Cautiously optimistic

That pretty much sums up my feelings for the Timberwolves this year. I like how the Boston boys have been playing. Ricky Davis exemplifies team spirit - is there a player who's less selfish with the ball? - and Mark Blount has turned out to be the polar opposite of Olowakandi. He's much better than we were told he would be when that trade went down, and I'm very pleased with his blocking, rebounding, and scoring (although being such a tall fellow he can't run and dribble at the same time. My husband keeps insisting that Kevin Garnett is a freak in his ability to do this at his height. I guess it's true). Our first round draft pick Randy Foye seems like a slow starter, but he did manage to nail a few last night. He'll be worth the effort if Casey gives him the time to develop, I think. But I'm blown away by Craig Smith, our other rookie who plays like an NBA veteran. 20 points against Denver? Didn't see that one coming.

Team-wide, turnovers are still a problem, and I don't think Marko Jaric has quite found his place yet. It's better since he knows he's not a point guard now, but I think he's still trying to find his niche. He's mean on the steal, though. I'm liking Mike James as our point guard; I'm so glad they scared up some veterans to complement Kevin Garnett. This is a team built around KG, and if they can't make it happen for him I'm afraid MN is going to have to let KG go. He wants that ring, man, and who can blame him?

But my fave to watch is still Troy Hudson (when he's not hurt). Yes, he takes a while to prime up. You have to let him biff a bunch of big shots, but just when you're ready to tear your hair out, he'll start nailing 3-pointers. And nailing them. And nailing them. Plus, I like his hair. I liked it better last year when he was doing the pigtail thing. I tried to find a pic, but the internet let me down. I did find this one of T-Hud and Shaq which I find amusing:

On a final basketball note, my heart goes out to Wally Szczerbiak, who's been playing his butt off in Boston, but to no avail. 33 points he scored last night - 33 points! - and they still lost. That's gotta suck.