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Minnesota Timberwolves Lack of help beginning to frustrate Garnett
By Marty Burns, CNNSI.com For the past five seasons, the Timberwolves have made the playoffs, only to get bounced in the first round. With Kevin Garnett doing it all on the court, and underrated head coach Flip Saunders calling the shots from the sidelines, they get the most out of their ability, but it's just not enough. It's getting so bad that even KG, one-time chief of the Fun Police, is getting frustrated. Minnesota has a solid core in Garnett, point guard Terrell Brandon and small forward Wally Szczerbiak, but fans better hope the competition in the West got worse during the offseason. Other than signing free agent Joe Smith, the Timberwolves made no significant moves. With no cap room and no intention of paying the luxury tax, the Timberwolves could only bring in Smith, the former No. 1 overall pick who played for Minnesota in 1998-99 and '99-00 before having his contract voided by the league.
Minnesota will spend training camp hoping to work the 6-foot-10 Smith back into the frontcourt mix, while also developing young centers Rasho Nesterovic and Loren Woods. In addition, the T'wolves will also take a close look at shooting guard, where Chauncey Billups, Anthony Peeler and Felipe Lopez shared time a year ago. The T'wolves also should benefit from the new zone rules. They have ample jumpshooters on offense, and they might be able to mask their own lack of one-on-one defenders by zoning up on occasion. However, unless they suddenly develop an inside force to complement Garnett, they will be looking at another first-round playoff exit. Standout stat: 12.3 Points the recently re-acquired Joe Smith averaged last season in Detroit.
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