Timberwolves star Kevin Love's frustration over another loss and his team missing the playoffs for a 10th consecutive season became the stuff of Internet chatter Tuesday, the day after he delivered a down and distracted interview following a loss at Memphis.
Deadspin.com linked the video and concluded with a headline that "Kevin Love Is a Broken Man." It also theorized these could be Love's final days as a Timberwolf and suggested the team's fans are enjoying this part of the season more than Love is.
While that is uncertain, it is certain that Love is not alone in his irritation.
"It's always frustrating when things don't go your way," Wolves coach Rick Adelman said before Monday's 109-92 blowout loss. "But it also tells you about people when you're going through frustration. How do you react to that? In this league you have to be resilient. You have to react. I know Kevin's frustrated. I am, too. When I take him out of the game, it seems like we can't find too many answers. That's just the way it is right now.
''I'm frustrated I haven't been able to find a more consistent rotation. But I don't know, you just keep trying things."
The Wolves have not made the playoffs since Kevin Garnett, Sam Cassell and Latrell Sprewell took them to the Western Conference finals in 2004. No other NBA team has gone that long without reaching the playoffs.
This season was supposed to be another that would be different. With just 13 games remaining, it has become clear this season won't be.
"Start of the year, everybody on paper had us doing something," Adelman said. "I always believed the team's going to show you who they are and what they're going to do. That has been the most frustrating thing, trying to get some consistency night in and night out, especially off the bench, guys who are going to give it to you every night.