Minnesota Timberpups Press Conference 2003-04

[JNR]

As GM The JNR takes the stage, a banner unrolls behind the podium. It reads MINNESOTA TIMBERPUPS. Instead of the fierce logo as usual, there is this picture:



The JNR: Who put that up there? What person thinks that sort of thing is funny?

An incredibly fat Jason Richardson giggles, then stuffs his face with potato chips.

The JNR: Anyway. Welcome to this year's press conference. Our year was tough last year; we had the second worst record of the league, and then the lottery balls were not kind to us. We slipped to fourth, so many people probably feel the season was a failure. I disagree. I think we learned a lot about our team.

We learned that Tayshaun is going to be a star defender who can knock down the three ball.

Prince smiles and mimes shooting a three. He mouths "swish." Joel Przybilla rolls his eyes.

The JNR: We learned that Luis Scola has tons of potential, even though he may take time to get there.

Scola nods, slowly trying to steal a chip from Richardson. He fails.

The JNR: And we learned that one of our young players is a big fat disappointment who isn't going to help this team win in the future.

Richardson stops inhaling chips and looks up.

Richardson: Who you mean, boss?

The JNR: This offseason, we drafted Chris Bosh, who I feel will become the second best, if not best player in this draft. He had a really good training camp, as did most of our young players. We added Anthony Carter and Earl Watson, who had great camps. We feel comfortable with either leading our starting unit, although we do acknowledge that Earl has a brighter future due to being younger.



Watson: Thanks, boss!



Carter: Yeah, boss...thanks.

The JNR: This year, we won't sugarcoat it. We're making great progress, but we're probably not there yet. We have assets to get better in the future, and we don't really think it's worth it to make some moves just to get better now. We do feel the landscape of the league is changing, and parity will be even bigger over the next few years, but we will be patient and strike when the time is right.

Any questions?

[RPF]

I actually have 2 questions, when the lotto results were revealed what were the feelings of the organization to have the 4th pick? During the draft when Chris Bosh fell to #4 how surprised were you guys to have your 2nd highest player on your board drop to you?

[JNR]

I actually have 2 questions, when the lotto results were revealed what were the feelings of the organization to have the 4th pick? During the draft when Chris Bosh fell to #4 how surprised were you guys to have your 2nd highest player on your board drop to you?

JNR: To answer your first question, I told everyone who would listen that I wanted one of the top 4 players in the draft. I believed -- and still do -- that there were 4 players who could change a franchise around, and as long as I didn't slip to 5, I'd be happy. So to get a chance to get any of those players was a dream come true for our franchise.

The second question, to see Bosh slip to 4? It was already a dream come true to be in that position, but to get Bosh made it even better. We think he's going to be a star, and this preseason shows he is already capable of taking on the scoring load, and doing it efficiently as well. We're so happy to have Bosh on the team.

[PrepP]

Bulls Beat Blogger : So what's next for the Timberwolves? What's the goal this year?

[JNR]

Bulls Beat Blogger : So what's next for the Timberwolves? What's the goal this year?

JNR: Thanks for the question. We know we're not going to contend this year; we're much too young. But I want to get a bit of time for our young players to learn the game. I want Bosh to get comfortable scoring, for Prince to become more of a vocal leader, and I want to see our offense improve from last year. We'll be happy if we're better than Top 20 in offense this year.

[kucoach7]

Nathan Sliver, sevenfortyseven.com: You have a wealth of talent. Are you planning on the slow build and relying on training camp to turn your team around or are you going to unload your talent to bring in a superstar to pair with Bosh?

[NOLa.]

Scola has had two top-of-the-class training camps, but he still has a lot of room to grow once you look past his blue potential. How long do you feel it would take before he becomes a viable starting option? By the time he has to hit RFA?

[Xist2Inspire]

Random Reporter: I hate to put J-Rich on blast, but my sources said he had a terrible camp, and looking at him now...I think they were right. What's the plan at SG heading into the future? Oh, and on a scale of one to ten, how happy are you to be back in Minnesota, Pryz?

[Conroy]

Sports Guy Bill Simmons here, with your top 7 players being 24 or younger, how do you think they'll play night in and night out and a tough Western Conference?

[JNR]

Nathan Sliver, sevenfortyseven.com: You have a wealth of talent. Are you planning on the slow build and relying on training camp to turn your team around or are you going to unload your talent to bring in a superstar to pair with Bosh?

JNR: I've said ever since this rebuild started that what I like most about the direction of this team is how flexible it is. We have what I believe to be a future star in Chris Bosh. We have really strong pieces such as Scola, Watson, and Prince. But we also have draft picks and time -- tons of both. I don't feel pressure to send a bunch of players packing for a star player, especially as Bosh is learning the ropes. But this next draft will tell us a lot about where our team is headed, and if we can become a great team in the next few years.

[JNR]

Scola has had two top-of-the-class training camps, but he still has a lot of room to grow once you look past his blue potential. How long do you feel it would take before he becomes a viable starting option? By the time he has to hit RFA?

That's most likely accurate. He's an intriguing case, but because of our aforementioned slow build, I'm not feeling the pressure to worry about his progress. He'll get there.

[JNR]

Random Reporter: I hate to put J-Rich on blast, but my sources said he had a terrible camp, and looking at him now...I think they were right. What's the plan at SG heading into the future? Oh, and on a scale of one to ten, how happy are you to be back in Minnesota, Pryz?

JNR: Obviously we aren't happy with J-Rich's camp...or his choice in pranks...

Richardson looks at the banner and giggles, then burps.

JNR: But we're not declining his team option either. We'll see what we can do, if he can rebound from it, and if we can't we'll look into the draft and free agency.

Przybilla: Thanks for the question. Obviously this is my home state, so I'm thrilled to be here. I think we have some good young players, and the front office isn't putting undue pressure on us, so we're just going out there and having fun.

[JNR]

Sports Guy Bill Simmons here, with your top 7 players being 24 or younger, how do you think they'll play night in and night out and a tough Western Conference?

JNR: It'll be a learning experience for sure. I don't really expect much different from last year: a team that plays hard, learns a lot, and may not win too much. And that's okay right now.

[WigNosy]

Do you plan to showcase Richardson early to fan any interest in him from other GMs?

[JNR]

Do you plan to showcase Richardson early to fan any interest in him from other GMs?

He'll be prominently featured in the offense. He can still score well, so if anyone is interested, they know where to find me.

[fearthebrow]

Earl Watson has bounced around quite a bit in his short career, already on his fourth team in three years. Is this a cause for concern? Will Watson be the starter? What are your expectations?

[JNR]

Earl Watson has bounced around quite a bit in his short career, already on his fourth team in three years. Is this a cause for concern? Will Watson be the starter? What are your expectations?

JNR: In my opinion, Earl has been to a few teams where he didn't require a huge role, and so he was a little downhearted about it. But this offseason, when we traded for him, he was the only PG on the roster. I sat him down and told him that he could be the player to lead this young team. And I really think he took that motivation and ran with it during training camp. He has a bright future, and I think he'll end up being our starter because of his ball-handling ability and quickness.

[IamQuailman]

Awarded 5 PTS!