<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">With Sam Cassell out because of his sore hip and back, Szczerbiak took up residence among the Wolves' Big Three. He was third on the team behind Garnett and Latrell Sprewell in both minutes (39) and points (16) Sunday, adding seven assists in an 89-71 victory. His game wasn't perfect Sunday. He turned the ball over four times and was 0-for-5 shooting in the second quarter. But there were key stretches in which he played like the All-Star he was two seasons ago. "What you are seeing is Wally getting into a rhythm," Garnett said. Rhythm comes from opportunity. Szczerbiak had to accept a more narrowly defined role upon his first return from injury this season, something he did without complaint. "You have to give him a lot of credit," coach Flip Saunders said. "They say the biggest thing in this league is that coaching is dealing with egos. Here's a guy who's been an All-Star. I remember a Sacramento game, I took him out for a couple minutes. I said, 'Hey, Wally, I'm going to come back to you.' And he said, 'Hey, listen: You coach the team, I'll do whatever you ask me to do.' " Now, with Cassell hurting, Saunders is asking more. And Szczerbiak is willing to dribble through a brick wall for him. He even did his part to add to the intensity level Sunday, at one point going nose-to-nose with Lakers guard Gary Payton.</div> Link
