Taylor says KG tanked, not Wolves

The consensus, from Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor to VP of Basketball Operations Kevin McHale to coach Randy Wittman, is that it's more important for the Wolves to win now than to gather ping-pong balls for the NBA draft lottery.

Taylor said that was the team's intent last season, too, despite the appearance that the Wolves lost down the stretch to protect their draft pick from the Clippers.

"I don't like that so much," Taylor said Tuesday of the suggestion the Wolves tanked at the end of last season, which ended on a seven-game losing streak. "It was more like, I'd say, KG tanked it."

That would be Kevin Garnett, who pulled himself out of the lineup for the last five games of last season, then went to California to seek a second opinion for a chronically sore right quadriceps. That decision was announced 90 minutes before a lopsided loss to Dallas and was a move publicly endorsed at the time by the Wolves.

"The other guys still wanted to play ..." said Taylor, at Target Center for the Wolves team picture. "But it sure changed the team. It didn't make us as [good]. We wanted to play Randy [Foye] and some of the other younger guys. But this year, if they win, they win."

Garnett refuted Taylor's remarks.

"I'm in Boston,'' Garnett said on TNT, holding up the Celtics logo on his jersey after Boston ended Houston's 22-game winning streak 94-74 Tuesday night. "I [couldn't] care less what Glen Taylor thinks of Kevin Garnett. .... That's nonsense. I don't even know why he'd bring that up, but it shows the taste of some people.''

Garnett's agent, Andy Miller, also took issue with Taylor's words.

''As far as I'm concerned, the comments are without merit,'' Miller said. ''If the jury were out with regards to the basketball world, as far as Kevin Garnett's effort, competitiveness and drive for team success is concerned, there would be unanimous consensus as to his effort. Nothing has ever been more of a priority than winning for Kevin Garnett. I don't think anyone would question that unless they had an agenda.''

It was the second consecutive season Garnett didn't finish. At the end of 2005-06, he missed the final six games because of tendinitis in his right knee. The Wolves went 2-4, including a season-ending overtime loss to Memphis in which big man Mark Madsen took, and missed, seven three-pointers.

This season, the Wolves appear to be gaining momentum down the stretch, winning four of their past six. They are 16-50 and tied with Memphis -- tonight's opponent at Target Center -- for the third-worst record in the NBA behind Miami (12-54 after winning Tuesday) and Seattle (16-51).

"I just think at this point, where we are, these are the characteristics that are most important: that they play defense, that they play together, that they know they can win," Taylor said. "I understand that this is going to change [the team's lottery position]. ... I really believe it is the right thing."

McHale noted that finishing with the worst record is no guarantee of the No. 1 pick. Last year's bottom two, Memphis and Boston, chose fourth and fifth, respectively.

"[The lottery] is all luck anyway," McHale said. "It's much more important for this team to come together and play well and develop some chemistry and symmetry. That way when you add another player next year, you're adding something that can really be beneficial. When you add players to an already unsettled situation, it just gets more unsettled for them."

Said Taylor: "We have to show the fans that there is a plan, that we're going to improve next year."

Other parts of the plan, Taylor said, are to do well in the draft and to act decisively in free agency.

"We're not looking at big names, but still we have to be out there looking,' Taylor said. "Is there a young guy out there, or a lower-priced guy who can help us, fit in with the team? We have to be more proactive on it.

"But still, the most improvement we'll have next year, no matter what we do, will be these [players] who come back next year and be better players than they were this year."

Taylor also endorsed the job Wittman has done this season. Still, the owner expects more next season.

"It was a difficult job we gave [Wittman] this year, because there were so many new guys," Taylor said. "I'm satisfied with what he has done.''