Why didn’t you wear No. 24 in honor of your old Timberwolves favorite, Pooh Richardson? (Note: Third-year guard Quincy Lewis wears that number for Minnesota)

Timberwolves.com: Kilborn photo gallery We went through the photos with Craig, and this is the one he wanted. Elsa/Getty Images/NBAE

Kilborn: "No. 43 was the number my brother wore in high school and I wore in high school and I wore in college. And we wore it because the best player we knew at the time was Mychal Thompson at the University of Minnesota and he wore 43, so we wore it."

So, it wasn't in honor of Jack Sikma and the blond hair?

Kilborn: "Ha! No. And it wasn't for Earl Tatum, No. 43 at Marquette, either. I know my hoop, buddy!"

How was the training camp experience for you?

Kilborn: "It was nerve-wracking because Flip (Saunders) asked me to do it and I was like, 'I'm not in shape and I'm 41.' I wasn't going to do it. I didn't think it made sense. I thought it was too dangerous and it could have been highly embarrassing."

Dangerous for you or for the other players?

Kilborn: "For me. I sucked it up and hope these guys are creative enough to know that in the day I could play a little bit. They have to factor in my age, that I don't play anymore, the fact that I drink after the show."

You’re 6-5. These days, that’s a swingman. What position did you play?

Kilborn: "I had ball handling skills, so I brought the ball up. I was a little bit like the Magic man, except I didn't win.”

Were you a pass-first or shoot-first type?

Kilborn: "I averaged 26 per game, so I guess I was a shooter."

What’s the one thing you learned about the NBA player at camp that the average fan wouldn’t get from just watching games?

Kilborn: "Well, the thing you know is that they're going to be strong, they're going to be quick, they're going to be skilled. But they were doing two-a-days. They have to play so much. It's hard on the knees and hard on the body and they spend a lot of time icing down afterwards.

"Kevin Garnett doesn’t know how to coast. He plays at one speed -- he plays all out. And he practices all out. And to me, it's like why don't they take some days off and lift and rest? They play hard. I don't know how they make it through the season.

"KG he needs more rest. He's one of the top guys in minutes, he's been a one-man team for so long. He has some help this year."

You must be excited about the Wolves chances this season, then?

Kilborn: "Very excited. I'm stunned, really. I congratulated (Kevin) McHale on his offseason moves. It's been tough to get guys up there to play, to help KG. So, I'm really happy. The guy I'm most excited about is Latrell (Sprewell). He's a great guy by the way.

Why are you excited about Latrell?

Kilborn: "Because he's one of the best athletes in the game. In New York, Sprewell was the crowd favorite because he played hard every night. We're lucky to have him. He's cool, we rapped a little bit."

What was the best personnel move the Wolves have ever made?

Kilborn: "Obviously, drafting Garnett at No. 5 when he was straight out of high school. If he had gone to college, I don't think we would have had the No. 1 overall pick when he would have come out. And then the fact that he's decided that he wants to spend the rest of his career in Minnesota is, we're fortunate."

OK, what was the worst?

Kilborn: "(Christian) Laettner didn't work out. Isiah Rider, I think we drafted Donyell Marshall, I still think the worst is the Herschel Walker trade, but that's the Vikings."

When you were an ESPN SportsCenter anchor, you often pointed out fundamentals in the highlights. What's the one fundamental you picked up a Wolves camp?

Kilborn: "I was doing this already. It's good to do out here when you play pick up ball. It's called contain defense. When I was in the intrasquad game, I left Fred Hoiberg open and he hit a three.

"But I don't want anyone to drive by me, so Flip goes: 'You're playing contain defense. Let him make the shot, just dare him.' You can dare guys when you're playing pickup in Hollywood because they'll probably miss. But you can't do that with an NBA player because they'll make it."

When you're talking with your friends, do you call the team the Wolves, the Timberwolves or T'Wolves?

Kilborn: "Wolves."

What's the feeling against T'Wolves?

Kilborn: "Saying T'Wolves is a little bit like calling San Francisco, Frisco or San Fran. You call it San Francisco or The City."

In a quote from the Minneapolis Star Tribune Flip Saunders noted how you told him how you got ready for the camp: "He told me he'd been playing halfcourt with Garry Shandling. I told him, 'That's not really the proper way to get ready for training camp.'" Now that you know that, who is the proper celebrity to train with for camp?

Kilborn: "Catherine Zeta-Jones. When I had her on the show, I just stared at her the whole time. That's all I did at Minnesota was stare from the sidelines."

Who has the better jumper, you or Shandling?

Kilborn: "Me."

Who's funnier, you or Shandling?

Kilborn: "Shandling."

So, finally, what do you think of the Wolves chances this season?

Kilborn: "I think we're in the top three in the league. We'll get out of the first round."