The Minnesota Timberwolves are an American professional basketball team based in Minneapolis. The Timberwolves compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference. The team was founded in 1989. Its majority owner is Glen Taylor, who also owns the WNBA's Minnesota Lynx. The Timberwolves play their home games at Target Center, their home since 1990.
Kevin Maurice Garnett is an American former professional basketball player who played for 21 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed "TheBig Ticket," Garnett is considered one of the greatest power forwards of all time, known for his intensity, versatility, and defensive ability. As of 2020, he is one of five NBA players to have won both the NBA Most Valuable Player Award and the NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award.
Kevin Edward McHale is an American former professional basketball player, coach and analyst who played his entire professional career for the Boston Celtics. Sometimes nicknamed "The Torture Chamber", he is a Basketball Hall of Fame inductee and is regarded as one of the greatest power forwards of all time.
Malik Sealy was an American professional basketball player, active from 1992 until his death in an automobile accident at the age of 30. Sealy played eight seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Indiana Pacers, Los Angeles Clippers, Detroit Pistons and Minnesota Timberwolves.
Joseph Leynard Smith is an American former professional basketball player. A power forward, he played for 12 teams in the National Basketball Association (NBA) during his 16-year career.
Kevin Wesley Love is an American professional basketball player for the Miami Heat of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He is a five-time All-Star and a two-time member of the All-NBA Second Team, winning an NBA championship with the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2016. He was also a member of the gold medal-winning United States national team at the 2010 FIBA World Championship and the 2012 Summer Olympics. In 2011, Love won the NBA Most Improved Player Award and led the league in rebounding.
Ricard Rubio Vives is a Spanish professional basketball player for FC Barcelona of the Spanish Liga ACB and the EuroLeague. Rubio became the youngest player ever to play in the Spanish ACB League on 15 October 2005, at age 14. He made his EuroLeague debut on 24 October 2006, a few days after turning 16, making him one of the youngest players to play in the EuroLeague.
Jonny William Flynn is an American former professional basketball player. A three-year National Basketball Association (NBA) veteran, he last played for the Orlandina Basket of the Lega Basket Serie A and played collegiate basketball for the Syracuse Orange.
The 1995–96 NBA season was the Timberwolves' 7th season in the National Basketball Association. This season is most memorable when the Timberwolves selected high school basketball star Kevin Garnett with the fifth overall pick in the 1995 NBA draft. The team also signed free agent All-Star guard Terry Porter, and re-signed former T-Wolves forward Sam Mitchell during the off-season. The Timberwolves got off to a bad start losing nine of their first ten games, as head coach Bill Blair was fired after a 6–14 start and was replaced with Flip Saunders, while Michael Williams was out for the remainder of the season with a left heel injury after only just nine games.
David Kahn is an American sports executive, attorney, and former sportswriter. He is the former president of basketball operations for the Minnesota Timberwolves of the National Basketball Association. Of most note, in the 2009 NBA draft, he twice passed on drafting Stephen Curry, instead choosing 2 other point guards.
Ryan Scott Wittman is a former American basketball player, best known for his college career at Cornell University.
The 2003–04 Minnesota Timberwolves season was the 15th season for the franchise in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The season is one of the most memorable in Timberwolves history. During the offseason, the Timberwolves acquired 4-time All-Star guard Latrell Sprewell. The arrival was seen as controversial as Sprewell was known for his choking incident with then-Golden State Warriors head coach P. J. Carlesimo, though also known for helping the 8th-seeded New York Knicks to the NBA Finals in 1999. Sam Cassell, who was known for winning two championships with the Houston Rockets, and his tenure with the Milwaukee Bucks, where he helped guide the Bucks to the Eastern Conference finals in 2001, also was acquired to join Garnett, forming a "Big 3". The Timberwolves also signed free agents Michael Olowakandi and Trenton Hassell. With a Western Conference-best 58-24 finish, the Wolves set the franchise record for wins, and won its first and only division championship. Power forward Kevin Garnett averaged 24.2 points, a league-high 13.9 rebounds, 5.0 assists, 1.5 steals, and 2.2 blocks per game, winning the regular season Most Valuable Player Award.
The 1997–98 NBA season was the Timberwolves' 9th season in the National Basketball Association. During the off-season, the Timberwolves acquired Stanley Roberts from the Los Angeles Clippers, and later on signed free agent Tom Hammonds in November. In October, All-Star forward Kevin Garnett signed a six-year contract extension with the Timberwolves, which was worth $126 million. After a 4–1 start to the season, the team played around .500 before posting a seven-game winning streak in January. However, they would lose Tom Gugliotta for the remainder of the season to an ankle injury after 41 games. Chris Carr, who became the team's starting shooting guard this season, also went down with an ankle injury, only playing 51 games. At midseason, the team traded long-time guard Doug West to the Vancouver Grizzlies in exchange for Anthony Peeler. The Timberwolves held a 26–20 record at the All-Star break, and won seven of their final eight games posting their first winning record at 45–37, third in the Midwest Division, and making their second consecutive playoff appearance.
The 1996–97 NBA season was the Timberwolves' 8th season in the National Basketball Association. In the 1996 NBA draft, the Timberwolves selected shooting guard Ray Allen from the University of Connecticut with the fifth overall pick, but soon traded him to the Milwaukee Bucks in exchange for top draft pick point guard Stephon Marbury out of Georgia Tech. The team also acquired James Robinson from the Portland Trail Blazers, and second-year center Cherokee Parks from the Dallas Mavericks, while signing free agents, rookie center Dean Garrett, second-year guard Chris Carr, and Stojko Vrankovic during the off-season. However, Michael Williams would miss the entire season with a strained plantar fascia in his left heel.
The 1998–99 NBA season was the Timberwolves' 10th season in the National Basketball Association. On March 23, 1998, the owners of all 29 NBA teams voted 27–2 to reopen the league's collective bargaining agreement, seeking changes to the league's salary cap system, and a ceiling on individual player salaries. The National Basketball Players Association (NBPA) opposed to the owners' plan, and wanted raises for players who earned the league's minimum salary. After both sides failed to reach an agreement, the owners called for a lockout, which began on July 1, 1998, putting a hold on all team trades, free agent signings and training camp workouts, and cancelling many NBA regular season and preseason games. Due to the lockout, the NBA All-Star Game, which was scheduled to be played in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on February 14, 1999, was also cancelled. However, on January 6, 1999, NBA commissioner David Stern, and NBPA director Billy Hunter finally reached an agreement to end the lockout. The deal was approved by both the players and owners, and was signed on January 20, ending the lockout after 204 days. The regular season began on February 5, and was cut short to just 50 games instead of the regular 82-game schedule.
The 1999–2000 NBA season was the Timberwolves' 11th season in the National Basketball Association. The Timberwolves acquired the sixth overall pick in the 1999 NBA draft from the New Jersey Nets, and selected Wally Szczerbiak out of Miami University, and also selected William Avery out of Duke University with the fourteenth overall pick. For the season opener, the Timberwolves traveled overseas to Tokyo, Japan to play their first two games against the Sacramento Kings. After a 7–5 start, the Timberwolves struggled posting an 8-game losing streak in December, but then won 20 of their next 25 games, and held a 27–20 record at the All-Star break. The Timberwolves enjoyed their first 50-win season finishing third in the Midwest Division with a 50–32 record.
The 2000–01 NBA season was the Timberwolves' 12th season in the National Basketball Association. After the tragic death of Malik Sealy, the Timberwolves scrambled to find a replacement for him, signing free agent Chauncey Billups, a close friend of Kevin Garnett, and signing LaPhonso Ellis during the off-season. Meanwhile, the Timberwolves secret free agent deal signed by Joe Smith was voided by the NBA, who ruled their proper procedure in signing the contract, while stripping their first round draft picks for the next five seasons and fined the team $3.5 million; Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor, and General Manager Kevin McHale were both suspended for one year. Smith would later on sign a free-agent deal with the Detroit Pistons.
The 2001–02 NBA season was the Timberwolves' 13th season in the National Basketball Association. The Timberwolves were able to re-sign Joe Smith during the off-season, with Smith arriving from the Detroit Pistons, where he played the previous season. In addition, the team also signed free agent Gary Trent. The Timberwolves won nine of their first ten games, which led them to a 28–9 start as of January 15, but started to slow down a bit holding a 33–16 record at the All-Star break. Terrell Brandon sustained a knee injury after 32 games and was out for the remainder of the season, as the team suffered a 7-game losing streak in March. At midseason, the team traded Dean Garrett to the Golden State Warriors in exchange for second-year center Marc Jackson, and signed free agent Robert Pack in March. The Timberwolves finished third in the Midwest Division with a solid 50–32 record.
The 2002–03 NBA season was the 14th season the Timberwolves has competed in the National Basketball Association. During the off-season, the Timberwolves signed free agents Troy Hudson and Kendall Gill. Kevin Garnett performed well throughout the season, winning the All-Star MVP award in the 2003 NBA All-Star Game in Atlanta, and finishing second in MVP voting behind MVP Tim Duncan with 43 first-place votes, plus also finishing in third place in Defensive Player of the Year voting. Despite losing both Terrell Brandon and Felipe Lopez for the entire season to knee injuries, the Timberwolves posted a 12–1 record in February, held a 29–20 record at the All-Star break, and finished the season with a 51–31 record, good enough to earn the fourth seed in the Western Conference and home court advantage for the playoffs.
This page details the all-time statistics, records, and other achievements pertaining to the Minnesota Timberwolves.
