Wessel: Wolves roster breakdown shows rebuilding finally may be over
What a difference a year makes for the Minnesota Timberwolves.
There is no metric that measures excitement level for a sports franchise, but I'm willing to bet money there hasn't been this much fervor for an NBA team that won 17 games the prior season.
Longsuffering fans have every right to be excited. This is the first time in years you can look at the roster and predict the vicious cycle of rebuilding and re-rebuilding might finally be over, and the Wolves can finally take a step towards once again being a respectable NBA franchise.
Here's a closer look at all 16 players on the roster, their roles and the storylines heading into the lockout-shortened 2011-12 season.
This is a big year for Love and he knows it. Entering the fourth and final year of his rookie contract, Love showed up to training camp 25 pounds lighter and with a new, more muscular physique after an extended offseason working with his trainer, lifting weights and doing yoga.
Contract years are crucial for every NBA player looking to cash in, but the stakes are particularly high for Love.
The 23-year-old out of UCLA made a leap in his third season that nobody -- including Love himself -- could have predicted. He led the NBA and set a franchise record with 15.2 rebounds per game, averaged a career-high 20.2 points, became the team's first All-Star since Kevin Garnett, had the league's first 30-point 30-reound game since 1982 and topped it all off with winning the league's Most Improved Player award.
A glance at the resume would lead one to assume Love is worth a max contract. But whispers from those in the know suggest that Love is a great complementary piece to a championship puzzle, but not the straw that stirs the drink.
Critics say Love cannot create his own shot and a lot of his gaudy statistics are more a product of the lousy team Love played for than his own game-changing ability. For as good of a season as he had statistically, the Wolves won just 17 games.
Maverick Coach Lines - News
Coleman looked as confident as ever, sinking a 20-footer and making three of his four shots from the free-throw line. "Coach is playing a deep bench and so guys have got to be ready to play," Ahanmisi said. "And when they play hard things are going to
He is no longer shackled by a head coach he never really saw eye-to-eye with and is under the tutelage of legendary coach Rick Adelman. He is no longer the focal point of the franchise that added high-profile rookies Derrick Williams and Ricky Rubio.
Shane McCarley and Julian Walker have combined for 37 touchdown passes this season and each quarterback has thrown for over 1400 yards. The Maverick offense has also gotten 11 touchdown runs from McCarley, Walker and Selwyn Green.
Because their coach goes for the jugular when the game seems to be hanging by a string. Sumlin's performance in the second-largest city in Oklahoma conjures up memories of LSU coach Les Miles' best games. Miles is The Hat after all, the maverick who is
There will be a battle for the 103-pound and 215-pound slots in the line-up, but the rest of the team is pretty much set. “Some of the guys will bounce around, but we're pretty set,” said Bluhm. In order of weight class the team will be Maverick