TIMBERWOLVES: Monday Practice Report

RSS Feeds

E-News

Jonah Ballow
Wolves Editor/Writer
Email / Twitter

Kurt Rambis

DOWNLOAD MP3

There is no question that this Wolves squad has already dealt with adversity through the first three weeks of the season. First, Kevin Love suffered a broken finger, which cost him a month of action. Then, Al Jefferson was forced to leave the team due to the death of his grandmother. All of these issues piled on top of a new offensive scheme, rotating lineups, and young players working together for the first time in Wolves' uniforms. The result is a 10-game losing streak after Minnesota impressively snatched a victory on opening night at the Target Center.

The Wolves returned to the practice facility on Monday afternoon with a focus on offensive execution. Minnesota is gearing up for the Wednesday night matchup against the surprising Rockets.

Big Al Back at Work
Big Al seemed upbeat on Monday while operating down in the low-post against Nathan Jawai. Last Wednesday after a loss to Portland, Jefferson voiced his understanding of patience and time is needed for this team to reach its goals. Jefferson's scoring averages are down eight points but the center feels confident in the attempts he's receiving within the offense.

Head coach Kurt Rambis is happy to see Big Al in practice, "He's good, he got to see her [grandmother] before she passed away, which I think was important for him and for her."

A Different Form of the Triangle
There are several misconceptions surrounding the new-look Wolves offense this year. The team is running a form of the famed triangle offense that differs from the Lakers and Bulls scheme. Rambis described the differences while emphasizing the importance of ball movement.

"I'm doing it a lot different than how the Lakers run it with the two-guard front. We probably use it less, and again it's just how we flow into something whenever we don't have a real crisp break. Its just actions out of it that we flow into, certain aspects of it that we flow into and that's really it."

Rambis dived deeper into the explanation of his flow offense.

"I've always wanted to coach a system where everybody felt like they had an equal opportunity to be involved. It helps guys understand how to share the basketball, how to play, those are the concepts we are trying to get across to these guys, that's it's not just the person with the ball in their hands with their opportunity to score and go one-on-one, that's not what it is about. It's about their opportunity to create for their teammates."

Kevin Love Update
Love will undergo X-rays on his surgically repaired broken finger on Friday. The tests should give the coaching staff an indication of when Love can return to practice and game action. Without Love in the lineup, Minnesota is averaging 42.6 rebounds a game, 13th in the league.

For more news and notes on the team follow the Minnesota Timberwolves and Jonah on Twitter.