<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">St. Paul Pioneer Press - A source has told Charley Watters that Kevin Garnett was livid when he learned that pal Sam Cassell had been traded to the Clippers for Marko Jaric. He also is reporting that Wolves head coach Dwane Casey is hoping that the club can sign Earl Watson.</div> Source This is interesting. Garnett and Cassell were really close so I'm not suprised by KG's anger towards the trade. It should be interesting to see how this affects Garnett and the Wolves.
Of course he was livid... someone to come along that had the passion and intensity to match that of his to be in and then suddenly out...
KG needs to find comfort in a Nets Jersey, right now. But for real....Jaric is mediocore at best...I dont care how Mchale tries to spin it...if they had any faith in him as their pg, they wouldnt still be looking at Earl Watson after giving him 40 million. You can fool the public but you cant fool your peers....LA didnt even have enough faith in him to give him the starting reigns, they went out and drafted a high school, now they are trying to sell Jaric as a starter in Minny as a success this offseason...hmm
Come on KG, do what every Laker fan wants you to do and demand a trade to Los Angeles. I agree with Henacy, the TWolves downgraded at PG. The TWolves appear to be moving toward rebuilding rather than trying to get back to the WCF. So far all their moves have been adding younger players, but KG needs the team to surround him with some hungry veteran players. There's a slim chance this team can compete with Phoenix or San Antonio, this team might not even make it to the playoffs the way it stands. KG is close to 30 now, and as the franchise player, he should have some input in the personnel moves. Whether he ends up a Laker or not, I think it's best for him and the TWolves to part ways.
I would probably be pretty angry if I was Kevin Garnett, too. However, Sam Cassell was a nonfactor last season, trading him was a great idea, it's just that they got crap in return. Anyway they should try to sign some FA's like Derek Anderson or Michael Finley.
Let's not forget...........Cassell saved the franchise after not getting pass the first round. Before he put on a Timberwolves jersey, he declared that he would get KG out of the first round. Before Cassell came, everybody was weary of Minnesota because they didn't have any talent around KG. Cassell stepped in and hit big shot after big shot, he also played great in big games. I don't think Marco has that same passion for the game. He's younger, but he ain't got half the heart Cassell had.
<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">MINNEAPOLIS -- Following an immensely disappointing season, the Minnesota Timberwolves were in desperate need of a makeover. Vice president of basketball operations Kevin McHale has done that this offseason, hiring a new coach, adding at least three new players and jettisoning fading stars Sam Cassell and Latrell Sprewell. With that in mind, the Timberwolves are headed to Las Vegas for a little bonding and basketball. Starting on Monday, the team is holding a mini-camp in Sin City to get all the new faces acquainted with each other. The trip was the brain child of Dwane Casey, who was hired in the offseason to be the team's new coach. "Dwane wants to get the guys all in one environment before we get real serious," general manager Jim Stack said. "He can kind of indoctrinate the guys into his philosophy and build a little camaraderie. That goes a long way when it comes time to start the season." Casey comes to the Timberwolves from Seattle, where he was integral in instilling a fast-paced style of play that relied on versatile players who can change roles on the fly. That will be an adjustment for Timberwolves Kevin Garnett and Wally Szczerbiak, who are used to playing in a more structured system. That's why the two-day camp in Vegas is so important. "I'm excited just to get all the new guys together and get to work," said forward Mark Madsen, who signed a new five-year contract this summer, in his trademark upbeat tone. "Work on the pick 'n' roll defense, baby." It will also give team leaders like Garnett and Szczerbiak a chance to meet the newest Timberwolves -- Marko Jaric, Nikoloz Tskitishvili and Rashad McCants. "We've had a lot of changes this summer," Madsen said. "I think [this trip] is only going to pay dividends down the road." The Timberwolves needed to get younger and more athletic after a season in which they looked old and stagnant while missing the playoffs for the first time since 1996. So McHale traded disgruntled guard Sam Cassell to the Clippers for Jaric, who is nine years younger and a much better defender. He also signed Tskitishvili, a versatile 7-footer with a soft shooting touch, to a free agent contract after an impressive summer league and drafted McCants, an ultra athletic guard out of North Carolina, in the first round.</div> TWolves Head to Sin City to Bond
KG aint mad he is just playing games with the wolves management. Hopefully Kobe can talk him to demanding a trade and coming to the city of Angels. We all know what kobe is capable of. LOL!
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting STAT5:</div><div class="quote_post">KG aint mad he is just playing games with the wolves management. Hopefully Kobe can talk him to demanding a trade and coming to the city of Angels. We all know what kobe is capable of. LOL!</div> yea raping hotel employees. you sir are a moron
I wouldn't be too upset. Yes Cassell is a good player but he is also a head case like lessthanjake said. They not only got a great player in the draft with McCants and a nice free agent pickup Tskitishvili. I look at this two ways, either KG will be looking forward to this season or he will just pig out and not try his hardest every game.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting C.K.:</div><div class="quote_post">I wouldn't be too upset. Yes Cassell is a good player but he is also a head case like lessthanjake said. They not only got a great player in the draft with McCants and a nice free agent pickup Tskitishvili. I look at this two ways, either KG will be looking forward to this season or he will just pig out and not try his hardest every game.</div> It's ironic you mention Cassell as a headcase, but defend McCants, who is a certified headcase. It's not fair to call him great either, he has yet to step on the court. KG is upset, because there isn't any veteran leadership left on the team. None of the acquisitions the TWolves have made have any playoff experience either. By the way, Skeeta broke his wrist, and might not be ready by the time the season starts.
Cassell is a headcase for asking for money, he feels he deserves?hmm...wow. I think people let the media(news papers, TV etc.) influnence how they view players who ask for more money...but remember one thing the mefdia always blows a situation up like this inorder to make players look like spoiled/or as headcases. The media has never viewed a guy asking for more money as something good...so take everything you read or watch with a grain of salt. Cassell is far from a headcase...just a guy looking to get paid that is it.... JR Rider was a headcase....Lawerence Phillips was/is a headcase.
Man I really feel for KG....dude does nothing but give his all every night and still twolves management has yet to put anything good around him....Jaric will be okay, but I doubt he'll make that big of a difference.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting THE DREAM:</div><div class="quote_post">Man I really feel for KG....dude does nothing but give his all every night and still twolves management has yet to put anything good around him....Jaric will be okay, but I doubt he'll make that big of a difference.</div> Agreed. The one time the TWolves did surround KG with the right mix of veterans and young players he lead the team to the WCF and won the league MVP. Now KG is feeling the effects of bad management decisions. - The Joe Smith tampering Not only did this cost them Joe Smith it cost them young, cheap talent by losing their draft picks - Spending money on the wrong players Instead of extending Cassell and Sprewell, the TWolves broke the bank on Troy Hudson. Now they are doing the same with Jaric. They gave Jaric a 6 year deal, when he has yet to prove he can lead a team and stay healthy. Trenton Hassell was another question mark signing. The price is decent, but he's signed on for another 5 seasons. The TWolves could replace what he does for a lot cheaper and less years. KG is huge draw for players wanting to team up with him. - Firing Flip The franchise struck a nerve by firing Flip and not having a canidate to replace him.
I agree with you Shape on eveything except Trenton Hassell, I think the rule changes last year effected his game on the defensive end...he couldnt adjust to the fact that he couldnt be as hands on...but in the 04' offseason the Wolves had to shell out that kind of deal or risk losing him to Portland...and they just couldnt do that with Cassell, Wally, Hudson even Sprewell now being weak defenders...they at least had to have someone to throw on premier perimeter guys...also Hassell was easliy to argue the 2nd best perimeter defender in the West in 03-04 behind Bowen. I dont think a team in this league would have not matched and let him walk. The risk of what the Wolves perimeter D would look like without him was just to awful. Bringing back Hudson was the Killer...I said during the 04 offseason, Anthony Johnson was the guy they needed to focus on from the start. And I still feel that way....I think it would have added diversity to the Wolves point guard slot...having a defensive minded...pass first pg behind Sammy. And AJ could have held the team together when Sammy went down....Hudson in my opinion could not. Anthony Carter played better than Hudson when Cassell was out. But not getting a Center was the biggest failure....E-Griff played well early but faded. And him not being to make all those long jumpers as a bigman began to be a liablity as the season went on...Mchale's problem was he was going into the year expecting the same thing in 04-05, that he got in 03-04. But he didnt take into account Ervin Johnson was a year old...and couldnt give the same minutes he gave the year before....he hoped the Kandiman experiment would turn around but it was the same thing as 03-04, he was garbage. Mchale pretty went into 04 season with a lot of holes not fill or addressed and just hoped it would all fall into place like it did the season before...but it didnt. So of course thats when the spin started to get put on things...and Cassell & Sprewell catch most of the on-court/lockeroom blame. And Mchale gives Flip the ax...but its all to deflect the real problems that the front office failed to address. Iam not saying Cassell/Sprewell didnt hold a hand in affecting team chemistry in a non-positive way...but that situation was blown up to cover up other things wrong with that team last year.
The fact of the matter, in my mind, is this. I can understand why KG is furious about this. Cassell may have had a mouth on him, may have complained a little too much occasionally, and may have been a little older. I was a little leery about Cassell due to his injuries, but know that he is a big game player and I also know that the game is not all physical. His veteran savvy and knowledge of the game makes him valuable in my estimation. I, like I said before, am a Jaric fan, but not at the cost of Cassell. I remember in 04', I thought there was probably 1 point I would trade Cassell for, and that's Bibby. Cassell was a little banged up last season, but think of it this way.....would you rather have a banged up 15 minute Cassell or a 48 min Hudson? Cassell knew his playing time was down, but also knew that crunch time was the important time ("it's winning time", sound familiar?). If the Wolves knew that something about Cassell's health deteriorating more is unknown to me, but still, Cassell's a gamer. I can't make him bigger than KG, but KG started to have fun again, and felt he could go to war with Cassell. I don't believe that Spree and KG were as tight as Sam and KG. I wish Sam success.
