Wolves notes: Love's return this season becoming less likely

Timberwolves two-time All-Star forward Kevin Love was not cleared on Friday for contact action and will return to New York City to be evaluated by his hand surgeon early next week.

The team last week said Love would be evaluated this week. His healing right shooting hand was not scanned by Friday, but the team's medical staff and Love's surgeon conferred after photos of Love's hand were forwarded to her.

His return to New York City next week makes his return to play this season less likely. The Wolves begin a three-game Western trip at Golden State on Tuesday and by then only eight days and six games will remain in a season that ends April 17.

Wolves coach Rick Adelman would like to see Love play again, even if only for a handful of games.

"I've said all along I'd like to see him come back and play," Adelman said. "The more guys we get on the floor down the stretch here, the better evaluation we can make."

Voice of experience

Adelman on Friday was trying to become the eighth coach in NBA history to win 1,000 games.The last man to reach that threshold was Denver's George Karl, who won his 1,000th career game in December 2010.

Adelman has downplayed the milestone, but his son David said he knows it holds special meaning nonetheless.

"It says a lot about him and the generation of guys — George Karl, Phil Jackson, those guys – who grew up coaching in the '60s, '70s and '80s and all found that milestone," said David Adelman, a Wolves player development coach. "Obviously there was something they all caught about team basketball. Those guys were on teams with a group — from the front office to the players — who wanted to be around them for a long period of time. You watch the leagues now in all sports and you can win Coach of the Year one year and be fired by All-Star break the next.

"It's the nature of the beast. It says a lot about the guys who are able to stay in one place for years and years and be consistently good at what they do."

Adelman joked before Friday's game that he thought Wolves point guard Ricky Rubio was "going for a quadruple-double" with Wednesday's 19-point, 12-assist, eight-steal, eight-turnover game at Milwaukee. "He just came up short, needed two more turnovers," he said dryly.

Asked about those eight turnovers, Adelman said: "Some of them are, well, interesting, but that's how he plays. You've got to admire how hard he plays every possession. Nothing gets him down. That's how he is, and that rubs off on the rest of the team."