T-Wolves: Preparing For The Worst

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Are the Minnesota Timberwolves still part of the National Basketball Association?  The way owner Glen Taylor has changed front office staff, coaches and players after another disastrous season, you might well wonder.

First to go was Kevin McHale, who was stripped of his position as defacto general manager and forced to coach the same players he traded for.  He'll be in a TV studio this season as an analyst for NBA TV, which is what some people say he should have been all along.

New President of Basketball Operations (read:  General Manager) David Kahn made plenty of moves to replace his roster full of deadwood with other teams' deadwood.  He tried and failed to sign top draft pick Ricky Rubio, who chose to stay in Spain instead.  Can you blame him?  If Rubio really wanted to play in the NBA this season, the Wolves would have traded his rights to Miami or the Los Angeles Lakers.  Nice and warm down there.

Kahn waited until August to name former Lakers assistant Kurt Rambis as the Wolves' new coach.  For Rambis, it was either a case of waiting for Phil Jackson to step down as coach, or gain some experience with a struggling team.  He also brought in Bill Laimbeer, who's won titles as a player with the Detroit Pistons and as a coach with the WNBA Detroit Shock (who will be moving to Tulsa, Oklahoma next season), as an assistant.

As the Wolves start the 2009-10 season, they will be without two of their best players--Kevin Love and Al Jefferson--due to injuries.  Some NBA pundits are saying this team is capable of challenging the all-time record for futility set by the 1972-73 Philadelphia 76ers, who finished that season with a 9-73 mark.  I don't think the Wolves will be that bad, but Target Center will be seeing many an empty seat this winter.

OK, so the Wolves' playoff chances are remote at best.  Here's who we see extending their seasons past April:

EASTERN CONFERENCE  Cleveland Cavaliers, Orlando Magic, Chicago Bulls, Boston Celtics, Miami Heat, Washington Wizards, Atlanta Hawks, Philadelphia 76ers.

WESTERN CONFERENCE  Los Angeles Lakers, Portland Trail Blazers, Utah Jazz, Denver Nuggets, Phoenix Suns, Dallas Mavericks, San Antonio Spurs, New Orleans Hornets.