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Posted October 26, 2006
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Teams Ask But Wolves Say No on KG
Fred Hoiberg, recently named a Timberwolves assistant general
manager, said the team receives inquiries about trading
Kevin Garnett. “He’s talked about a lot,”
Hoiberg said. “People call and say, ‘is he available?’ And we say, ‘no,’
and we move on.”
Rumors of a Garnett trade have increased this year as the team struggled
on the court. At 30 and with a mega contract, speculation the Wolves
will trade their super star is understandable. In theory such a trade
might not immediately return the Wolves to the playoffs after a two year
absence but would help to build a title contender with young players and draft
choices.
“He’s
not going anywhere,” Hoiberg said. “Hopefully, he will retire as a
Timberwolf. You just can’t get equal value back for a player like
him.”
It’s
no secret Garnett was frustrated with the team’s disappointing 33-49
record last season. Someone said he looked like a player “carrying the
weight of the world on his shoulders.”
Now
as the Wolves ready themselves for their season opening
game Wednesday night at Target Center, Garnett is
rejuvenated. Hoiberg said Garnett “had a great summer” and he talked
about how the Wolves’ leader brought teammates together in August to
practice for three hours a day. Then he would host the players for
dinner at his house. Garnett was working at building team unity.
“He’s
in great spirits,” Hoiberg said. “Right now he has a smile on his face
again. He looks like he is having fun playing basketball again. …I
really see a good year out of him.”
A
Wolves player for two seasons, Hoiberg, 34, announced his retirement
earlier this year. He has had heart problems and he will use a
pacemaker for the rest of his life. “I have a 100% heart block so every
time my heart beats it’s because of my pacemaker,” he said. He can live
a normal life except he can't lift weights (concern with his aorta.)
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“He’s not going anywhere. Hopefully, he
will retire as a Timberwolf. You just can’t get equal value back for a
player like him.”
Fred Hoiberg on Kevin Garnett
Kevin
Garnett
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Wild Need to Avoid Complacency
Mark Parrish, an eight year NHL veteran in his
first season with the Minnesota Wild, compares his new team with the two
past Stanley Cup champions, Tampa Bay and Carolina. Parrish admired the
team unity, skating and work ethic of the Lightning and Hurricane. “I
see so many similarities between those teams and this team,” Parrish
said. “It makes me real excited to imagine what this team can do.”
No
NHL team started better than the Wild, 8-1 after the first nine games.
The team made good on the opportunity to play its first five games at
home, winning all five, then winning two of three games on its first
road trip and returning home to win again on Wednesday night. Still,
Parrish knows with so much winning comes a challenge, too.
“One
of the biggest things, especially when things are going well early on
when we seem to be getting all the (right) bounces, is (that) almost a
complacency starts to set in,” Parrish said on Tuesday. “A confidence
that we don’t have to go out there and play the same hard working game
that we have been playing the last eight games. It’s important to
remember how we won those games. Yea, we have some more skill than they
have had (here) in the past, but it’s still (necessary to have) that
determined defensive minded Wild hockey. We have to keep that mindset
through 82 games.”
Parrish said coach Jacques Lemaire works at keeping the team
focused. Parrish, 29, also said as one of the “older guys” on the team
he has a responsibility to keep teammates “on board” (focused).
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Mark Parrish
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Vikings’ TV
Ratings Up from 2005
Despite missing the playoffs last season and high profile players
Daunte Culpepper and Randy Moss being long gone, the
Vikings’ local TV popularity remains impressive.
For the first five Sunday games this season the Vikings are averaging a
30.5 rating, better than last year’s 28.8. (A
rating point is a percentage of households watching a particular
program).
The best rating among the Sunday games is a
35.1 against the Bears (27.4 in first Bear game in 2005). The second
best rating came last Sunday against Seattle, 33.7.
With around 500,000 households watching each game,
the Vikings blow away the TV popularity of other teams in town. On
Sunday, October 1 when the Twins were playing for the Central Division
championship, they had an 11.8 rating compared with the Vikings’ 23.6
(Buffalo game). The Twins’ audience did impact the Vikings’ rating
because it was the lowest of the season and
about six points below the second smallest rating.
The
Twins’ playoff games at the Metrodome had 9.2 and 10.8 ratings, while in
Oakland the rating was 11.3. The third game had a better rating because
the telecast started later in the day and continued into early evening.
Last
Saturday’s Minnesota-North Dakota State football game produced a 4.5
rating (cable telecast). |
The Twins’
audience did impact the Vikings’ rating because it was the
lowest of the season and about six points below the
second smallest rating.
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Extra Innings
About 1,000 tickets remain for the Timberwolves regular season opener on
Wednesday, November 1 but president Chris Wright said the game
will sell out.
Timberwolves assistant coach Randy Wittman
said he was interested earlier this year in returning to Indiana
University as head coach to succeed Mike Davis. Wittman, almost
a legendary player at Indiana, said the school showed no interest in
interviewing people with ties to the school.
Minnesota’s homecoming game against Indiana on Saturday, November 4 (11
a.m. kickoff) will be shown on ESPN360, a broadband service available
only through a computer and free to fans that receive high-speed
broadband service through an ESPN-affiliated provider. The Gophers’
season opening game at Kent State was also on ESPN360.
Aaron Sickman, Minnesota Wild communications manager, estimated more
Wild players (about 10) are living in Woodbury this season than any
other area community. Downtown Minneapolis is second, with seven or
eight players.
“Miracle on Ice” goalie Jim Craig, one of the stars of America’s
1980 gold medal winning Olympic team, will be the keynote speaker at the
Herb Brooks Foundation’s benefit gala on Friday,
November 3, at the RiverCentre Ballroom in St. Paul. The foundation
will provide funding for the Herb Brooks Training Center opening
in January at the National Sports Center in Blaine. Tickets to the gala
(available through Saturday) can be purchased by calling Tracy Adams
at 952-473-5580, or via e-mail,
herbbrooksdream@mn.rr.com.
Rich Decker, long time Minnesota high school basketball coach, hopes
to be elected to the Minnesota House of Representatives next month. He
would represent District 29-B (Rochester).
Condolences to the family of Don Dix, former public address
announcer for the old St. Paul Saints baseball team. Dix, 92, died last
week and survivors include daughter Barbara Pfaender and husband
Jay, a volunteer leader with the local section of the United
States Tennis Association.
Bethel University now has the MIAC career record holders for rushing
yards and passing yards. Phil Porta set the conference rushing
record last Saturday when he increased his career MIAC total to 3,979.
In 2003 quarterback Scott Kirchoff set the conference record for
career passing yards with 6,168.
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Randy Wittman
Minnesota’s homecoming game against
Indiana on Saturday, November 4 (11 a.m. kickoff) will be shown on
ESPN360, a broadband service available only through a computer and free
to fans that receive high-speed broadband service through an
ESPN-affiliated provider. |
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