Timberwolves:
Randy Foye (23)
Sebastian Telfair (22)
Corey Brewer (21)
Al Jefferson (22)
Rashad McCants (22)
Gerald Green (21)
Gomes (24)
Smith (23)
2008 Boston Celtics First Round Pick
2008 Boston Celtics First Round Pick (originally Minnesota's pick, which was dealt to Boston in the Wally Szczerbiak-Ricky Davis trade last year)

Comments: Minnesota clearly has a number of young players to start their rebuilding process. They are two deep at both guard sports and the small forward position. They need to add one more young big man to put next to Jefferson, which they should be able to do with the pick they acquired that was actually originally their own. If Minnesota has the type of season many expect them to do, they could be in the running for one of the top picks from a draft which should include: Michael Beasley, Darrell Arthur, Roy Hibbert, Kevin Love, Brook Lopez, and Hasheem Thabeet.

Overall, Minnesota is in a great space to quickly rebuild. With four first round picks over the next two seasons, more help will certainly come. General manager and Kevin McHale and the Timberwolves need to move some of his veterans who still have a few years left in their contracts. With a few moves, Minnesota will be in position to add one of the top free agents that will be available next year including: Baron Davis, Corey Maggette, Shawn Marion, and Antawn Jamison. Although they have lost their superstar, the Timberwolves should be able to rebuild quickly and get back to become a Western Conference competitor.

Pre-Draft Individual Workout Videos

The NBA has posted videos on YouTube, which show Kevin Durant, Greg Oden, and Corey Brewer's individual workouts.

Kevin Durant:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=OZndlb18d0s
Durant's video shows him working with his personal trainer, Eric Hughes, on coordination, ball handling, and agility.

Greg Oden:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=FRgLyKehpug
Oden's video is comprehensive and shows how well he runs the floor and moves around the basket. The video also showed the Trail Blazers testing his agility, strength, and hands. Throughout the video, you could see his determination, as well as his outgoing personality.

Corey Brewer:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=-0pi5ALiMEc
Brewer's video shows him working out for the Milwaukee Bucks. This video shows the Bucks testing his endurance and shooting ability. Additionally, Brewer's confident and bubbly personality is shown in the video.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=H4LAJav5Hr4
In this video, the Memphis Grizzlies have Brewer in for a workout with two other players. Brewer is shown doing ball handling and one-on-one drills against Acie Law. His strength and footwork are shown off here in this video.

My 2007 Mock Draft

The NBA Draft is tonight and there certainly should be a great deal of movement. With many star players rumored to move, the draft slots may not look anything like they do right now, but I will try to predict where the players will fall.

1.) Portland: Greg Oden, C, Ohio State
2.) Seattle: Kevin Durant, SF, Texas
3.) Atlanta: Mike Conley, PG, Ohio State
4.) Memphis: Brandan Wright, SF, Milwaukee
5.) Boston: Al Horford, PF, Florida
6.) Milwaukee: Corey Brewer, SF, Florida
7.) Minnesota: Jeff Green, SF, Georgetown
8.) Charlotte: Joakim Noah, PF, Florida
9.) Chicago: Yi Jianlian, PF, China
10.) Sacramento: Spencer Hawes, C, Washington
11.) Atlanta: Javaris Crittenton, PG, Georgia Tech
12.) Philadelphia: Julian Wright, PF, Kansas
13.) New Orleans: Nick Young, SG, USC
14.) LA Clippers: Acie Law, PG, Texas A&M
15.) Detroit: Thaddeus Young, SF, Georgia Tech
16.) Washington: Al Thornton, SF, Florida State
17.) New Jersey: Jason Smith, PF, Colorado State
18.) Golden State: Marco Belinelli, SG, Italy
19.) LA Lakers: Rodney Stuckey, PG, Eastern Washington
20.) Miami: Derrick Byers, SF, Vanderbilt
21.) Philadelphia: Rudy Fernandez, PG/SG, Spain
22.) Charlotte: Jared Dudley, SF, Boston College
23.) New York: Wilson Chandler, SF, DePaul
24.) Phoenix: Petteri Koponen, PG, Finland
25.) Utah: Daequan Cook, SG, Ohio State
26.) Houston: Nick Fazekas, PF, Nevada
27.) Detroit: Gabe Pruitt, PG/SG, Golden State
28.) San Antonio: Morris Almond, SG, Rice
29.) Phoenix: Tiago Splitter, PF, Brazil
30.) Philadelphia: Josh McRoberts, PF, Duke

Thoughts on NBA Draft 2007 Candidates

This year's draft class certainly has the potential to be one of the best since the 2003 class, which featured Lebron, Darko, Melo, D-Wade, Bosh, Hinrich, T.J. Ford, Diaw, Barbosa and Josh Howard among many others. This group may not have the depth that group did, but the star power at the top is certainly there. I am going to go through a handful of players and provide my thoughts the day before the draft.

Durant & Oden - Both of these players project similarly in the NBA. I see both players being outstanding in their first year and will be all-stars throughout their career. The Durant-McGrady comparison and Oden-Robinson comparison are right on in my mind. I think both young players will have similar types of careers. The difference though is Durant, who I see as more of a winner than McGrady.

Al Horford - Outside of Durant and Oden, I think Horford is the next best player in this class. Horford is very similar to Elton Brand in his ability, but with more of a mean streak. If Horford could master that midrange jump shot that Karl Malone perfected, he could be a perennial all-star.

Mike Conley - Conley's success early on will be largely based on what team he lands with. He certainly is a great leader with outstanding court vision. The biggest weakness right now for Conley is his perimeter shooting ability along with his smaller size. If Conley can shore up his shot and get himself in the right environment, I can see him being a perennial all-star between the age of 24 and 30.

Corey Brewer - Brewer is a Bruce Bowen-type who will be one of the league's best perimeter defenders the moment he is drafted. With long arms and quick feet, Brewer can take on the best guards and small forwards the NBA has to offer. Brewer will struggle to create his own shot, similar to Bowen, but shoots very well from behind the arc. Down the line, on a playoff team, Brewer will be the fourth best player. If any team looks for more than that from him, they will not be competing past April.

Julian Wright - In a good situation, Wright will excel in the league. With his ball handling abilities and long arms, Wright is a tough matchup for opposing teams. He will continue to improve his post came and has shown to be a hard worker. Unfortunately, Wright's closest NBA comparison is Darius Miles. Miles came into the league possessing many of the same qualities, including a weak jumpshot. If Wright can improve in that area, his potential is unlimited. I don't think Wright will ever be an all-star in the league, but he certainly should be an impact player on the bubble of being an all-star.

Brandan Wright - Wright projects as a lottery bust in my mind. Wright is a 6'10" power forward who in my mind, has no interest in banging bodies in the post. He has shown a great lack of strength and very limited post moves. He gets disrupted and pushed away from the basket and lacks the strength to finish after contact occurs. Although I do think he will have a long NBA career, it will not garner the success he should have as a potential top five pick. In order to make the leap in ability, Wright needs to work much harder on the floor and in the weight room. He has gotten by in the past strictly based on his athleticism, but he is now at the point where that will not be enough to succeed.

Joakim Noah - Noah is the most unique prospect in the draft. With extremely long arms and great mobility, Noah certainly has ability to be a great defensive player in the league. Like Tyson Chandler and Ben Wallace, I don't see Noah ever averaging more than ten points in the league. At the same time, like those two defensive stars, I do think Noah will be a success in the NBA. On a championship team, Noah certainly could be the fourth best player. The situation that he falls into, will be very important in determining his success. Noah could stand to improve his strength and develop a consistent midrange jumper.

Other Players I Like:
Yi Jianlian, Al Thornton, Thaddeus Young, Rudy Fernandez, Acie Law, Alando Tucker, Sean Williams, Arron Afflalo, Tiago Splitter, DJ Strawberry, Glen Davis, Taurean Green, Aaron Brooks, Morris Almond.

Other Players I Would Avoid:
Jeff Green, Spencer Hawes, Nick Young, Jason Smith, Daequan Cook, Wilson Chandler, Josh McRoberts, Jared Dudley, Nick Fazekas, Aaron Gray.