SDH's 2013/2014 NBA Worst to First Previews and Predictions: 12. Minnesota Timberwolves

+Minnesota Timberwolves  Overall Win/Loss Record :  31-51,  fifth place Northwest Division	Last Season’s Rank 23	Projected 2013/2014 Finish 12
Last season’s Team Statistics and League Rank Points Scored: 95.7 (20th) Points Allowed: 98.1 (15th) Team FG%: .439 (24th) Opponent’s FG%: .468 (24th) Team FT%: .742 (21st) Team Three Point FG%: .305 (30th) Rebounds per game: 42.0 (14th) Opponents rebounds per game: 42.1 (16th) Turnovers per game: 14.1 (17th) Opponents turnovers per game: 15.3 (2nd)	Returning Individual Statistical Leaders Scoring (ppg): Nikola Pekovic (16.3) Rebounds per game:   Nikola Pekovic (8.8) Minutes per game: Nikola Pekovic (31.6) Assists per game:  Ricky Rubio (7.3) Field Goal Percentage: Nikola Pekovic (.520) Free Throw Percentage: Ricky Rubio (.800) Three Point FG Percentage: JJ Barea (.346) Steals per game: Ricky Rubio (2.4) Blocked Shots per game: Nikola Pekovic (0.8)
Projected Starters Based on Talent, Tenure, Paycheck and Potential Impact: C. Nikola Pekovic PF. +Kevin Love  SF. +Chase Buddinger  SG. Kevin Martin PG. Ricky Rubio	Second Unit Roster Order Ranked on Talent, Tenure, Paycheck and Potential Impact: G. JJ Barea G/F. Corey Brewer F. Dante Cunningham F. Derrick Williams G/F. Shabazz Muhammad
Analysis: It looks as if the Minnesota Timberwolves will be ready to finally climb out of the pit of despair where they have wallowed in for the last eight years and return to the post season once again.  Gone is their accursed GM whose wasted first round picks and poor free agent signings had set back the Wolves for a few years and replacing him is a familiar face who fans in Minnesota remember fondly.  Flip Saunders had coached Minnesota through its glory years where he led the team to eight straight playoff appearances from 1997 to 2004 until he was unjustly fired in 2005 by GM at the time +Kevin McHale who did so to cover his own backside.  Now after a six year hiatus which had extreme ups such as reaching the Eastern Conference Finals three straight times with +Detroit Pistons and downs such as his regrettable three year stint with the +Washington Wizards, Flip has return to the place where his career started in an effort to revitalize a once proud franchise that has recieved more of its share of cuts and bruises.  Last season, Minnesota struggled due to its roster being decimated by injuries and failed to reached the playoffs for the eighth straight season; however, with a healthy roster and some key off season additions, Both Flip and the Timberwolves look to turn things around as they have a team that not only looks that it will not only make the playoffs, but may just also challenge the +Oklahoma City Thunder for the Northwest Division crown.   It all starts at the team's core foundation of Kevin Love and Ricky Rubio who were both hampered by injuries last season as they missed games and played below their capabilities.  Love was lost as early as the preseason last year and after a failed stint where he just played 18 games had to pack it in and sit out the rest of the season while Rubio's rehab of injury that cut his rookie season short had taken longer than expected.  Once he finally stepped on the court, Rubio could buy a basket as he shot a woeful .360 from the field and by the time he arrived, it was already too late for the Timberwolves.  Now with both of them healed up and ready for the start of the opening tip off, Timberwolves fans will finally get a chance to see what they have been waiting for the past three years--the combination of Rubio and Love finally coming together for the very first time.  Hopefully Lady Luck will bless and protect those two as all of Minnesota's playoff hopes rest on the shoulders of those two players and if even one of them gets hurt, it will set the Timberwolves back once again resulting in yet again another disappointing regular season finish. To ensure that something like last season never happens again, Saunders went about acquiring a suitable supporting cast that will most definitely act as an insurance policy if heaven forbid, the worst may happen.  He started by adding a solid back court partner to Rubio signing veteran Kevin Martin who had come off a rather successful stint with the Oklahoma City Thunder as he came off the bench to post 14 points per game while shooting .426 from beyond the arc.  At thirty years old, Kevin Martin can be considered as one of the top scoring shooting guards in the league as he has averaged nearly 18.0 points per game over his nine year career which included stints with the Thunder, the +Houston Rockets and +Sacramento Kings.  He will most likely be paired with Rubio in the back court and will not only provide the perimeter scoring that the Wolves sorely lacked, but also provide that second scoring option to take the pressure off Kevin Love over the course of the season.  Thankfully for the Wolves, Saunders got a capable scorer and creator of Martin's caliber at a rather fair price of just 6.5$ per year for four years which should be considered as a virtual steal by NBA standards.   Along with Martin, Flip acquired a player who was originally was drafted by the Timberwolves who has a reputation of being a lock down perimeter defender along with providing a suitable offensive punch coming off the bench.  When Corey Brewer originally played for the Wolves, he struggled greatly especially with his hot and failed to live up to his being selected seventh overall in the 2007 NBA Draft.  Once he arrived in Denver, however, Brewer became a key player that came of the bench for the team helping the Nuggets reach the playoffs for two straight seasons thus convincing the Wolves to give the player that they had once given up on a second chance.  Brewer will most likely either back up Kevin Martin off the bench or even challenge Chase Buddinger for the starting small forward spot and at 6'9" with a myraid of basketball skill, he will be dangerous whether or not he gets the starting nod. Also as the case with Kevin Martin, Saunders got Brewer at a very affordable price tag of  5$ million per year thus giving the Timberwolves one of the leagues deepest and most talented second units consiting of JJ Barea, Derrick Williams, and Dante Cunnigham to name a few. Last but certainly not the least, Saunders retained the player that carried the Wolves through the turbulent last season as he led the team in points, rebounds, blocked shots, and minutes played per game.  Unlike his teammates in the starting five, Nikola Pekovic managed to stave off the injury bug longer playing 62 games and was rewarded for his effort with a five year 60$ million extension. With the return of Love in the lineup, Pekovic will certainly not be posting the 16 points and 9 rebounds per game as he did last season, but he will definitely give Minnesota's a sure fire second scoring option in the paint to keep opposing defenses on their toes. Altogether, the Minnesota Timberwolves come into this upcoming season with a new roster and a new attitude with one of the league's deepest and most talented team to go along with the potential All Star combination of Kevin Love and Ricky Rubio. They will certainly be one of the most intriguing teams to watch with their rather impressive roster to say the least and if the team remains moderately injury free over the duration of the regular season, they will certainly be a force to be reckoned with in the Western Conference.