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Timberwolves Avoid Worst Record in the League, Budinger Taking Advantage of Minutes

The Wolves defeated NY Thursday to avoid the NBA's worst record, Budinger is making his mark on the team while he has the chance, and Coach Blatt wants an easier schedule next season.

By Lindsey M. Young

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Thomas B. Shea-USA TODAY Sports

Timberwolves NOT the Worst Team in the League

Minnesota fans have gotten long looks at the Wolves' bench players over the past series of games, as the team is once again backed into a corner by injuries. The Timberwolves played three games in a row with only eight available players, and they didn't grab a win in that time.

However, Minnesota rebounded Thursday night in an overtime win against the Knicks. The win officially identified New York as the worst team in they league while handing the Wolves their 15th win of the season. It seemed that neither team wanted to win ("tanking" at its finest?), but Minny finished on the positive end of the 95-92 final score. Despite playing so many minutes over the past few games, Andrew Wiggins, Kevin Martin and Zach LaVine each hit the 20-point mark.

Fans are getting a good look at the Wolves' reserves players, and it will be interesting to see which guys remain with the squad into next season.


Chase Budinger Gets Chance to Shine

With the team incredibly short-staffed and forced to play with an eight-man rotation, forward Chase Budinger has notched considerable more minutes than is typical. In Wednesday night's loss to the Raptors, Budinger went 9-of-18 from the floor and even hit a 3-point shot, tallying 19 points, eight rebounds, three assists and a block in 36 minutes. He notched 10 points in the win against New York.

He likely won't last long when injured players return to the lineup, but for now, Budinger is reminding us that he once (a very long time ago) was an offensive threat. We're seeing glimpses of that again now. I don't expect to see the forward with Minnesota next season, but this is a good opportunity for him to showcase his potential for other teams.

Check out this highlight-worthy play with Budinger and Ricky Rubio in Toronto:


Other Basketball News

  • Cavaliers head coach David Blatt is in his first season, and he's already assertive about a change. Blatt is vying for the league to adopt a less-strenuous game schedule. Blatt's proposal still calls for 82 games, but the schedule would be stretched out to eliminate four- or five-game weeks. As a comparison, European teams rarely play more than two games in any given week.
  • An injury-prone Greg Oden has been working out at Ohio State and may be contemplating a comeback to the NBA. Oden played only 82 games over five seasons with the Blazers. He last appeared in a game for the Blazers in Dec. 2009. Last season, Oden played 23 games in Miami.
  • For those of you looking to relocate, Jason Terry is selling his house. The 6,600-square-foot mansion is listed as the very reasonable price of $2.4 million.


Lindsey's Friday Flick Recommendation

If you're in the mood for a film that's a little more of a thinker, here's my suggestion of the week:

Looper

It took a little more effort than I'd like to admit to follow the time-travel story line here, but the creative story line and plot twist are definitely worth it. Bruce Willis does an outstanding job per usual, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt was perfectly cast to play the younger version of Willis' character. Set in the future, the movie revolves around a killer who works for the mob and recognizes one of his targets as his future self.

View the trailer here, and happy weekending!