Jonah Ballow
Wolves Editor/Writer
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Jonah Ballow with Craig Smith

Jonah: Welcome to Timberwolves.com, I'm Jonah Ballow with Craig Smith and Craig is going to join me throughout the summer to provide movie reviews and previews. Thanks for joining me Craig and any movies that standout in the next couple of weeks?

Craig: Definitely, Star Trek. I'm not a big Star Trek fan but I'm appreciative of it. The movie actually looks really good and I'm excited to see that. I think Terminator is going to be really good and then down the line is Transformers.

Jonah: Out of those three movies, which movies are you most excited to see?

Craig: I probably would have to say, Transformers.

Jonah: Why, because Megan Fox is in the movie?

Craig: That and because the first movie was really good and I know the second one is going to be real crazy and plus you get to see more of Megan Fox in this one too.

Jonah: What do you think about this X-Men movie? I know you planned on seeing it sometime this week. Its received mixed reviews and I'm not so sure I'm excited to see this one. I was a big fan of the first two movies but this series might be played out. What do you think?

Craig: Different people have different opinions, especially me. I just hope when I go see it that it's pretty good. The storyline looks good in the previews, I just hope it's decent but you never know.

Jonah: Before your last game, we talked about your favorite movies. I know you and Rodney Carney were in the locker room talking about some of the sci-fi movies you like. I was surprised to hear that Back To The Future is your favorite movie out of the sci-fi genre.

Craig: It's one of the greatest movies of all-time.

Jonah: All-time??? Wow!

Craig: There is nothing better than hopping in the Delorium and going back in time and to the future.

Jonah: Are you a Michael J. Fox fan? A fan of Teen Wolf and his other movies?

Craig: Yeah, I'm a fan of Michael J. Fox and Teen Wolf.

Jonah: Looking ahead, I'm most excited about Terminator. I was a huge fan of Terminator 2 but it will be interesting to see the new movie without Schwarzenegger.

Craig: Yeah, they are taking a different turn but I think it's for the good because the third one ended with the war starting and now the war is definitely into play.

Jonah: And, Christian Bale, he was in Batman so that will be a good pick for the leading role.

Craig: People want to see Christian. Christian is the man right now.

Jonah: Let's turn to offseason workouts. What has been going on in your life at this point? Obviously, relaxing is probably number one on your agenda.

Craig: Yeah, staying off my feet a little bit, making sure I rest my body enough. You know, 82 games is a lot of games. I just recently started working out again and I definitely have a lot of things I need to work on for this upcoming season.

Jonah: Anything specific that you are going to target when you get back into full workouts?

Craig: Just really being in much better condition and working on a perimeter game to match my inside game.

Jonah: Let's talk about the NBA playoffs. Obviously, you are a fan of the NBA, so you probably have some thoughts on the first round series. Chicago-Boston...do you call that one of the greatest series of all-time?

Craig: One of them. It was a really good series and almost every game going into overtime was exciting. It was great to see the young guys get after it and not be afraid to challenge the defending champs.

Jonah: What do you think that team is like without Garnett? Boston right now is going to be in a dogfight with Orlando and they dropped game one. It's going to be difficult for the Celtics without their floor leader and defensive presence.

Craig: KG is pretty much everything for them. He is their emotional leader, the leader on defense, and he can really present problems on the offensive end. They really miss that because they don't have that out of their bigs. Big Baby (Glen Davis) is doing a great job as well as Kendrick Perkins but it doesn't compare to the Big Ticket.

Jonah: How about the other series, LeBron James is out of this world. I watched him put up 34 points after getting the MVP trophy. Do you think when it's all said and done, he will be remembered as the greatest player to grace the hardwood floor?

Craig: He is on his way, especially at the age of 24 and winning the MVP. He had a great season this year and made his team number one overall. The guy gets better and better, this is like seeing the next Jordan.

Jonah: It's crazy to see a guy who is 6-8 and 270 with that kind of speed and agility. Is it shocking to actually see it in person and play against him?

Craig: It is shocking but you can never guess how people operate in this world and he is a prime example of that.

Jonah: Out West, you have a red-hot Nuggets squad against the Mavericks. I want to get your thoughts on this topic. Dirk Nowitzki admitted that Kenyon Martin, Chris Anderson, and Nene are very strong defenders and they are difficult to play against. The TNT guys were debating whether that is something a star player should admit to. If you are a star player, do you ever make those comments about the opposing team?

Craig: I just see it as Dirk giving them credit. At the same time, I think Dirk is doing a solid job in the series but he is just saying, these guys are pretty good defenders. I don't think he meant to give them too much respect but he just wants people to know they do a solid job defensively. He gets the job done because every time they switch on him, he scores anyway.

Jonah: Are you surprised by this Nuggets team? Barkley said this team is going to hoist the NBA Championship trophy when it's all said and done.

Craig: They have a pretty good chance. They are playing really well right now and their second unit is what makes the difference in the games. J.R. (Smith), Birdman (Chris Anderson), and Kleiza (Linas). Those guys do a really good job at spreading the lead a little bit more from the first team.

Jonah: And then you got the Lakers and Rockets. Shocking the Rockets go out and snag game one in LA. Ron Artest and Shane Battier are really able to hold down Kobe and make it more difficult for him to get his points. Where you surprised how Houston was able to dictate the pace in game one?

Craig: Not at all. Houston has been rolling and done a great job on the road by defeating Portland in game one in the first round to turn that series around, which basically happened to the Western Conference champs.

Jonah: Pretty much all of the prognosticators feel the Lakers and Cavs will still meet in the NBA Finals. Do you see it that way?

Craig: I do see it that way but sometimes I second-guess it a little bit because you do have Denver and Orlando as well in the mix.

Jonah: All right, here is the deal, we'll catch up in the next week to get your thoughts on Star Trek and we will also talk some playoffs. Is that a deal?

Craig: Yep, deal.

Jonah: Sound good Craig. I appreciate your time, thanks so much and I will catch up with you to get some movie reviews throughout the summer.

Craig: All right, thank you.

Jonah: That's Wolves forward Craig Smith, the Rhino right here on Timberwolves.com.

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