One day before the Timberwolves' 2003-04 training camp opened, forward Kevin Garnett signed a contract extension. "This is a great day for Minnesota Timberwolves fans," said Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor. "I'm thrilled to know that we'll have the best player in the NBA playing on our team and here in Minnesota for many years to come."

As the Wolves opened the regular season, only two holdovers from the 2002-03 season would find themselves on the active roster: Garnett and Gary Trent. Two others, Troy Hudson and Wally Szczerbiak, started the season on the Injured List due to injuries sustained during the preseason schedule.

The Opening Night roster featured 10 new players acquired during the offseason, including two trades and six free-agent signings. The Wolves started the season on a high note, winning the opener 95-89 over the Bucks as Sam Cassell and Ervin Johnson faced their former team for the first time.

But the first month of the 2003-04 regular season was up-and-down, as Minnesota split the first 10 games of the season. Game 2 was the first loss, 84-61 at the hands of the defending Eastern Conference champion New Jersey Nets. After a 73-56 home win over Toronto — setting a franchise record for fewest points allowed — the Wolves lost in Utah after holding a lead throughout most of the game.

An overtime loss at home to Sacramento followed, marking the third consecutive time (dating to the previous season) the Wolves and Kings played to an extra session. However, at 2-3, it was the last time Minnesota would be under .500 during the season.

The Florida road trip resulted in two wins, a 100-71 rout in Orlando and a nine-point win in Miami the following night. Cassell had 23 points with six assists against the Heat, the third time in four games he scored more than 20 points. Trading wins and losses again, the Wolves fell at home to Seattle on a buzzer-beater by the Sonics' Flip Murray, won in Chicago in overtime and lost to Utah for the second time in two weeks, this time at Target Center, to fall to 5-5.

Minnesota overcame the hype created by two of the best rookies of the season, the Nuggets' Carmelo Anthony and the Cavs' LeBron James. The Timberwolves won at home against the Nuggets 89-76, and won on the road in Cleveland 97-83. The team finished off the undefeated week with a home win over the L.A. Clippers, 103-91. Kevin Garnett earned his first Player of the Week award of the season (ninth career) after averaging 25.3 points, 15.0 rebounds, 6.0 assists and 3.0 blocks per game.

Two losses followed the win streak, beginning on the road in Indiana as the Pacers had six players score in double figures in a 98-75 decision. The next night at Target Center, the Wolves fell to New York in new Timberwolf Latrell Sprewell's first matchup against his former team. The Wolves held a nine-point win with just over six minutes remaining, but the Knicks rallied for the win. Minnesota then won in Memphis, their 10th consecutive win over the Grizzlies, and finished November with a four-point loss in Dallas despite 28 points and 20 rebounds from Garnett.

Also in the first month of the season, the Timberwolves franchise celebrated its 10 millionth fan, as Donnie Sartori walked through the turnstile on Nov. 18. The Wolves became the second-fastest NBA team to reach the milestone.

1

Oct 29

1-0

Garnett 25

Garnett 21

17,784

2

Oct 31

@ New Jersey

1-1

Garnett 23

Sprewell 10

17,145

3

Nov 1

2-1

Garnett 20

Garnett 7

15,869

4

Nov 3

@ Utah

2-2

Cassell 27

Olowokandi 8

17,177

5

Nov 5

2-3

Garnett 28

Garnett 11

15,889

6

Nov 7

@ Orlando

3-3

Sprewell 22

Garnett 17

16,074

7

Nov 8

@ Miami

4-3

Garnett 25

Garnett 17

14,645

8

Nov 11

4-4

Garnett 26

Garnett 13

14,107

9

Nov 13

@ Chicago

5-4

Sprewell 27

Garnett 17

21,722

10

Nov 14

5-5

Garnett 23

Garnett 14

17,182

11

Nov 18

6-5

Garnett 26

Garnett 11

15,090

12

Nov 21

@ Cleveland

7-5

Sprewell 31

Garnett 15

19,269

13

Nov 22

8-5

Garnett 30

Garnett 19

16,080

14

Nov 25

@ Indiana

8-6

Garnett 25
Cassell 25

Garnett 16

14,540

15

Nov 26

8-7

Garnett 25

Garnett 14

15,901

16

Nov 28

@ Memphis

9-7

Cassell 25

Garnett 18

16,741

17

Nov 29

@ Dallas

9-8

Garnett 28

Garnett 20

20,089