sports

The Timberwolves' three-day home stopover after their two-city, 12-day European tour ends today, when they leave for Memphis and a four-game exhibition journey beginning Monday night that also will take them to Atlanta, Indianapolis and Milwaukee by Saturday night.

The Wolves practiced Saturday morning for the first time since returning from London on Thursday, even if their bodies still might be across the Atlantic.

"We're still not on the clock that we need to be on," Wolves coach Randy Wittman said.

They have little time to rest, or see their loved ones.

"I guess people that do the schedule have no idea about the impact of going overseas and coming back," Wittman said. "It is what it is."

The Wolves play four games in six nights this week with, at least to start, their top two point guards, Randy Foye and Sebastian Telfair, hurting. After finishing the trip in Milwaukee on Saturday, the Wolves play their final two exhibition games next week at Target Center, then have a week to prepare for their season opener Nov. 2 against Denver at home.

"We've got almost two whole weeks at home before we open Nov. 2," Wittman said. "We'll make do."

Heart to heart

When Etan Thomas of the Washington Wizards was diagnosed with a leaking aortic valve before training camp last week, one of the people he called for advice was Wolves assistant general manager Fred Hoiberg, who had open-heart surgery in June 2005 to repair an aortic aneurysm.

Hoiberg referred Thomas to the doctors who had treated him. Ultimately, Thomas decided on Dr. Hartzell Schaff, the same surgeon who performed Hoiberg's operation.

Etc.

Other than Foye (knee) and Telfair (ankle), the rest of the players are healthy, including Al Jefferson, whose sore ankle limited his minutes against the Celtics in London.

Staff writers Jerry Zgoda and Kent Youngblood contributed to this report.