MILWAUKEE – There is no uniform blazer awarded or secret handshake taught just yet, but Timberwolves players have auditioned under new coach Flip Saunders seeking all the benefits and privileges accorded full membership in a special club:
Flip's Three-Point Club.
Basketball's statistical analytics champion the value of a shot that's worth 50 percent more than its two-point counterpart. Devotees of such mathematics probably convulsed when the Wolves attempted only eight three-pointers (and made half of them) Tuesday night against Indiana before that same team went out and took 21 (making seven) in Wednesday's 110-91 victory over Milwaukee.
Throughout this preseason, Saunders has preached the power of taking — and making — good shots, no matter what their denomination.
On Tuesday, that meant a mere eight attempts when the Wolves shot nearly 51 percent overall from the field. On Wednesday, when they rested four veterans and didn't play injured rookie Andrew Wiggins for the second consecutive night, the Wolves launched nearly three times that many and shot 42.5 percent overall from the field.
"Like I said last night, I don't go in with the idea how many threes," Saunders said afterward. "It's a matter of what is given and tonight they were available, so we took some."
Saunders made it clear Wednesday that he is not fundamentally opposed to the three-point shot, as some math-loving Wolves fans have contended on Twitter and Internet chat rooms.
"I'm just opposed to not making shots, whether it's a two-pointer or a three-pointer," he said. "Sometimes you can have guys taking three-point shots and maybe that's out of their range and they shouldn't be shooting those. A made shot is a made shot. If you're not a three-point shooter, you can always work to expand your shot. We want to make sure we take good, open three-point shots."