2010 Summer League | Latest News

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Wolves Suffer Loss In Summer League Finale
Wolves rookie Lazar Hayward sparkled in the Summer League finale to fill the void left by the injured No. 4 overall pick. As Wes Johnson missed his fourth consecutive contest with a sore left hamstring, Hayward delivered an all-around performance, showcasing his ability to navigate through traffic and reach the free throw line. The 30th selection in the 2010 Draft scored 10 of his game-high 19 points at the charity stripe.

Unfortunately, Minnesota could not pick up a victory in its last Las Vegas outing. Atlanta dominated the glass and defeated the Wolves 89-83, dropping them to 1-4 in Summer League action.

Wayne Ellington added 18 points on 7-for-13 shooting and concluded an extremely productive week in Sin City. The sharpshooter drilled 2-of-4 long bombs in 29 minutes of action.

Former Gonzaga point guard Jeremy Pargo dished out six assists and Patrick O’Bryant snatched a team-high six rebounds.

Head coach Kurt Rambis will return to Minneapolis to spend time working with Michael Beasley, Darko Milicic, Jonny Flynn, Hayward, and Johnson in the midst of a busy offseason for the Wolves.

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Blazers Top Wolves 67-60
The element of surprise is a common theme in Las Vegas. Whether the dealer turns over a winning hand or a high-profile celebrity appears at one of the clubs, there is always a chance for the unexpected.

On Saturday night at the Cox Pavilion, the Blazers Summer League squad utilized a full court defense from the opening tip. The intensity paid off as Portland topped the Wolves 67-60 in front of a strong Blazers contingency.

Both teams struggled shooting from the floor in the fast-pace matchup but Minnesota found some success with Patrick O’Bryant and Deon Thompson. O’Bryant tallied 16 points in only 27 minutes of game action while Thompson registered his second straight double-double.

Lazar Hayward returned to the court after a cold held him out of the Friday night contest against Memphis. The former Marquette forward scored 10 points and encountered a little bit of a battle with the No. 16 overall pick Luke Babbitt. Suffering from a slow start, Babbitt was the difference in the third quarter, finishing with a team-high 15 points.

Wayne Ellington recorded eight points and Jeremy Pargo scored 11. The Wolves fell to 1-3 in Summer League games with the finale against Atlanta tomorrow night at 5:30 PM central.

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Jonah Ballow
Wolves Editor/Writer
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Wolves Top Grizzlies, Earn First Summer League Victory
Wayne Ellington felt the beginning stages of a cold heading down to the team bus on Friday night in Las Vegas. Two hours later, the sharpshooter eclipsed his best outing of Summer League play with 25 points to lead the Wolves to their first victory over Memphis.

Ellington emerged as the leader of this Summer League squad, replacing the offensive production of his fallen comrades. The shooting guard uncharacteristically grabbed nine rebounds and hit a timely shot in the last stages of the contest. In crunch time, Ellington received the ball off the inbounds pass, put his head down and floated to the right side of the floor for a smooth midrange jumper. Ellington has tallied a combined 49 points in consecutive games for Minnesota.

Despite a shorthanded squad in the third contest this week, Minnesota received a nice effort from another Tar Heel, Deon Thompson. The starting power forward recorded a double-double with 12 points and 12 boards. His aggressive play inside the paint helped the Wolves win the battle on the glass while matching a Grizzlies roster filled with talented big men.

Jeremy Pargo got the starting nod and finished with five assists to lead the team. Patrick O’Bryant chipped in 11 points and former Golden Gopher Lawrence Westbrook added six points off the bench.

Minnesota returns to the Cox Pavilion tomorrow night for a matchup against the Portland Trail Blazers. Check out the live play-by-play audio where you can interact live during the broadcast right here on timberwolves.com. Tipoff set for 9 PM central.



Jonah Ballow
Wolves Editor/Writer
Email / Twitter

Wolves Suffer Narrow Loss To Kings
Wednesday night at the Cox Pavilion in Las Vegas, two teams fought head-to-head in the final game of the evening like it was Game 7 of the NBA Finals. Bouncing back from a poor performance against San Antonio two nights ago, the Wolves suffered a 79-78 setback to the Kings.

“We made improvements tonight; defensively we made improvements,” assistant coach Reggie Theus said. We are very specific in some of our passes in our offensive and the guys are learning they have to be in the right place, they have to execute the right way thus the last play of the game where we had the back-door wasn’t executed the right way, we had the play but it just didn’t happen. I was really happy with how hard the guys played tonight.”

Minnesota stepped onto the floor severely undermanned without the Syracuse tandem of Jonny Flynn and the No. 4 overall pick Wesley Johnson. Flynn sat out his second straight game due to a hip injury while Johnson was sidelined with a sore left hamstring that appears to not be serious.

Wayne Ellington quickly reversed his play after only scoring four points in the loss to the Spurs on Monday night. The second-year guard brushed off a somewhat slow start to lead all scorers with 24 points on 9-of-17 shooting from the floor and 2-for-4 behind the arc.

“It felt good, you know I saw a couple of them go in and that’s all a shooter really needs to see a couple go in the hole. I got my rhythm a little bit but unfortunately it wasn’t enough,” Ellington said.

Ellington’s productive night and a late-game rally from the Wolves could not overcome another impressive performance from the Kings No. 5 overall selection DeMarcus Cousins. The former Kentucky big man drilled a hook shot with 2.9 second remaining on the game clock to push Sacramento into the lead 79-78, sealing its third victory of Summer League play. Cousins posted his third straight double-double by scoring 22 points and snagging 12 boards. The polarizing post player displayed all the moves in his arsenal, including a nice touch from the perimeter and quick spin moves inside the paint.

One must admire the resolve of the Wolves frontline group. Deon Thompson finished with 10 points and seven rebounds in 23 minutes of game action. Patrick O’Bryant and Greg Stiemsma also did not back down an inch on the defensive side of the floor against Cousins despite the strength disparity.

Once again, Lazar Hayward completed another solid performance, scoring 14 points at the small forward position. Minnesota fans should feel a positive vibe from Hayward as he showed patience under pressure and a good feel for the game. He will add a nice level of consistency off the bench for the new-look Wolves in 2010-11.

Minnesota will hit the practice floor tomorrow morning at the University of Las Vegas college campus. The team faces O.J. Mayo and the Memphis Grizzlies on Friday night at 9 PM central time. Check out timberwolves.com for live audio play-by-play, interactive chat, and exclusive postgame interviews.

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Jonah Ballow
Wolves Editor/Writer
Email / Twitter

Wolves Complete Trade with Utah
The Minnesota Timberwolves today announced the team has acquired two future first-round draft picks, one belonging to Utah and one belonging to Memphis, and center Kosta Koufos from the Utah Jazz in exchange for forward Al Jefferson.

"I want to thank Al for his three years with the Timberwolves and the professionalism he exhibited this summer," said David Kahn, Timberwolves President of Basketball Operations. "Al is motivated to have a career-defining season and I recognize the Jazz will be the recipients of that, not us. I expect him to help Utah immensely.

Full Press Release

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Tuesday Practice Report
The second day in Las Vegas presented a golden opportunity for the Wolves to hit the practice floor and work as a unit following the loss to San Antonio on Monday. Unfortunately, a couple of Orangemen were limited in the practice session as Jonny Flynn deals with an injured hip and Wesley Johnson is suffering from a sore hamstring.

Flynn participated in a portion of the practice but mostly used his tremendous energy to provide support. After the intense session, I caught up with Flynn to discuss the addition of Michael Beasley.

“He is so versatile, you can play him at the 4, he can face-up bigger guys and go right around them. You can play him at the 3 and he can post-up smaller guys and finish. I think he is so talented, ultra-talented, I’m kind of disappointed a lot of people counted him out in his second year in the NBA. People counted him but he is going to come here and we are going to welcome him with open arms and he is going to show everybody what type of player he really is,” Flynn said.

Johnson sat out Monday’s practice at the Running Rebels facility just one day removed from his Summer League debut, scoring 10 points against the Spurs. Director of pro personnel Jerry Sichting spent time chatting with Johnson throughout practice on the sidelines. Flynn provided analysis of Johnson’s first game in a Wolves uniform, “The thing about Wes and Lazar [Hayward], you got to feel your way in this offense and that goes for everybody on our team. It’s kind of a complex offense that takes more then a week, which most of these guys had to learn and get down. It took me a little more then half of the season to get down last year. So, I try to tell the guys that, to keep their heads up and stay confident. They are just feeling it out and that’s why we have four more games here.”

On Wednesday night, the Wolves face Sacramento in what figures to be an exciting second matchup for both squads. The Kings cruised to a 97-68 victory over Detroit on Monday night behind a talented roster. Sacramento features No. 5 overall pick DeMarcus Cousins, shot-blocking specialist Hassan Whiteside, Syracuse second-year forward Donte Green, and Omri Casspi. Cousins enjoyed an impressive debut with 14 points and 10 boards while Casspi led the team by posting 16 points.

Visit timberwolves.com for live audio play-by-play coverage, interactive chat, and postgame video interviews. Tipoff set for 9 PM central.

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Jonah Ballow
Wolves Editor/Writer
Email / Twitter

Wolves Officially Acquire Beasley
Directly after the Wolves concluded their first Summer League game, head coach Kurt Rambis provided some insight into the Michael Beasley trade, which became official on Monday.

“He adds a lot of versatility. I see him playing two positions, he is very talented and he can play the spots on the floor that fit very well in our offense, so I’m very pleased we were able to acquire him for virtually nothing, being the second pick in the draft when he came out.”

Most fans are concerned or intrigued with the potential starting lineup scenarios this upcoming season. Rambis assured that all the players will have to work for a spot on opening night.

“That’s the way it’s always been in my mind, that’s the way it should be. Guys come in and compete. Guys and units that play well together will get the time.”
David Kahn Teleconference

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Wolves Fall 85-61 To Spurs
Two of the Wolves first round picks made their debut in Las Vegas on Monday afternoon but the 2009 No. 6 overall selection was noticeably absent from the game. Jonny Flynn could not suit up for Minnesota’s contest against San Antonio at the Thomas and Mack Center due to a hip pointer injury that he suffered in the three-day mini-camp leading up to the trip. While the team does not believe the injury to be serious, he was held out of action on day one.

The Wolves fell to San Antonio 85-61 while Flynn cheered from the sidelines in front of the pro-Syracuse crowd. To appease the Cuse contingency, Johnson delivered a strong second half performance and finished with 10 points on 4-for-7 shooting the floor. The No. 4 overall pick in the 2010 draft also drilled a long bomb behind the arc before connecting on a spectacular alley-oop dunk high above the rim. Overall, Johnson remained patient, attempting to play within the offense and not force the action despite his elite status in the draft. A sore left hamstring after the game should not keep Johnson out of the lineup for the anticipated matchup against Sacramento on Wednesday night.

Lazar Hayward impressed the Wolves coaching staff with a 13-point performance to lead all Minnesota scorers. The former forward out of Marquette attacked the paint and reached the free throw line six times where he compiled four points.

Patrick O’Bryant added seven boards at the center spot and Jeremy Pargo contributed 12 points and four assists in the loss.

Minnesota will practice tomorrow in Las Vegas before facing DeMarcus Cousins and the Kings on Wednesday night at 9 PM central time.

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Jonah Ballow
Wolves Editor/Writer
Email / Twitter

Timberwolves.com is the spot for comprehensive and live coverage from Las Vegas during the 2010 Summer League. For each game, Wolves editor / writer Jonah Ballow and NBA Insider Chris Lewis will provide play by play audio, an interactive chat, and the latest reports on all the top rookies. Make sure to stop by each day for video interviews, exclusive content, and a chance to ask questions to your Wolves on facebook and twitter.

The blissful sounds of squeaky basketball shoes on the hardwood floor, rim-rattling dunks, and coaches barking out directions to their players returned to the Wolves practice facility on Thursday afternoon. With the first 2010 Summer League game set for Monday, July 12 in Las Vegas, the Minnesota squad jumped on the court to begin a three-day mini-camp.

The Wolves Summer League roster is balanced with first-year players and rookies competing for roster spots. Returning to the team this year is Jonny Flynn and Wayne Ellington after both guards endured the Vegas heat in 2009. Entering in the mix are Minnesota draft picks Wesley Johnson and Lazar Hayward as they prepare to face some of top talent from the 2010 NBA Draft.

After Johnson impressed his teammates with several skyscraping dunks during the first practice, he explained the focus for Summer League, "Work on a lot of stuff. I haven't played since April, five-on-five competitively so I'm really excited about that. Really just go out there and try to learn a lot of stuff and really just stuff I've been working try to put it to use."

Ellington enters the practice facility with a full year under his belt heading into the week of action. The shooting guard worked diligently on his ball-handling skills to become a more dangerous threat off the dribble. Ellington believes the sweat poured in the weight room should translate to an improved all-around game this upcoming season.

"It's so much more comfortable and confident this year than coming in as a first year guy and not knowing what to expect. I'm so much more confident right now and I think it will show in Summer League."

The group will practice on Saturday inside the Target Center facility before boarding a plane to Las Vegas on Sunday night.

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2010 TIMBERWOLVES SUMMER LEAGUE BIOS:

Mo Charlo
Not drafted by an NBA franchise... Averaged 7.3 ppg, 3.7 rpg and 2.0 apg during the 2009-10 season with the Reno Bighorns… Started all 50 games in which he played… Shot 48.8% from the field and 74.3% from the free-throw line… Played with Ramon Sessions for the Nevada Wolf Pack during the 2004-05 and 2005-06 seasons.

Wayne Ellington
Selected by Minnesota with the 28th overall pick in the 2009 NBA Draft after his junior season at the University of North Carolina... Played in 76 games in 2009-10, missing three (Mar. 3-8) with a sprained left ankle and one (Apr. 7) due to an upper respiratory infection; he also drew a pair of DNP-CDs… Averaged 6.6 ppg and 2.1 rpg while logging 18.2 mpg; he shot 42.4% from the field and 87.1% (61-for-70) from the FT line… Ranked 23rd in the NBA -- including 2nd among rookies behind Stephen Curry -- by hitting 39.5% from three-point range… Reached double figures 17 times and was the Wolves' top scorer twice... Appeared in five games for the Timberwolves' entry at the 2009 NBA Summer League in Las Vegas, averaging 14.4 points per game while shooting 52.0 percent (13-for-25) from behind the arc... Named Most Outstanding Player of the 2009 Final Four after leading UNC to a national title in his third and final year at North Carolina... Earned All-ACC Tournament honors in each of his three collegiate seasons... Scored in double figures in 95 of 115 career games, including 30 or more points twice... Finished his career ranked second in UNC history with 229 three-pointers.

Jonny Flynn
Selected by Minnesota with the 6th overall pick in the 2009 NBA Draft... Finished his first NBA season ranked 5th among the league's rookies in scoring (13.5 ppg), 4th in FT accuracy (82.6%), 5th in assists (4.4 apg) and 7th in steals (1.01 spg)… Started all 81 of his appearances, missing the Apr. 14 finale vs. Detroit due to a strained left hip flexor… Averaged 2.4 rpg while logging 28.9 mpg; he shot 41.7% from the floor, including 35.8% (77-for-215) from three-point range… Was Minnesota's leading scorer on 18 occasions and led in assists 43 times; he recorded 58 double-figure scoring efforts, including a dozen games with 20+… Appeared in five games for the Timberwolves' entry at the 2009 NBA Summer League in Las Vegas, averaging team-highs of 15.0 points and 7.4 assists per game while shooting 48.0% (24-for-50) from the field, 58.3% (7-for-12) from three and 90.0% (20-for-22) from the FT line... Finished his college career at Syracuse ranked 38th in scoring (1,211 points) and seventh in assists (439) in Syracuse history... Started all 73 games of his two-year tenure, scoring in double figures in 64 of those contests... Named All-Big East Second Team following his sophomore season at Syracuse and also earned AP All-American Honorable Mention honors that year.

Lazar Hayward
Selected in the first round (30th overall pick) by Minnesota in the 2010 NBA Draft... Averaged 18.1 ppg and 7.5 rpg during his senior season at Marquette… Played in 34 games in 2009-10 for the Golden Eagles, recording double-figures in 32 of those contests… Shot 46.9% from the floor, 82.0% from the line and 35.8% from behind the arc… Earned Second Team All-Big East and Honorable Mention All-America honors for his efforts… Contributed 16.3 ppg and 8.6 rpg his junior year (2008-09) while playing 35 games… Played a school-record 138 games in his four years at Marquette… Finished as Marquette's second all-time leading scorer with 1,859 points and fifth all-time in rebounding with 910 career rebounds.

Damian Johnson
Not drafted by an NBA franchise… Shot 49.4% from the field through his career at the University of Minnesota… Finished his Gopher career ranked second on the Minnesota's all-time steals list with 195 and third on the all-time block lists with 191… His 64 steals as a senior this past season ties him for fifth place on the Gophers' single-season list... Finished his career with averages of 7.3 points, 3.8 rebounds, 1.5 blocks, 1.5 steals and 21.6 minutes per game.

Wesley Johnson
Selected in the first round (4th overall pick) by Minnesota in the 2010 NBA Draft... Averaged 16.5 ppg, 8.5 rpg, 1.8 bpg, and 1.7 spg, while shooting 50.2% from the field and 41.5% from three-point range in 2009-10, his lone season of action for Syracuse… Played 35 games, averaging 35.0 minutes per contest… Scored in double-figures in 32 of those games… Earned Big East Player of the Year Honors in 2010, becoming the first transfer student from a four-year school to win the award… Sat out the entire 2008-09 season due to NCAA rules after transferring from Iowa State… Recorded 12.4 ppg and 4.0 rpg in 2007-08 for Iowa State…Averaged 12.3 ppg and 7.9 rpg in his freshman year for the Cyclones.

Patrick O'Bryant
Selected by Golden State in the first round of the 2006 NBA Draft (9th overall)… The Warriors declined to pick up his third year option prior to the 2007-08 season, which made him an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season… On March 10, 2008, he was reassigned to the Bakersfield Jam but was later recalled and rejoined the Warriors for the remainder of the season… Signed a two-year, $3.12 million contract with the Boston Celtics in July 2008… Was traded to the Toronto Raptors on February 19, 2009… Entered the 2006 NBA Draft as an early entry candidate after playing two collegiate seasons at Bradley... Appeared in 52 games (47 starts) in two seasons, averaging 11.6 points, 7.8 rebounds and 2.83 blocks in 24.3 minutes per contest, while shooting 55.4% (241-435 FG) from the field... Despite playing just two seasons, left school ranked third on the Braves' all-time blocked shots list (147 -- 10th all-time in Missouri Valley Conference) and second in career field goal percentage.

Jeremy Pargo
Went undrafted at the 2009 NBA Draft… Played for the Hapoel Gilboa Galil Elvon of the Israeli Basketball Super League during the 2009-10 season… Averaged 14.1 points, 2.9 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 2.7 turnovers per game in his first pro year in Israel… Participated in the 2009 Las Vegas NBA Summer League as a member of the Detroit Pistons after playing in the Orlando Pro Summer League for the Orlando Magic.

Cedric Simmons
Drafted by the New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets as the 15th overall pick in the 2006 NBA Draft… Traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers on September 29, 2007 and then to the Chicago Bulls on February 21, 2008… Traded to the Sacramento Kings on February 18, 2009 and joined the Greek League club of Peristeri Athens in August 2009… Was signed by the Idaho Stampede of the D-League in December 2009, and finally with the Dongguan Leopards of the Chinese Basketball Association in January 2010… Has appeared in 75 career NBA games over three seasons, posting career averages of 2.2 points, 1.9 rebounds and 9.4 minutes per game... Played two seasons of collegiate ball at North Carolina State, averaging 11.8 points, 6.3 rebounds and 1.7 assists as a sophomore during the 2005-06 season.

Jamar Smith
Not drafted by an NBA franchise... Named the Basketball Times NCAA Division II Player of the Year following his senior season at Southern Indiana... Led his team and the Great Lakes Valley Conference with 21.6 points per game... Finished his career with a USI record 20.2 points per contest... Averaged 21.6 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 4.6 apg and 1.2 spg, while shooting 46.5% from the field and 42.7% from the three-point range in 2009-10, his second season for Southern Indiana and fourth season playing college hoops… Set the USI single game (10) and season record (108) for three-point field goals made... Named All-American by Basketball Times, Division II Bulletin, NABC, and Daktronics... Was named first team All-Region and the Midwest Region Player of the Year, as well as the GLVC Player of the Year.

Greg Stiemsma
Played with the NBDL's Sioux Falls Skyforce for the 2009-10 season before earning a call-up to the Timberwolves on April 13, 2010… Averaged 8.8 points, 7.1 rebounds and a league-leading 3.6 blocks in 45 games (44 starts) for the Skyforce… Shot 54.1% from the field… Averaged 15.0 points, 10.7 rebounds and 4.3 blocks in three playoff games for Sioux Falls… Played his collegiate ball at the University of Wisconsin, averaging 2.7 points and 2.3 rebounds in 95 games. He finished fifth on Wisconsin's all-time blocked shots list with 96.

Deon Thompson
Not drafted by an NBA franchise at the 2010 NBA Draft... Played four years at the University of North Carolina… Set the NCAA all-time career games played record with 152… Averaged 13.7 ppg and 6.7 rpg during the 2009-10 season... Led his team in scoring and ranked second in rebounding as a senior... Earned NIT All-Tournament honors after averaging 14.2 points and 9.6 rebounds in five games... Played for Team USA in the summer of 2007 in the Under 19 World Championships in Serbia, where he was the team’s leading rebounder (6.1 rpg) and third-leading scorer (10.0 ppg).

Lawrence Westbrook
Not drafted by an NBA franchise... Played four season at the University of Minnesota, finishing his career with the third-best free-throw percentage in school history (80.7%)... His 1,199 career points was good for 20th on the Gophers' all-time list... Finished his career as Minnesota's all-time leading scorer in Big Ten Tournament games after tallying 97 points in 10 appearances... Averaged 12.8 ppg, 2.6 rpg and 2.2 apg while shooting 47.1% from the field and 41.1% from three-point range as a senior.

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