PG: Sebastian Telfair, Bobby Brown, Kevin Ollie
SG: Randy Foye, Rashad McCants
SF: Corey Brewer, Rodney Carney, Ryan Gomes, Mike Miller
PF: Al Jefferson, Kevin Love, Craig Smith, Mark Madsen, Shelden Williams, Brian Cardinal
C: Calvin Booth, Jason Collins

Now, with the trade of Al Jefferson, only two of these players remain: Corey Brewer and Kevin Love.

As former Star Tribune colleague Michael Rand points out, the following is the precise quote from GM Kevin McHale about THIS squad, just two months before he was canned.

“I think we have a good, young group of guys. I think these kids can play. I think they can do a lot of good stuff together. And I thought we were on the verge of moving up. When you’re on a rebuilding program
like that, it takes a little bit of time. It’s disappointing not to be able to see that through.”

That’s not even sort of true. That is so far beyond the realm of absurdity that it’s within reach of the certifiably deranged. It’s delusional. It’s no-holds-barred insanity. Which is why, finally, 14 years too late, McHale was fired. His “good, young group of guys” went 27-55, and had two legitimate starting players on a team of 17 guys, and they play the same position.

Now, whether you agree with some of the moves David Kahn has made — and you should — the opportunity to start over has finally arrived. It’s commonly known that a rebuilding process takes seven years to finish. We’ve just drafted for year three.

In two years, David Kahn has blown up this joke of a franchise, the Detroit Lions of the NBA, the laughingstock of professional sports.

The current roster stands:

PG: Jonny Flynn, (Ramon Sessions), Luke Ridnour
SG: Martell Webster, Wayne Ellington, Corey Brewer
SF: Wesley Johnson, Lazar Hayward
PF: Kevin Love, Michael Beasley, Nikola Pekovic
C: Darko Milicic, Ryan Hollins

Longer, faster, better shooters, better defenders, better rebounders.

Add Ricky Rubio to that list, and it looks even better.

The oldest player on this team is now 29-year-old Luke Ridnour. Next? 25-year-old Ryan Hollins.

This is how you rebuild. You reinvent. You redefine. You develop a philosophy. You get younger. You find players who fit. You trade players who don’t fit. You evaluate. You make tough decisions. You don’t overpay. You stockpile assets for the future.

You start over.

Only the most well-run teams (read: the Spurs and Lakers), can rebuild from simple mediocrity. Most, including our Wolves, need to categorically start from scratch.

And kudos to David Kahn for recognizing this 15 years before his predecessor.

The list of bad decisions and even worse draft picks made by the previous administration is staggering. Staggering.

I challenge you to name one decision made in the last two years that will haunt the Wolves franchise more than illegally signing Joe Smith to a nine-year, $90 million contract. Or trading Sam Cassell and a first-round pick to the Clippers for Marko Jaric, a deal the team still, to this moment, has hanging over its head. Or drafting Ndudi Ebi before Josh Howard. Or signing Mike James to a $20 million deal. Or signing Wally Szczerbiak to a $66 million deal. Or signing resident hand-slapper Mark Madsen to a five-year deal. Or signing Troy Hudson and Trenton Hassell to multi-year deals.

You can’t. Because there aren’t any.

What needed to be done, and what hadn’t been done in franchise history, was an honest evaluation of talent.

When Kahn and Kurt Rambis came across the conglomeration of talentless clowns McHale had assembled, they rightly determined that a blow-up was necessary.

With the trade of Al Jefferson to the Jazz, consider the fire out.

Al Jefferson is the last piece that needed to go, and it was obvious. Jefferson is a brilliant interior tactician, with moves not seen since Kevin McHale’s days in the late 1980s.

But that’s where he’ll stay. Jefferson’s slow, prodding post game is simply irrelevant in today’s fast-paced, full-court game. The old-fashioned game, the back-to-the-basket, drop step, up-and-under died two decades ago, and it shows McHale’s unbelievable lack of understanding when he “fell in love” with Jefferson three years ago.

Perhaps Jefferson’s game reminded McHale of a simpler time. Of a time when a sweet up-and-under move wouldn’t be swatted by a high-flying, juiced up power forward. Or of a time when a double or triple team wouldn’t arrive immediately after a certain player gets a touch.

Times have changed. The game has changed. McHale never understood it. Jefferson never adjusted to it.

Name one PF in basketball who plays like that now. Tim Duncan, maybe. But with Duncan, you’re talking about a top-five power forward in history, whose dazzling post moves are only rivaled by brilliant defense and rebounding.

Jefferson isn’t close to that.

You can say “20-10” all you want. Say Jefferson’s the best post-up player in basketball. Say he’ll be a perennial all-star. Say Kahn choosing Love and Beasley over Jefferson will haunt the franchise. Say that the team didn’t get enough. Say he could’ve been the biggest piece to the puzzle.

Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. On all counts.

This was the right move. At the right time. For the right amount.

1) Love and Beasley > Jefferson.

Love has improved in almost every major statistical category in his sophomore campaign. Per 36 minutes, he upped his shooting percentage to 48%, a particularly impressive feat considering he shot from the perimeter over seven times more this year, including a solid 33% from the three-point line. He improved his interior passing, doubling his assist total to three per game; He doubled his steal total per game; and he decreased his personal fouls per game.

And we know Kevin Love is top five rebounder in basketball.

Offensive rebounding percentage (ORB%): (an estimate of the percentage of available offensive rebounds a player grabbed while he was on the floor) = 100 * (Offensive rebounds * (Team minutes played / 5)) / (minutes played * (Team offensive rebounds + Opponent defensive rebounds)).

a) Love’s ORB% was 14.5%. Incredible for a 21-year-old. What this means is that Love grabbed almost 15% of all available offensive rebounds when he’s on the floor. There are nine other players on the floor, five of whom are attempting to grab a defensive rebound, and Love snatched 15% of the available missed shots. For comparison, Dwight Howard’s ORB% was 12%. Jefferson? 8%.

Defensive rebounding percentage (DRB%): (an estimate of the percentage of available defensive rebounds a player grabbed while he was on the floor) = 100 * (DRB * (Team minutes played / 5)) / (minutes played * (Team defensive rebounds + Opponent offensive rebounds)).

a) Love’s DRB% was 28.6%, up from 27.3% last season. One of the best rates in basketball. What this means is that Love instinctively got defensive positioning and, almost 29% of the time, grabbed the rebound before any of the nine other players. Dwight Howard’s DRB% was 31.3%. Jefferson’s was 24.2%.

Total rebounding percentage (TRB%): (an estimate of the percentage of available rebounds a player grabbed while he was on the floor) = 100 * (Total rebounds * (Team minutes played / 5)) / (Minutes played * (Team total rebounds + Opponent total rebounds)).

a) Love’s TRB%, the percentage of total available rebounds grabbed while on the floor: 21.5%, up from 21%.

b) Jefferson’s TRB% was 16%, the lowest of his career.

Total assist percentage (AST%): (an estimate of the percentage of teammate field goals a player assisted while he was on the floor) = 100 * Assists / (((Minutes played / (Team minutes played / 5)) * Team FG) – FG).

This is particularly important in a triangle style, as interior passing completes the offense.

a) Love’s AST% was 12.9%, up from 6.8%.

b) Jefferson’s was 10%, the highest of his career.

Per 36 minutes, Love was and will continue to be, far more productive than Al Jefferson. Per 36 minutes, at 21 years old, Love’s line was 18/14/3. That’s incredible. Jefferson, at the same age, had a line of 15/10/1. At 25 years old, after six professional seasons, Jefferson was still not as productive as Love was in his second season, with a line of 19/10/2.

Love shoots 82% from the line. Jefferson shoots 68%. Love’s had a wrist injury. Jefferson’s had a serious knee injury. Jefferson and Love are both atrociously poor defenders, but Love’s offensive rating –an estimate of points produced per 100 possessions on the floor – is 113, a full seven points higher than Jefferson, the supposed offensive wizard.

Everything points to Love.

Beasley, on the other hand, is a wild card. But there is no reason not to take a chance on an unquestionably talented 21-year-old with maturity issues. Beasley can score. He can rebound. Let Rambis teach him fundamentals, throw him in for 20-25 minutes per game, and see what comes. For $5 million, you take that chance.

2) This was the right time to trade Jefferson. During the season, Jefferson’s value continued to plummet due to lingering questions about his knee and recurring – and justified – questions about his conditioning and defensive play. His value was never lower. (For reference of just how poor Jefferson is defensively, just look to 2007-2009. He had, statistically, the single worst on court/off court defensive differential in the league at a +12.1., meaning that for each 48 minutes Jefferson played, the Wolves gave up 12.1 more points than when he’s not on the floor. Eddy Curry’s defensively differential was 6.2.

3) So Kahn waited. Jefferson got healthier, started producing more, and his value began to hover around where it was in 2008.

1. But we offered Jefferson + for Danny Granger. Denied.
2. We offered Jefferson + for the No. 7 and Tayshaun Prince. Rejected.
3. We offered him to Chicago. No thanks.
4. We offered him to Golden State in a three-team deal with the Knicks that would’ve landed Anthony Randolph. Not interested.
5. We offered him to the Mavericks for Erick Dampier’s expiring contract. No. Unless the Wolves took back Matt Carroll and DeShawn Stevenson’s ridiculous contracts.

The interest for Al Jefferson was dramatically lighter than his proponents are claiming. NBA execs aren’t stupid. They know Jefferson’s not a number one piece. They know he’s not interested in playing defense. And they know about his knees. The market wasn’t there.

Kahn recognized it early, waited for the situation to improve, and ended up with two first-round picks and a huge trade-level exception. Remarkable. Terrific deal.

So now, not only does the team get rid of $42 million in salary on a player who’ll never be a number one piece, but they gain very valuable, very tradable assets in the future. Rebuilding while continuing to stockpile assets is vital in sustaining relevance, something the Wolves haven’t been a part of in franchise history.

Say what you want. Believe what you want.

But nothing short of a complete and utter overhaul was necessary. With Jefferson gone, the overhaul, the blow-up, the reinvention is finally complete.

Some building blocks are in place and more are coming.

All we, as fans, have to do now is wait.

“My message here is: Whoever it is, my teammates, [Celtics coach] Doc Rivers, or anyone in the organization, I want them to know I got their back.”

Please. Grow up. You don’t see Kobe Bryant engaging in that garbage, do you? You don’t see Tim Duncan throwing elbows. And where was Ray Allen during the fracas? Where was Dwyane Wade? No one’s ever questioned the intensity of Wade, yet he was nowhere to be found during the altercation.

There’s a line between wonderful intensity and pride and complete and utter stupidity.

Garnett’s crossing that line more and more.

Yahoo!’s Kelly Dwyer put it best.

The Celtics handily defeated the Heat in Game 2 without Garnett, mostly due to the wonderful interior play of The Fatter Version of Gary Trent and Ray Allen’s perimeter shooting, but the fact remains that Garnett put his team in a potentially disastrous situation, essentially throwing away home-court advantage to a team that ended the season winning 18 of 22. The Star Tribune’s Michael Rand put it beautifully:

“We all know what a competitor KG is — sometimes to the point where he looks like a maniac. Whether it was slamming the ball against his head at the free throw line as a youngster, launching [redacteds] at players and everyone in general during his prime or fixing his steely glare on teammates or opponents his Celtics years, basketball know Garnett’s intensity seldom has had an off switch — and apparently it still doesn’t, even as he clearly moves down the back side of his career.

That said: A veteran doesn’t put his team in a position where it will be without one of its key cogs in a vital playoff game. That’s not having “their back.” That’s putting their backs against a wall. If the Celtics lose tonight and give away home court advantage to a still-dangerous Heat squad that went 18-4 down the stretch in the regular season, the onus will fall squarely on KG and his foolish elbow.”

Relative value also deserves to be discussed, as well. Quentin Richardson means little to the Heat. He’s a wildly inconsistent non-factor on most nights, and serves as a poor man’s J.R. Smith on others. He’s a poor defender, average rebounder for his size and simply wouldn’t play on a championship squad. Garnett, on the other hand, seems blissfully unaware of just how important he is to the Celtics’ chances to advance. Even with his diminishing skills and weaker-by-the-day knees, Garnett is still unquestionably the defensive identity of the squad, and serves as the emotional leader of one of the most veteran teams in basketball.

And yet Garnett has no regrets. Did you notice who was involved in the fray? Richardson and Glen Davis, who missed two months with a broken thumb after punching his “homie.” This is the company Garnett was in.

What a disgrace.

And by the way, Richardson’s right! Pierce has more career-ending injuries in a season than Grant Hill’s had in his career. It’s unbelievable. I’ve never seen a player so often writhing in pain, only to be back on the court nine seconds later. What a warrior.

Quentin Richardson is simply the moron who, because of his lack of basketball value, attempts to feel important by trash talking. And Garnett, the veteran, the leader, fell for it. Hook, line and sinker.

2. Meet the best 10-year-old basketball player in the country. Ah, reminds me of me back in the Hopkins rec league. If only Jaylin sported the sexy Horace Grant rec specs. Then he’d be perfect.

3. Loved Rick Reilly’s Homecoming Joe Mauer. Watch the videos. Mauer introduces Reilly to “squish ball,” a game Mauer and his brothers used to play in his St. Paul home’s backyard. On the first pitch, Mauer smashes his neighbor’s window, and then personally goes over to apologize. Some of Reilly’s  other observations:

• If Joe Mauer didn’t exist, Norman Rockwell would’ve had to invent him.
• The Minnesota Twins’ superstar catcher answers every piece of fan mail personally.
• When he’s really mad, he says “heck.”
• This is a handsome bachelor who refused an offer to be, well … The Bachelor!
• Joe was the high-school athlete who USA Today chose as the best baseball AND football player in the country. The last time that happened was … NEVER!
• He is the strong, silent, pitch-murdering type. In his first six years as a Twin, he won three batting titles and an MVP.

In Reilly’s weekly chat, he also noted … “learned a lot about mauer, too. this guy should run for president. every day his senior year in high school, for instance (when USA today voted him the nation’s best high school football AND baseball player), he would eat lunch with the only blind kid in his school. wait for him every day and make sure he ate with him.”

4. Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger was just suspended six games for “personal conduct in violation to NFL code.” Or in layman’s terms, “STOP SEXUALLY ASSAULTING WOMEN! You’re 28. Stop trying to pick up drunk college girls in bars.” It’s in the fine print of the NFL bylaws.

5. Looks like Tiger’s Buddhism is really working. Especially the restraint part. Good for you. What would Earl think now?

6. Former colleague Jon Marthaler wrote a wonderful comparison piece on Target Field and the Target Center. The best?

“Target Field Feature: Pine trees in center-field batter’s eye
Equivalent Target Center Suggestion: Pine trees in front of Timberwolves hoop

Let’s face it: the pine trees would be more active on defensive rotations than Al Jefferson.”

7. I’m not a big rap guy, but apparently there’s a new song called “NY State of Mind.” I like the New Hampshire version better.

8. Comedian Patton Oswalt’s newest stand-up routine. Hilarious. Sky Cake!

And after about the ninth round, I hadn’t heard of most of the players, so it was mostly a crap shoot from there.

C: Mike Napoli

1B: Justin Morneau

2B: Chase Utley

3B: Gordon Beckham

SS: Ryan Theriot

OF: Jacoby Ellsbury

OF: Adam Jones

OF: Denard Span

Util: Chris Coghlan

SP: Jon Lester

SP: Ubaldo Jimenez

SP: Clay Bucholz

SP: David Price

SP: Phil Hughes

RP: Francisco Cordero

RP: Neftali Feliz

RP: Franklin Morales

Bench: Scott Sizemore, Alex Gordon, Marco Scutaro, Milton Bradley, Orlando Hudson, Xavier Nady, Lyle Overbay and Carl Pavano.

a) “I don’t know what to make of Jonny Flynn yet. He’s been very inconsistent.”

b) “Kevin Love is our most complete player.”

c) After I asked about trading Jefferson, and the likelihood it happens. “Look, Shaq’s on his fifth team, and he’s a top-five center of all time. I probably will, at some point, have to trade him. Is that point near? Probably not.”

d) “I’ve told Kevin this, too, but Kevin Love is the absolute last player I’d trade from this team.”

e) “I’m forming the opinion that it was better that Ricky has a couple more years to develop over in Spain. To have him here, this year, would’ve put enormous, and unfair, pressure on an 18-year-old.”

f) “I truly expect Ricky to be in Minnesota in 2011. He’s the kind of player that will not only put fans in our stands, but he will put people in our opponent’s stands.”

g) After I asked how the fans could have confidence in the drafting philosophy of the team, considering there’s been one great pick in franchise history, Kahn replied, “Well, I could probably comb through the history of the franchise to find a second one …”

h) “We need a 2, 3, and 5. We’re set at the 1 and 4. But wings and a true 5. I hope to re-sign Darko, but we need wings and bigs.”

He also took several not-so-subtle digs at the previous administration.

i) “I’m not going to be satisfied with just making the playoffs every season, and being resigned to the 16th or 17th overall pick in the draft.”

j) “When we get our star, I’ll know how to build complementary pieces.”

And my personal favorite, which comforted me to no end because it showed his intelligence and rational nature. (Finally, a GM who sees what’s ACTUALLY happening on the court!).

k) “As it stands, we don’t have a best player. And we don’t have a second-best player. I want to emphasize that I know that.”

2. Continuing that theme, our guy Al Jefferson said the following gem after last night’s win over the Kings, the team’s first win in 36 days: “One thing I have to realize: We play well when I play great defense,” Jefferson said. “That’s what’s going to win a lot of games for us.” Three years it’s taken for that message to sink in. Three years.

3. Just this week the Wolves began their Most Improved Campaign for Corey Brewer. Local company Caribou Coffee is currently concocting “Brewer’s Blend,” and shipping it to voters across the country. The campaign is nauseatingly cute, but sadly doesn’t have a shot in hell at persuading voters. Brewer’s got about five players ahead of him for the award.

4. The Dayton Flyers just won the NIT. Does this mean they’re the 65th best team in the nation? Watching this game, I can’t see how the Gophers, an 11 seed, could’ve beaten either of these squads.

5. This concerns me for a variety of reasons. Exactly what we need, more justified security at airports. Richard Reid tries to light his damn shoes on fire … now we all have to take our shoes off. Underwear-bomber guy tries to light his genitals on fire … and you know we’ll have  one-by-one strip searches for each passenger soon. And why the hell is this idiot bringing a LOADED pistol to an airport anyway? Honest to god. What does he think, a gun fight’s going to break out in his terminal?

6. Couldn’t sleep one night, and between the late-night male enhancement commercials and the get-rich-quick real estate schemes, I came across United People for Christ founder Rev. Peter Popoff and his “miracle spring water.” This guy apparently has a limitless supply of holy water, and sprays his followers with it causing their ails, whether it’s credit card debt or rheumatoid arthritis, to immediately cease.  I can even order my very own Supernatural Debt Cancellation Kit!

7. Last week I watched, finally, “Network,” the 1976 journalism classic. If you’re involved in journalism, or care about journalism, or are interested in media, or simply love wonderful writing and even better acting, you need to see this movie. So much of what they dealt with 34 years ago rings even louder today. Terrific movie. Here’s an example of one of its classic rants. The boss of the television station is ripping into prophetic anchor Howard Beale …

“You have meddled with the primal forces of nature, Mr. Beale, and I won’t have it! Is that clear? You think you’ve merely stopped a business deal. That is not the case! The Arabs have taken billions of dollars out of this country, and now they must put it back! It is ebb and flow, it’s tidal gravity! It is ecological balance!

You are an old man who thinks in terms of nations and peoples. There are no nations. There are no peoples. There are no Russians. There are no Arabs. There are no third worlds. There is no West. There is only one holistic system of systems, one vast and immane, interwoven, interacting, multivariate, multinational dominion of dollars. Petro-dollars, electro-dollars, multi-dollars, reichmarks, rins, rubles, pounds, and shekels. It is the international system of currency which determines the totality of life on this planet. That is the natural order of things today.

That is the atomic and subatomic and galactic structure of things today! And YOU have meddled with the primal forces of nature, and YOU … WILL … ATONE! Am I getting through to you, Mr. Beale? You get up on your little twenty-one inch screen and howl about America and democracy. There is no America. There is no democracy. There is only IBM, and ITT, and AT&T, and DuPont, Dow, Union Carbide, and Exxon. Those *are* the nations of the world today.

What do you think the Russians talk about in their councils of state, Karl Marx? They get out their linear programming charts, statistical decision theories, minimax solutions, and compute the price-cost probabilities of their transactions and investments, just like we do. We no longer live in a world of nations and ideologies, Mr. Beale. The world is a college of corporations, inexorably determined by the immutable bylaws of business. The world is a business, Mr. Beale. It has been since man crawled out of the slime.

And our children will live, Mr. Beale, to see that … perfect world … in which there’s no war or famine, oppression or brutality. One vast and ecumenical holding company, for whom all men will work to serve a common profit, in which all men will hold a share of stock. All necessities provided, all anxieties tranquilized, all boredom amused.”

8. Two weeks ago, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu proclaimed that Israel would continue its expansion of 1,600 housing units in East Jerusalem, and then had the unfathomable audacity to ask the Palestinians, who have said they would not restart the peace negotiation unless the new project was scrapped, not to place new restrictions on the talks.

Please. That goes both ways, Mr. Netanyahu. What unbelievable hypocrisy. Israel claims to want peace. It claims to be for a two-state solution. It claims to want progress. This is some way to show it. Pouring gas on hot coals doesn’t scream a desire for peace or even a willingness to negotiate. This is bull-headed, stubborn and anti-peace legislation, and the U.S. has every right to be angry. And so do the Palestinians. It’s getting increasingly more difficult to support this government in Israel.

9. I can’t decide if the Tea Party has legitimate concerns — deficit reduction, federal government take overs, etc. — or if they’re simply a more modern version of the Klan.

10. Last month a conservative sect of the Texas Board of Education injected a new curriculum into the state’s social studies, history and economics lesson plans. Mark Morford has something to say about it, and it’s, as usual, strikingly relevant and wonderful. “Dear Texas: Please shut up. Sincerely, History.”

#40: The Grumpy Old Reporter

He’s been through three publishers, four editors and a revolving door of journalists. He was there on your first day and he’ll be there on your last.

He types with two fingers. He wears the same tattered jacket from some festival that took place before most people in the newsroom were born.

He shuns technology. When he talks about lead, he’s not talking about a journalist’s first graph. He still remembers typesetting. Hell, he still uses a Rolodex. While journalists born after the Carter administration click away on their Blackberries and iPhones, the entire newsroom can hear the screeching noise coming from the grumpy old reporter’s cassette tape recorder as he plays back an interview. Most journalists have never even owned a cassette tape before. The grumpy old reporter still refers blackberries as a fruit and couldn’t use an iPhone if his life depended on it.

He’s set in his ways.

If he’s not bitching when the bosses are making changes, he’s bitching because they never fix anything. To him, the best days of the newspaper have passed. He smokes his cigarettes two feet from the entrance while complaining about having to smoke outside. All journalists like to bitch, but frankly, no one bitches more, or better, than him.

While he takes every story assignment begrudgingly, he’s usually the first to volunteer to cover a last-minute sanitation meeting.

In a newsroom full of sarcastic pessimists, he’s the most sarcastic and the most pessimistic. He can and often cracks jokes about fatal crashes, schoolchildren and babies. People wonder how he’s managed to stay married to the same woman for 30 years – wait, when was the last time anyone saw the wife?

While cub reporters mock the grumpy old reporter for actually pulling out a phonebook to look up an address or name or thumb through a physical, real-life dictionary for a definition, he’s the one they run to when they need background on a story, a source to quote or find out where to get drunk at 9:30 a.m. on a Sunday.

He’ll call a journalist out on their bullshit, lazy reporting, typos and errors. And he’s what every good journalist needs. Secretly, all journalists hope they can stay in the industry long enough to become one themselves.

What a wonderful post. And true. Every newsroom has one. In the Strib’s there’s an 89-year-old sports columnist who’s been working at the paper for 65 years. Before that he was the GM of the Minneapolis Lakers. He can’t hear, has, on record, confused Pro-Bowler E.J. Henderson with younger brother Erin, records his interviews on tape and calls Bobby Knight and George Steinbrenner “close personal friends.” No one’s been there longer; no one has more connections; and no one cares more about the paper.

2. No. 1 reminds me of a great late ’70s program that was a spinoff of the Mary Tyler Moore show. Here’s a clip. “Lou Grant” is one of the greatest newsroom characters of all time.

3. Another spot-on rant from San Francisco Chronicle’s Mark Morford. Entitled “All politicians are madhouse freaks.” D.C.’s never been more divided, the American public’s never hated Congress more, and Morford captures the moment brilliantly.

4. Not that it truly matters, but Joe Mauer was one vote away from a unanimous MVP award last year. The voter who chose that drunkard Miguel Cabrera over Mauer, Keizo Konishi of the Kyodo News, finally gave a reason for his vote. Not sure I buy it. What do you think?

5. SI’s Joe Posnanski’s latest on Wilt Chamberlain. This is a guy who, for his career, scored over 30 points per game, pulled down 23 rebounds per game and dished out almost five assists per game. Unbelievable career numbers. In 1961, he played an average of 48.5 minutes per game. And yes, games were still 48 minutes then.

6. So this is why Bryant McKinnie was so decidedly mediocre this season. Got it. At least now we know. And we also know that he’s a completely selfish jackass.

7. Says President of Basketball Operations David Kahn, “Ricky’s coming.” Even if he’s not, it’s absolutely the right move to keep pressing this point. Keeps Rubio’s trade value high. On a related note, ESPN’s John Hollinger called Wolves prospect Nikola Pekovic “arguably the best player in Europe — a bit short for a 4 but a beast around the basket.”

8. I’m not a big Olympics guy, but Joannie Rochette’s short program was one of the most emotional moments of the 17-day stretch for me. Her performance and astounding grace were nothing short of awe-inspiring.

9. 10 years ago, Dan Snyder gave 40-year-old Darrell Green a five-year extension to play CB for his Redskins. Shortly after, he ran a 4.2 40-yard dash. 10 years later, he’s lost a step. A step. Maybe two. No more than that.

10. Stephen Colbert normally does nothing for me. His asinine “character” usually falls flat and borders on the humorless. But this was one of his best.

11. Why I’ll never live in New York: 178 square feet for $944 per month.

12. My best find since Candace Cameron’s ridiculous evangelical Web site: Former Gophers basketball great Dusty Rychart’s personal site. Stats, pictures and his own personal blog are there. No store, yet. But it’s coming.

Milicic is well-known for being one of the biggest draft-day busts in NBA history, selected second overall by the Detroit Pistons in 2003. Milicic, a true seven-footer from Serbia, was drafted before Carmelo Anthony, Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade. The Wolves, however, didn’t fare much better in the draft, selecting Ndudi Ebi 24 picks later.

The trade gives the Wolves its first true center since Radoslav Nesterovic, and will give President of Basketball Operations ample time to evaluate PFs Kevin Love and Al Jefferson at their true positions.

More later.

David Kahn would be an idiot to accept this deal. Deng’s not a first option offensively, and leaves the team without any kind of post option. Joakim Noah would have to be included in this deal. He’s an outstanding interior defender with a rapidly improving offensive game.

Jefferson’s salary: $12 million

Deng’s salary: $10.365 million

Noah’s salary: $2.456 million

The salaries match. This is a trade that would make sense for both sides.

PG: Flynn

SG: Brewer

SF: Deng

PF: Love

C: Noah

More later.

The former LSU Tiger won’t be 24 until August and has almost unlimited potential, but is about as mentally stable as Dimitrius Underwood, says ProBasketballTalk’s Ron Mahoney:

“The allure of Tyrus Thomas is obvious: when Thomas is active and engaged, he can seriously impact games with his defense and lead a one-man assault on the rim on offense. He has the unique package of length, quickness, size, and athleticism necessary to be a versatile all-purpose defender. But something gets lost between the idea of Tyrus Thomas in theory and the actual Tyrus Thomas in practice. He hasn’t quite figured out how to contribute in meaningful ways on a nightly basis, but through no fault of his physical limitations. The real game for Thomas rests solely between his ears, and once he figures that out (supposing he eventually does)? Stock up on canned goods, buy up all the bottled water you can, and head down into the shelter.”

Thomas’ athleticism has never been questioned. But then he disappears, appearing overly cautious in the interior and, more often than not, disinterested in whatever’s happening on the floor.

Sounds a little bit like Al Jefferson. At least on defense.

Per 36 minutes, Thomas has remained remarkably consistent throughout his four-year career, averaging 14 points, almost 10 rebounds, two assists, almost two steals and almost three blocks.

I’m not sold on the idea, but the Wolves do have three first-round picks in 2010, multiple second-rounders this year, Brian Cardinal and Mark Blount.

Lots of assets available. Lots of potential in Thomas.

Adding Thomas for the third first-round pick and an expiring contract would be about the most Kahn should offer. That way, the team would continue be in position to draft Ohio State’s Evan Turner, who looks better by the game, and would still be in a financially prime position to bring in a Type-B free agent.

After the season, re-sign Thomas to something like a 3-year, $21 million deal, which, ironically, is the same deal Latrell Sprewell denied could “feed his family.”

The salary cap dropped from $58.68 million to $57.7 million from 2008-2009 to 2009-2010, and it’s expected to drop another 3-5%, putting the cap for 2010-2011 right around $55 million.

After this season, the Wolves payroll drops to just over $35 million. Assuming the team spends the $1 million to maintain Nathan Jawai, and trades away, say, Brain Cardinal’s expiring contract at $6.8 million, that puts the Wolves at $40.8 million — a full $14 million of potential free agent money to throw, perhaps, at Rudy Gay.

Memphis, on the other hand, is more strapped financially. A the end of this season, the Grizzlies have already committed $47 million to its roster, including $7.6 million to Ms. Adriana Lima.

That leaves Memphis with only about $8 million to try to sign Gay to a long-term deal. And that won’t suffice.

Luol Deng is a similar player to Rudy Gay, and the Bulls signed him, at age 23, to a six-year, $71 million deal in the 2008 offseason. The same type of offer will be needed for Gay. Offer a five-year, $60 deal to Gay and work from there.

Then, at the beginning of next season, your lineup becomes:

PG: Flynn, Sessions

SG: Turner, Ellington

SF: Gay, Brewer

PF: Love, Thomas

C: Jefferson, Hollins, Jawai

Now that’s a lineup.

Not only does Thomas provide the athletic big man for whom David Kahn’s been clamoring, but he also provides solid depth at the forward position, and the ability to swat floaters in the lane. The current roster has no such player. Adding Gay provides the first true scoring 2/3 since J.R. Rider, and he’ll have just turned 24 by the season’s inception. Additionally, Gay shifts Brewer back to his natural position, which is off the bench. He’s an energy player on a good team, and adding Gay would slide him directly back into that role.

Palin fits right in. And she’s their hero.

At the beginning of her speech, Palin said, with no sign of her tongue anywhere near her cheek, “It’s so inspiring to see real people — not politicos, inside-the-beltway professionals — come out, stand up and speak out for common sense conservative principles.”

Real people? The damn convention cost $500 per ticket! Real people my ass. Try rich people who don’t think their inherited money should be used to help the American people.

In her speech, which was stupid from the beginning, Palin indicated that the upset victory by Scott Brown in the Mass. special election shows Obama’s vulnerability and the widespread discontent over the President’s policies.

Yes, people electing a populist, pro-choice, pro-gay marriage, pro-universal health care Senator shows the country’s increasing conservatism. Moron.

From the article:

“Pam Silleman, a 52-year-old small business owner and Tea Party activist who traveled to the convention from California’s Napa Valley, called Palin “the Tea Party’s inspiration.”

Asked if Palin should make a bid for the White House, Silleman said, “I would like to see her in a higher office but I don’t know that she’ll do it. I wouldn’t want her to be hurt that bad.”

Fremont Brown, a supporter who had “Palin 2012″ bumper stickers with him, said Palin is “the right person.”

“She has fervent heart and she’s conservative,” said the 59-year-old Brown, who owns a small business in North Carolina. “She was the only one truly qualified with executive experience of the four who ran in 2008. The others were glorified lobbyists.”"

Palin was the only one with executive experience. Honest to God, you can’t make this stuff up. John McCain, Joe Biden, Barack Obama. No experience. This is the Tea Party, apparently. And stop trying to protect this woman! For Christ’s sake, if she wants to put her feet in the fire, she’ll have to learn to get burned. She can’t hide behind colloquialisms and moose jokes forever. Sometime she’s going to have to turn to substance. If she can. Which I doubt.

“In the Fox interview, Palin said she receives daily e-mails from experts on topical issues that have helped her become “more astute” than she was during the 2008 election campaign.”

Hard not to be.

2. Does Chicago ever elect a moral politician?

3. I’m not proud to be a graduate from HHS this week.

4. I am, however, proud to be a Vikings fan.  I passed through Hattiesburg on a road trip this past summer, and I bought gas at the Exxon in the photo. And we contemplated eating at the “Mazzios” before choosing the local Subway. Where a father and son loudly prayed before eating their sandwiches.

5. If JaMarcus Russell spent as much time watching game film as he apparently does at the jewelry store, perhaps he’d be an adequate NFL quarterback.

6. I’m so tired of these wackos.

7. ESPN’s Henry Abbott wrote a blog post about the progression of Ricky Rubio and linked to an impressive analysis of Rubio’s Euroleague performance and how it translates to the NBA.

From the article:

Let’s go with per-36 minute numbers. Here are Rubio’s per-36 numbers in the Euroleague:
11.0 pts, 5.5 reb, 9.7 ast, .390 FG%, 22.2 PER

And here’s what Ricky’s per-36 minute numbers look like when translated to the NBA:
8.3 pts, 6.5 reb, 12.7 ast, .343 FG%, 15.6 PER

– Consider that Steve Nash leads the NBA in assists per 36 minutes with 11.8, followed by Chris Paul at 10.6, and Rubio’s 12.7 number jumps off the page.

– Consider also that Kyle Lowry leads NBA point guards in rebounds per 36 minutes with 5.8, followed by Jason Kidd at 5.3 and Russell Westbrook at 5.0, and you start to get a sense of Ricky’s nose for the ball as a rebounder, too.

Mr. Haubs also compares Ricky Rubio to current NBA point guards Jason Kidd, Steve Nash, Chris Paul, Rajon Rondo and Derrick Rose.

8. Shaun White practices on his own private half pipe. I can’t wait to see him in Vancouver.

And you know what?

It feels good.

Because that feeling comes from relevance, a quality the sports teams from Minnesota rarely achieve. The last championship in this town was 1991, and since then there have been 28 playoff appearances and only six tries in the game or series before the championship. That’s a long drought.

Relevance brings rain.

The game last night certainly had emotional similarities to the ’98 debacle, but for some reason, it wasn’t quite as difficult to swallow.

As colleague Mike Rand writes:

“This one feels different. “Better” is perhaps not the right word, but different, in a good way, describes it. See, when we signed up for This Year of Favre, we signed up for a ride. We signed up for a bonus season that seemed unfathomable. Really? The guy who tormented the Vikings for 16 years is going to come in and try to transform them into a team that has a chance to win it all? And he did. This season doesn’t happen without Favre. And if you say you would have rather gone 10-6 again and ducked out of the playoffs early with someone else at the helm, you’re crazy. That’s not why you play or watch the game. All you want is a chance.

Don’t get us wrong: we still had trouble getting to sleep, wired from an unbelievable game that had plenty of crushing moments. We still woke up at 5 a.m. and spent the next 90 minutes replaying certain things. The vast majority of that time was spent wondering about that final sequence in regulation. We kept imagining some way, any way, that the final play of regulation ended with Ryan Longwell getting a chance to put a toe on the ball. We even imagined the collective triumphant scream from this entire state. The Vikings didn’t commit that penalty. They ran into the line one more time and set up a 50-yarder. Or Brett Favre didn’t throw across his body, instead hobbling for a few yards down the side lines to at least get Minnesota back in the fringes of Longwell’s range. But none of that happened. We wondered what if the Vikings hadn’t committed five turnovers, a crippling string that started with one of the game’s 47 complexion-turning plays late in the first half, when a botched exchange took away what could have been a critical halftime lead. But this was a game, and these were human mistakes. They were Vikings’ fans greatest fears magnified on a grand stage — Adrian Peterson fumbling, Favre trying to do too much — but again, they were mistakes. They happen. We made peace with that after the game, and we still had peace with it in the morning …

If you’re of the mind that it’s the Vikings, and it will always end poorly, well … you can have your fatalism.

We could have subscribed to it in 1998. That was the year everything was supposed to go right, and everything did go right, up until the very last chance for it to go wrong. That was the year a kneeldown symbolized coming up lame in a game Vegas saw as a double-digit victory on home turf. That was the year that can still ruin our day. That was not this year.

We could have subscribed to it in 2000. That was the year the Vikings caught an unbelievable number of breaks, somehow managed to be road favorites in the NFC title game, and then played one of the flattest and least excusable games in pro sports history. That was not this year.

This was, to be sure, a new and creative way to lose a big game. But it was not for a lack of effort. It was not for a lack of heart. It was not to an inferior opponent. And it was not on home turf.”

Was it still stomach-turning? Yes. Was it aggravating as all hell? Completely. Was it still emotionally draining? Without a doubt. But Rand’s absolutely right. The Saints were favored; the game was on the road; and the Vikings played about as well as they had all season. They completely dominated the Saints in every aspect of the game except for physically hanging on to the ball.

But they also committed five turnovers. Five. To the Saints’ one. Five to one.

In the second quarter:

• Punt returner Darius Reynaud muffed a return at the Vikings’ 17, but immediately recovered the ball.

• After a Reggie Bush muffed punt return with about a minute remaining, Adrian Peterson’s fumbled away an opportunity to get a 21-14 halftime lead and an ever-important momentum shift. Favre was credited with the fumble, but Peterson’s hands weren’t open nearly far enough to grasp the handoff.

In the third quarter:

• With about 11 minutes left, Peterson fumbled again near midfield, but FB Naufahu Tahi sprinted backward and jumped on the ball.
• Six minutes later, Peterson again fumbled at the Vikings’ 25, but recovered his own drop seven yards downfield at the 32.

In the fourth quarter:

• After catching a pass at the Saints’ 20-yard-line, DE Will Smith forced a Percy Harvin fumble, which was recovered by Remi Ayodale.
• Bernard Berrian, who had his best game of the season Sunday, caught a Favre pass at the Saints’ 10, but was immediately hit by Tracy Porter, who forced the fumble. Jonathan Vilma recovered it.

That’s six fumbles. Three lost. Tack on two interceptions, and that’s eight times where the Vikings could’ve lost possession. Eight! They were lucky to get away with five.

Indeed there were instances, particularly on that last Saints drive in OT, where officiating calls bugged me. On 4th and 1 at the Minnesota 43, Pierre Thomas took the handoff, cut left, and tried to leap over the pile. Midair, linebacker Chad Greenway met Thomas, who was holding the ball hear his helmet in an effort to reach for the first down, and Greenway’s helmet jarred the ball loose. As Thomas was falling, he re-gained possession, but came down with the ball tucked in his midsection, a good foot or two behind where it was before he fumbled it.

Booth review: Play stands, first down Saints. Was the evidence conclusive? Maybe not. But it sure looked it to me.

That bugged me.

Next play: Brees dropped back to pass, threw a pass down the left sideline to something called David Thomas, who fell just before the ball arrived. Pass interference on Ben Leber who, admittedly, didn’t even turn around to look for the ball. But the contact was minimal, and the ball was at least three yards overthrown.

Was it catchable? I didn’t think so. Was there contact? Minimal, maybe. Incidental, probably. Did Leber look back for the ball? No. That’s why the interference call was made.

Was it the right call at that juncture of the game? I don’t know.

But that bugged me.

Two plays later, Brees, under heavy pressure, threw a short pass across the middle to Robert Meachem, who bobbled the pass at first, but looked to have come down with it. Upon further review, it looked to me like Meachem never gained possession, bobbled the ball on way down, and trapped it between the ground and his leg.

Booth review: Play stands, completed catch.

That really bugged me.

But to blame the officials is not only futile, but incorrect. The failure lies with the Minnesota offensive line, which allowed the New Orleans defensive line to completely maul Favre all night long. No sacks for the Saints, but Favre was hit almost 30% of the times he dropped back, the highest percentage all season.

The failure lies with Adrian Peterson, who, although credited with two, put the ball on the ground three times.

The failure lies with the coaching staff, which, after a timeout, didn’t know which players were supposed to be on the field for the most important third down of the season, resulting in an unfathomable 12-men-in-the-huddle penalty.

If that’s not absolute lunacy, I don’t know what is.

But what it comes down to is turnovers. It always does in football. You can’t turn the ball over five times, and expect to win the game. You just can’t.

If there is any solace to be had from this game, it’s that the Vikings really, truly almost did.