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Year-Round News & Updates on the Minnesota Timberwolves
Alexey Shved has been selected to play in the NBA's Rising Stars Challenge game during All-Star Weekend in Houston. Shved will compete with other rookies as well as second-year players as a part of this new format of what used to be Rookies vs. Sophomores. Last year they changed the format and it's now a pool of rookie and sophomore players that are picked 'playground style'. The game will take place on Feb. 16th at Houston's Toyota Center. Shved has played 37 games this season (starting 16) with averages of 10.7ppg, 4.6apg and 2.5rpg. He also leads the Wolves with 53 three-pointers made. Both Ricky Rubio & Derrick Williams competed in the Challenge last season and both had a chance to be selected this season...but were not. It's no surprise though, considering Williams hasn't performed with any kind of consistency this season, while Ricky only returned 16 games ago and has struggled with consistency as well. As of right now, Shved is the only player represented the Wolves during All-Star Weekend. Last year the Wolves had Rubio & D-Will in the Challenge with K-Love in both the All-Star game and Three-Point Shootout. The only other player that might go to the ASG is Ricky Rubio in the Skills Challenge. Thanks for reading HOWL and GO WOLVES!
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Both Nikola Pekovic and Alexey Shved have been out for the last five games after they both suffered injuries in the Wolves' Jan. 17th loss to the Los Angeles Clippers.
Pekovic went down with a right thigh contusion (bruised quad) and Alexey Shved suffered a right ankle sprain. Both of these guys are key players for a Wolves team that has also been without their head coach (for the last 11 games). There's no doubt that with this trio returning to the game, the Wolves will hopefully receive a BIG boost. All three returned to practice on Monday, participated on Tuesday and will be back for Wednesday's game vs. the Los Angeles Clippers. A little strange that both Pek & Shved will return vs. the team who they suffered the injuries against almost two weeks ago. Now the Wolves can move Stiemsma back to the bench (thank goodness) and start Pek at center. Adelman has said he's uncertain if he'll stick with Ridnour at shooting guard or have Shved as his starter. As of now, it sounds as though he's leaning toward keeping Luke & Ricky together as the backcourt starters. This will give the Wolves a second unit of: J.J. Barea, Alexey Shved, Mickael Gelabale, Dante Cunningham and (hopefully) Chris Johnson. That's much better than having just 10 healthy guys (like they have these past couple weeks) while only playing 9 (no Lou). That's all for now, thanks for reading HOWL and GO WOLVES! It was announced today that the Minnesota Timberwolves resigned Mickael Gelabale & Chris Johnson to their second (and last) 10-day contracts.
It was rumored that the Wolves would have to trade or waive Lou Amundson in order to resign both Gelabale & Johnson, but instead they decided to re-apply for that same disabled player exception and it was approved. Now, they'll have Gelabale, Johnson and Amundson on the roster for another 10 days, however after that they'll have to make a decision to either keep Lou and one of these guys, or waive or trade Lou (likely for a second round pick) to sign them both to rest-of-the-season deals. Both players have performed VERY well in their short time with Minnesota. It was certainly surprising considering Gelabale has been out of the League for almost five years and Johnson is a 27-year-old that has had numerous, short stints with a handful of NBA teams--but has never 'stuck' and spent the majority of the past 5+ years either overseas or in the D-League. These contracts will now expire on Feb. 7th. I'm not sure why they didn't wait and sign them to those contracts tomorrow, so that they'd both be available for the Feb. 8th game vs. New York. Nonetheless, they'll both have an opportunity to play in five more games (starting tomorrow vs. the Clippers) under these second 10-day contracts. That's all for now, thanks for reading HOWL and GO WOLVES Nikola Pekovic & Alexey Shved were both back at practice on Monday morning after missing eleven days to injuries.
Both Pek & Shved went down during their January 17th game vs. the Los Angeles Clippers. Pekovic was thrown to the floor by Blake Griffin during the second half, he limped off to the locker room and didn't return, he was later diagnosed with a right thigh contusion and was pegged to miss the next 7-10 days. Alexey Shved came down awkwardly on his ankle in the final minutes of the game and immediately limped to the locker room. Shved had done some practicing prior to today's practice, but he was struggling to 'cut' on that ankle. I assume it's feeling better now if he was participating in 5-on-5 scrimmage drills. If all goes well in tomorrow's practice and Wednesday's shootaround, expect both Nikola Pekovic and Alexey Shved to return vs. the Clippers. We'll have an update following tomorrow's practice, until then, thanks for reading HOWL and GO WOLVES! The Minnesota Timberwolves are desperately in need of some kind of boost. Hopefully with their head coach returning to the sidelines after three long weeks, he can be that 'boost'.
Rick has been away from the team while he tended to his ailing wife, Mary Kay. She's reportedly doing better now and has returned home, allowing Adelman to return to the team. It sounds as though Adelman hopes he's back for good. He didn't want to return if it meant there'd be a chance he'd have to leave again. On his time away, Adelman said, "It's hard, I've never done that. Some things are more important." He was at practice on Monday and says that the plan is to coach the team when they face the Clippers on Wednesday, "if they let me." I don't think you'll find to many Wolves fans upset with Adelman back on the sidelines and Porter back to his role as assistant coach. Porter coached the team to a 2-9 record in Rick's absence. There were some circumstances that made Porter's job these past few weeks difficult and while I was one of many fans criticizing his coaching, playing without Nikola Pekovic & Alexey Shved for the past week and a half has made things even more difficult. Rick says he's pleased with the way the team has played really hard, but everyone has to do a little bit more. He is pleased with the way they continue to fight. That's all for now, thanks for reading HOWL and GO WOLVES! The Minnesota Timberwolves signed Mickael Gelabale and Chris Johnson to 10-day contracts on Saturday, January 19th. That means those contracts will expire on Tuesday, January 29th.
The Wolves have 16 players on the roster (one more than is usually allowed). That 16th roster spot was granted by the NBA because the Wolves have so many injuries. However, it's just a one-time, one 10-day contract 'thing'. Both of these guys have played very well for the Wolves in their short time with them. Both have played three games. Gelabale is averaging 6.7ppg, 3rpg, 0.7apg and shooting 54% from the field in 20.7mpg off the bench. Johnson is averaging 10.3ppg, 4.3rpg, 1.7bpg and shooting 75% from the field in 17.3mpg off the bench. The Wolves can resign one of them to a 10-day contract, but that's it. It's likely to be Mickael Gelabale because it was reported before he signed that he required a 20-day guarantee to come play in the NBA again. That doesn't mean that both won't stick with the Wolves though. One option could be waiving a player such as Lou Amundson. Lou gets little to no playing time and with the very inconsistent minutes, he's been unable to carve out any kind of a role with the Wolves. I'm sure Kahn could find a team that is in need of a reserve big man and flip him for a second round pick. The biggest surprise has been Johnson. A big man who has been back and forth from the NBA to the D-League and has never been able to stick with any NBA team. He's performing incredibly well, excelling in a simple pick-and-roll offense, showing off some incredible athleticism and last game we got a good look at some pretty bounce passes. It would be a shame if the Wolves don't keep him and he ends up back in the D-League or on another NBA squad. I'm very interested to see how this plays out. I am hoping that both will still be on this team when the Wolves face the Clippers Wednesday night. That's all for now, thanks for reading HOWL and GO WOLVES! The Minnesota Timberwolves will continue to play without two of their best players as Nikola Pekovic and Alexey Shved will miss the next two games. The Wolves play on Friday in Washington vs. the Wizards and Saturday in Charlotte vs. the Bobcats.
Both players suffered injuries on Jan. 17th vs. the Los Angeles Clippers. Pek was diagnosed with a thigh contusion and was slated to miss 7-10 days. 10 days will be this Sunday (Jan. 27th). Alexey sprained his ankle in that game and has been listed as 'day-to-day' ever since. He's been practicing, but he hasn't been able to do any pain-free cutting on that ankle, which is why he continues to sit. The Wolves have definitely missed these two. Minnesota has been getting dominated in the paint as of late without Pek down low and without Shved they are playing a three-man guard rotation and are currently without a shooting guard. After these weekend games, Minnesota's next game will be Wednesday night, at the Target Center vs. the...Clippers! There's a good chance they could both be back for that game, but Alexey for sure. Thanks for reading HOWL and GO WOLVES! J.J. Barea has already been busted for flopping once this season. The first time was simply a warning, but now his 'flopping' has cost him.
The Minnesota Timberwolves reserve guard has been fined $5,000 for a flop during Monday's loss in Dallas. J.J. was one of the first players fined after a flop during a Nov. 5th game vs. Sacramento. There have been 12 players warned this season. Barea, Reggie Evans and Gerald Wallace are the only three players to be fined. Any further violations will cost J.J. quite a bit more: $10K for a third violation, $15K for a fourth, $30K for a fifth, following that he'll face a larger fine or a potential suspension. I highly doubt this is the last we hear from the NBA and J.J.'s 'flopping'. Thanks for reading HOWL and GO WOLVES! The Timberwolves have been hit hard by injuries this season, I don't think I need to tell you that. Minnesota is currently without six of their players, so signing some reserves has become vital, if Minny wants to stay competitive.
The Wolves play the Houston Rockets on Saturday and are expected to be without Kevin Love (broken hand), Chase Budinger (lateral meniscus tear), Brandon Roy (knees), Malcolm Lee (knee/hip), Nikola Pekovic (thigh contusion), Alexey Shved (sprained ankle) and Dante Cunningham is questionable with an illness. As such the Wolves have seven healthy players: Rubio, Ridnour, Barea, Kirilenko, Williams, Amundson and Stiemsma. Don't fear, here comes the cavalry! The Wolves signed Mickael Gelabale and Chris Johnson to 10-day contracts Saturday morning. Gelabale is expected to play tonight, however it's unknown if Johnson will play. We've highlighted Gelabale plenty the past couple weeks and you can find more info about him in the previous post under the News section as well as detailed info under the Player Info section, as well. Johnson was in training camp with the TWolves during the preseason and was one of the final cuts. I actually wanted Chris to make the roster, but the Wolves went with Will Conroy instead. The 27-year-old Johnson has been playing in the D-League since being cut. Chris is a solid defensive low-post presence, however his slightly slender frame (for a center) is a concern as bigger opponents can use their strength to move around him. My dislike for Greg Stiemsma has been well-documented, so I'm hoping Johnson will cut into those minutes. If Gelabale plays well, there's a very good chance he could stick for the rest of the season, however this is likely a brief stint for Johnson. The Wolves should have Pek back in a week or so and they're also exploring trades for big men. That's all for now, stay tuned for more thanks for reading HOWL and GO WOLVES! The depleted Timberwolves will be adding another international player to their squad as word came just prior to tonight's tipoff that they have agreed to terms with French swingman Mickael Gelabale.
The terms of the deal aren't currently known, but Mickael will be joining the team on Friday. Lazar Hayward's 10-day contract expires tonight and he won't be back with the team. Hopefully Gelable can be an immediate contributor as the last thing these Wolves need is another player to keep Lou Amundson & Greg Stiemsma company on the bench. The Wolves are without Kevin Love (hand) and Chase Budinger (knee) until March, Malcolm Lee (knee/hip) for the season and Brandon Roy (knees) for...who even knows... Beyond that, Alexey Shved (sprained ankle) and Nikola Pekovic (bruised quad) both left Thursday's game vs. the Clippers with injuries. The 29-year-old Gelabale has been playing overseas for Valencia, though he has spent some time in the NBA. He played 109 games with the Seattle Supersonics from 2006-08 and has averages of 4.5ppg, 2.1rpg in just over 15 minutes a game. We'll have more info and coverage on Mickael's signing tomorrow afternoon. Until then, thanks for reading HOWL and GO WOLVES! |
Cody AndersonA TWolves fan, bringing you the daily updates. News Archives
August 2017
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