Enemy Lines An Opposing Team's Scout Sizes Up The Timberwolves

"There's no doubt Kevin Garnett is an elite player, but he's hit a ceiling in terms of making his teammates better. I love his emotional leadership, but there are times when your best player must demand the ball and he must finish—and Garnett has not established himself as someone who comes through in the clutch. He's good enough to carry these guys into the playoffs, but if he wants to advance further, then he has to show he can take over. Otherwise, if he opts out of his contract after 2003-04 and asks for more money, maybe the team should consider trading him and starting over with a lot of new parts....

You don't get better by losing a second-tier player like Chauncey Billups and replacing him with Troy Hudson, who is a poor man's Chauncey Billups: a scoring point who's not going to get guys organized for you. That's why Terrell Brandon's comeback from knee surgery is crucial. Flip Saunders has one of the thickest playbooks in the league—I bet he has 60 to 75 plays in it—and Brandon can run them all. They break down a lot more when he's not in there....

Joe Smith had his poorest year. He's a guy who had a great future, but he never got stronger, never got better, and now he can't go beyond mediocrity....

Everything Rasho Nesterovic does is quiet. He tends to disappear against the better players, and he's almost an afterthought when you're making a game plan against the T-Wolves....

I think Wally Szczerbiak is a tough kid who should be Garnett's strongest ally because he's the second-best player on the team. He's not the quickest guy, maybe he looks for his shot a little too much, and he struggles defensively, but he does try. Szczerbiak has heard all the rumors that they've been looking to trade him, and that has to be weighing on him. If they don't deal him, Garnett ought to pull Szczerbiak toward him instead of pushing him away."