Jim Souhan: McHale, Taylor must hit last shot

The club president and owner used to have sterling reputations that have been tarnished by a series of dreadful moves. Their extreme makeover of the club is their last chance at redemption.

By Jim Souhan, Star Tribune

Last update: November 1, 2007 - 8:53 PM

The young and the forgetful might not be aware of this, but it wasn't long ago that Glen Taylor and Kevin McHale were Minnesota basketball icons.

Taylor was the self-made Mankato magnate nominated by fans to buy the Twins and Vikings, to save and elevate them the way he saved and elevated the Timberwolves.

McHale was the Iron Ranger who played for the Gophers, became one of the greatest players and wits in basketball history, and delighted us on Wolves broadcasts before stepping into the front office, drafting a high schooler named Kevin Garnett and guiding the team to the Western Conference finals.

Taylor and McHale were down to earth, accessible, lighthearted Minnesotans who became symbols of common sense and gumption. As the Wolves open their season tonight at Target Center, here's hoping Taylor and McHale can regain their credibility, if not their celebrity.

They've become punchlines since the 2004 Western Conference finals. Most of us who have fired the barbs and jokes are out of material, and weary of the bashing. There is nothing new to say about the Wolves' braintrust except this:

You've got one more shot, and we'd have to be cruel not to wish you well.

We'd all like to see McHale and Taylor put the Wolves back on the map, and while this will require patience, they've at least given the franchise a chance, by trading Kevin Garnett, clearing the roster of problematic veterans and signing Al Jefferson.

This Wolves team might not win many games, but losing is acceptable when it is part of a plan. Jefferson could be a wonderful inside player, and Thursday he became the first player in NBA history to say he didn't think he was worth a maximum-value contract.

"I didn't even think I was worth max, this year anyway," Jefferson said.

Said McHale: "I can tell you around the league, 85 percent of the people think they deserve the max."

McHale played through foot and ankle injuries that left him with an ever-present limp. Taylor spent countless millions ensuring the franchise would remain in Minnesota, and trying to win. They've made lots of mistakes -- space limitations prevent a printing of the full list. They've also made sacrifices.

"What I want for Kevin is for him to be vindicated in the fact that he is a great basketball mind," said Jim Petersen, the former Gopher and NBA player who broadcasts Wolves games for Fox Sports Net. "I've learned so much basketball sitting next to him, talking with him. He's brought a lot of good talent through here.

"I want him to be vindicated because he is a talented, down-to-earth, smart basketball man."

McHale excelled as a player, broadcaster and novice executive, drafting Garnett when high schoolers were considered foolish risks and building a playoff team.

When he filled in at coach after firing Flip Saunders -- one of his many moves we could second-guess -- he did pretty well on the sideline, too.

All of the failure and ridicule McHale and Taylor have known has arrived in the past three years.

Has this group of players refreshed McHale?

"Very much so," he said. "And not only the young, eager group of players, but a group of guys who really support each other and have a nice chemistry and cameraderie."

Randy Wittman has seen the good and bad times, and now he's coaching a team that could finish in last place.

He knows that legacies -- his, McHale's, Taylor's -- are on the line.

"For all of us," he said. "We've done this together, in turning in the direction we're going in now. I like the direction this team is pointed in, and there would be nothing better than in a couple of years, looking back and saying, 'Boy, that was a really good thing we did.' "

Jim Souhan can be heard Sundays from 10 a.m.-noon on AM-1500 KSTP. • jsouhan@startribune.com