Kevin Garnett came back for real Friday on a night when fans too many to count arrived at the arena wearing his jerseys new and old under their topcoat and over their undershirts and cheered the fellow who played here for 12 seasons while turning surly against the home side after the Wolves were outscored 35-10 in the decisive third quarter.

I’ll leave the game analysis for those of you who attended or watched the game on TV tonight and instead, because of the special occasion, provide the transcript from KG’s post-game interview, the only time he talked to the media during his only visit to Minnesota this season.

KG: It’s always good to go somewhere and feel the love in the building. It’s even better to win in the place I used to play. It was a good feeling. There was a lot of great energy in the building. I was just blessed that the people came out, so thank you, fans.
We’re a work in progress. I think right now our defense was ahead of our offense. I think offensively, it’s a rhythm and we’re working on trying to get that rhythm consistently night-in and night-out. But for the most part we’re playing hard, playing great defense and we’re a work in progress. We’re not perfect.
On winning his first title last season: Got a monkey off my back so to speak. Definitely a life-changing experience, winning a championship. Definitely an experience for me that I’ll take to my grave.
On that third quarter: In the first half I thought we played to their level. I thought we were definitely playing to the level of the competition, worrying about some of the things that have nothing to do with us. I thought in the second half we got back to Celtic basketball and doing the things that we know how to do. Also, we were a lot more in tune defensively to what we wanted to do. Guys were rallying, not missing rotations, the assignments were fulfilled and we didn’t look back.
Once we get a lead, we like to put our foot on the gas and I thought our second unit did a great job.

Sid’s question about whether the Wolves have a future: Next question.

On getting rested for the entire fourth quarter: A couple fourth quarters, a couple days off (laughs). Rest is always good. I’ve never been one to object to it when it was in the right sense. I think I benefited from the couple days of rest. Not only that, but the blowouts, not playing in the fourth quarter.

On hanging over Al Jefferson for a hoop: It’s not personal. People try to make it personal because we were the two obvious ones in the trade. But I don’t even think about that. It’s just another team that I play against. I don’t put no more or no less than that into it. He’s a competitor. I’m a competitor. He’s trying to make this franchise better. I’m trying to win another championship. Two different stages, two different players at two different stages in their career.
About a theatrical fist pump he did right in front of Wolves owner Glen Taylor: I didn’t know that, but who cares?

Kevin Garnett presumably is healthy and ready tonight to make his long-awaited return to Target Center that was limited only to a some waves of his hand and a few reverential bows last February because of a stomach injury.

So what line does Al Jefferson have ready for K.G. this year?

Last season, the two yapped at each other at the foul line in a game at Boston. Later, he found out that the conversation got heated after Jefferson reminded the accomplished veteran that they shared something in common: Neither of them had an NBA championship ring.

In retrospect, oops…

When told at Friday’s morning shootaround that he can’t use the same line this year, Jefferson said, “No, I can’t. That ought to teach me to shut up. I’m going to have to guard him tonight, so I better save all my energy for that.”

Jefferson watched the Celtics destroy Allen Iverson and Detroit at home on Thursday night.

“It kind of got boring there after a minute,” Jefferson said. “Their bench blew it open in the second quarter. The guys on their bench really stepped up. After that, it was kind of pointless to watch.”

Well, that didn’t take so long, did it?

Only three weeks.

The Wolves’ eight-game losing streak ended Wednesday when they finally played down the stretch mostly like this team has been built to play: Through Al Jefferson. He scored six consecutive points for the Wolves when it matters. The last two hoops repelled the Sixers after they had chopped a 10-point lead with less than six minutes left down to just one.

When Philly got within a point one last time, Jefferson passed out through the collapsing defense and found Mike Miller open for a three-pointer with 30.4 seconds left that pushed the Sixers away for the final time. It capped an evening from Miller that you’ve probably been waiting for since he was acquired from Memphis last summer: 10 points, 10 rebounds, six assists.

The Wolves won for the first time since their season opener, two days before Halloween.

Contrast this finish– when the Wolves scored when they had to and got just enough defensive stops to win — with Sunday’s collapse at Denver, or Saturday’s collapse against Portland or last week’s collapse at Golden State.

“I think the difference was our (defensive) stops,” said Jefferson, who scored 25. “The stops made the game ours. We made them take tough shots.”

This time, though, the Wolves knew where to go when they needed a basket and they went there: To Jefferson.

“I don’t feel like I have to take every shot at crunch time,” Jefferson said. “But the ball should go through me. If I see a double team, I’ll make the decision to pass it out. If not, I go to work.”

He did both when the Wolves really needed, two nights before Kevin Garnett comes back to play at Target Center for the first time since he was traded away.

Some other things:

Go figure this — Craig Smith brought the Wolves back from  early deficits of 12-3 and 19-6 by scoring 13 of his 21 points before halftime but consider this stat line: 21 points, 0 rebounds, 5 assists. You might never see something like that from him again.

Randy Foye made his first start at point guard since the Wolves lost to San Antonio in the season’s fourth game and delivered a 10-point, six assists, three-rebound, two-block and two-turnover game in which he got the ball well enough where it needed to go down the stretch.

Rashad McCants played less than seven minutes after he got hit and had to leave in the second quarter because of back spasms. That might have been the best thing the Wolves had going for them down the stretch; Wittman couldn’t be tempted to put him in there.

Corey Brewer, again, played just 16 minutes.

Sebastian Telfair played just 14 minutes, but had eight assists. That’s pretty good. He had three turnovers, too, though.

Randy Foye returned to the starting point guard spot tonight for the first time since the season’s fourth game. He replaced Sebastian Telfair, who has barely played in the last three games while Foye has shaken off his early-season malaise and has played better in recent days. He scored a season-high 18 points in 39 minutes in Sunday’s loss at Denver.

Randy Wittman said he made tonight’s move because he thinks Foye’s confidence is back and because he hopes the outside shooting of Foye, Ryan Gomes and Mike Miller — in tonight’s starting lineup with Jason Collins and Al Jefferson — will create more space for Jeferson to work inside.

Good day. And that’s not just a greeting. Those were the exact words Timberwolves coach Randy Wittman described today’s practice, a day before taking on the Sixers at home. Wittman said, despite a 1-8 record, the mentality of the team remains positive.

The Wolves went through the usual motions today, allowing the media in to see a little bit of scrimmaging and then some after-practice individual work.

- Brian Cardinal and Mark Madsen did a good bit of running.
- Kevin Love worked on perimeter shooting.
- Corey Brewer, Ryan Gomes and Randy Foye did some quick pass, quick shoot work.
- Rashad McCants lifted weights.

This a day after the team pretty much worked on its own. No official practice was held Monday.

Lots of talk today about Mike Miller’s 3-for-4 shooting night in Denver. Obviously, Miller needs to shoot more. The guy was brought here for his shooting. Four times in 34 minutes is not enough. Read the rest of this entry »

Well, the Wolves just caught a break, at least from a marketing/interest standpoint. The NBA just suspended K.G. for a game for hitting Milwaukee’s Andrew Bogut in the face on Saturday. He’ll sit tomorrow’s game against the Knicks and will be back for games Thursday against Detroit and, most importantly, for Friday’s return to Target Center against the Wolves.

You might remember he didn’t play here last year, showing up on the court for a minute in that peacoat instead to wave at the fans.

BTW, the Spurs did sign Blake Ahearn, whom the Wolves cut right before the season, today to help a team that is without Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili.

OK, so when did the Wolves lose this one?

At the end once again, when they led by nine points with 6:25 left and allowed the Nuggets a 21-6 closing run that included 11 unanswered points?

Or, as Randy Wittman contended, at the end of the third quarter, when the Wolves also led by nine with 2:51 left and surrendered a closing 9-2 run that pulled the Nuggets within a basket?

Now, the Wolves pushed that lead back to nine points, but afterward Wittman lamented the third’s closing stretch, when rookie Kevin Love missed two layups and at least two other shots down the stretch.

“We have to close a quarter out,” Wittman said. “It’s those little thing that you have to take care of. Kevin missed two point-blank layups. They go down and Chauncey (Billups) hits a pull-up three. Those baskets, you’ve got to have. You don’t make it, they do. That’s where it really changed. You keep the lead there and then you push it in the fourth and it’s 15, now it’s 16 and the pressure’s on them. We gave away seven points in two minutes. That’s where the tide turned on us a little bit.”

Said Love: “I just missed some easy buckets. I gave myself a couple chip shots, a layup. We let it get away a little bit in the third quarter. But we got it back up to nine, so you can’t blame it all on the third quarter.”

Somewhere in there, veteran Kevin Ollie approached Love, lifted his chin up and encouraged him.

“It’s kind of been that way the last three games or so, all my shots have been right there,” Love said. “He told me those shots will go. I know they will.”

Still, the Wolves squandered that last nine-point, fourth-quarter lead.  Al Jefferson’s technical foul for protesting a late call on him on Kenyon Martin’s missed dunk allowed the Nuggets to get three points closer with 5 1/2 minutes left. Then the Wolves let Nene picked up a missed Denver free throw off the floor and feed Carmelo Anthony for an emphatic go-ahead dunk with 2:27 left.

Billups — a former Timberwolf, dontcha know? — provided the punctuation point when he followed Jason Collins’ offensive foul for an illegal screen with a three-pointer that gave Denver a four-point lead with 50 seconds left. It was all over then.

Collins, as I noted in my pregame post, moved into the starting lineup Sunday with Ryan Gomes for Love and Corey Brewer. He played 17 minutes, scored two points, had five rebounds.

Wittman when asked if Jefferson’s technical had any effect on the game: “Nah, no, that’s an emotional deal. We got some tough calls down the stretch. Ryan played some pretty tough defense on Carmelo, Carmelo jumps into him and Ryan gets the foul. It’s hard when in a fast-break situation the referee at half-court makes the call.”

A couple other things:

BTW, the eight-game losing streak matches the longest from last year’s miserable season. That started Dec. 22 at New Orleans and continued until they beat Miami at home on Jan. 8.

Randy Foye’s 18 points were a season high. Sebastian Telfair started the game again, but this time played just 4:47 — he looked like such a little fella trying to guard the bigger, bulkier Billups — before Foye (and Kevin Ollie later) came on and played 39 minutes while Telfair sat the entire night until 18 seconds remained, and by then the outcome had been decided.

Mike Miller took just four shots (made three of them) in 34 minutes. Gomes took 10, Love nine, Foye 15, McCants eight in just 16 minutes. Even Craig Smith got up five. What’s up with that?

Randy Wittman has made a couple changes in tonight’s starters against a Nuggets team that has thrived since acquiring Chauncey Billups from Detroit: Jason Collins gets the start at center after making his season debut with 13 minutes in Saturday’s home loss to Portland and Ryan Gomes goes in at small forward next to Al Jefferson at power forward, replacing Kevin Love, who had matchup problems against Kenyon Martin in two preseason games.

After Saturday’s 88-83 loss to the Blazers, Wittman referenced the film “Groundhog Day.”

Before Sunday’s game, he was asked if awoke that morning in Denver to Sonny and Cher’s “I Got You, Babe” and he was reminded that television weathercaster Phil Connors tried every which way to kill himself in that movie, including lugging a bed-and-breakfast toaster with him to the bathtub and rumbling down a  gravel road in a truck with the groundhog beside him (Don’t Drive Angry!) toward a cliff.

Asked if he was to that point yet, Wittman said, “No, definitely not. New day, new city, new game.”

“Anything different is good.” — Bill Murray as Phil Connors in “Groundhog Day”

Wolves coach Randy Wittman opened tonight’s postgame press conference by asking what day it was. Everyone knew what he was getting at, but no one answered the noticeably baffled coach. So he answered his own question: Groundhog Day - as in Wittman feels like he’s trapped in the same nightmarish situation over and over. And, well, it looks that way from press row, too.

Another double-digit lead lost tonight, this time up 12 on the Trail Blazers with 5:34 to play in the third quarter. And then poof! It was gone.

Give credit to the Blazers’ Brandon Roy and Greg Oden, who took over in the fourth quarter. Minnesota, though, again let a game fly away like a parking ticket in the spring breeze (yes that’s drawing from personal experience …)

Wittman tonight was all about preaching togetherness. As in, his team needs some. This quote is my game story, too, but here it is for you blog readers:

“Until we get 12, 15 players on the same page willing to do the same things we’re supposed to do - when I have to substitute because guys don’t want to play the right way, we’re not going to win close games. You’re not going to. That’s going to come back and bite you every time.”

Wittman said he wasn’t sure if some of his players were more worried about their personal statistics or what. He was asked if he was referring specifically to Rashad McCants, who was benched for the entire fourth quarter after a 2-for-9 showing on mostly rushed shots in less than nine minutes of floor time.

“Next,” Wittman said. Read the rest of this entry »

Hello from Target Center where the Blazers and the Wolves are getting set for tip-off in about 20 minutes. The teams are warmed up and, thankfully, so is my computer. Earlier today, my laptop’s power cords decided to quit for good. Luckily, a colleague had a set back at Star Tribune World Headquarters. And it’s a quick walk back there from here. So we’re good to go. Whew.

Nothing extremely revealing from Coach Wittman’s chats with us today (media gets to talk to coach twice on game days). Jason Collins will dress tonight, and you would think will see his first action of the season. With Collins on the floor, it adds some needed size for Minnesota against a rather large Portland lineup. Madsen, Cardinal and Booth are inactive for your home team.

Fresh off his first career double-double last night (11 points, 11 rebounds) in New Orleans, the Wolves get their first look at Greg Oden tonight. Lots of questions being thrown around to the local squad lately about the 1st overall draft pick in 2007. But not many answers.

Someone in the media room just opined: “Oden’s going to destroy us.”

I guess we’ll all find out together.

7:10 p.m. tip. Back for more after the game.