Zgoda: Rubio injury alters Wolves' season course

Two weeks ago, the Timberwolves embarked on yet another hopeful season with a roster that bears a striking dichotomy. It presents a demographic split between seven rookie or first-year players and eight veterans.

Seven games and five losses later, that disparity is in danger of becoming a practical and philosophical gulf during these next weeks in a season that has been diverted by a simple step of fate, the one that severely sprained Ricky Rubio's ankle.

Until Rubio returns many weeks from now, Wolves coach and basketball boss Flip Saunders has entrusted rookies Zach LaVine and Andrew Wiggins with the team's future both short and long term, believing presumably that in them he has found his Russell Westbrook-Kevin Durant combination.

In a wrenching twist of ankle ligaments, the Wolves' season has transformed from a glimmer of hope that they could become this season's Phoenix — a playoff contender rising out of nowhere in the daunting Western Conference — into one that once again is about what Saunders' terms "development," not to mention probably one more prized lottery pick and the perpetual promise of next year.

In the short term, his decision to become the first team since the 2005 Atlanta Hawks with Josh Smith and Marvin Williams to start two teenagers will bring plenty of pain, Wednesday's 113-101 loss to Houston in Mexico City being an example.

It's an investment in a future in which some of the team's veterans literally did not sign up when they agreed to pursue the playoffs with Kevin Love as a teammate. They want to win now. It's also an investment in a future that — depending upon the length of Rubio's absence and the team's results until then — could persuade Saunders eventually to abandon what he now calls a "blended" team in favor of a full-blown youth movement, even though he doesn't believe in the existence of the dreaded "T" word (tanking).

He'd do so by seeing what such veterans as Kevin Martin, Corey Brewer, Thaddeus Young, Mo Williams, Ronny Turiaf and possibly even Nikola Pekovic might fetch in picks or young players.

"I'm not a coach, I don't know if it's about development," LaVine said, referring to this changed season. "I'm a player, and I know every time we step out there, it's for wins."

Saunders insists "for now" a team that waived veteran J.J. Barea just before the season opener won't seek a ready-for-prime time point guard who can keep hope alive for a competitive season until Rubio returns.

He also maintains nothing really has changed for a team most experts never expected to challenge for the playoffs anyway.

"I don't think our mind-set has changed at all," he said. "It might take two, three weeks to find out where we're at. But we're going to be able to figure it out before all is said and done. We're not changing. We just want to go and compete, just like before. But with that said, we're playing two 19-year-old kids and they're playing 25, 30 minutes together. There might be some tough growing pains. It's for the veterans to help them out. They've been in the league for a while. They've been through pretty much everything, most of these guys."

In Wednesday's loss, he once again asked Wiggins by himself to defend the opponent's best player in a nightly education intended to make Wiggins an impactful two-way player. The No. 1 overall draft pick last summer made James Harden work for his 23-point, 10-assist night while Wiggins scored 15 points himself in a performance Saunders called "about as good a job on James as you could hope for."

Afterward, Saunders said, "I believe we're seeing Zach grow up right before our eyes."

It's Saunders' veteran group that has labored more to produce in the two full games since Rubio was injured. Pekovic fought Mexico City's high altitude, despite an 11-point, 13-rebound game. Young struggled through a 2-for-10 shooting night Wednesday. Martin averaged 26 points in Rubio's past three games, just 10 in the two without him and sounded the warning Saturday about the difficult transition ahead.

"We know it's going to be a really tough process," Pekovic said. "We play hard. You can't say we don't play hard. We're struggling, a lot of adapting, a little different style of play with Ricky out."

The puzzle pieces seemed to fit when Rubio was present to organize and distribute. Now they seemingly have been tossed in the air in a season in which coaches and players are redefining its purpose.

"I feel like we want to win, but we've got a lot of younger guys we have to develop," Brewer said. "Those two things are hard to do together. We have to find a happy medium and try to get some wins. Personally, I understand that we have all these guys drafted high in the lottery, and we have to play them. They're the future."