Kevin Garnett is still one of the NBA's top 10 players.
Last year, he averaged 21.8 points and 12.7 rebounds while shooting a
career-best .526 from the field. One of the game's most intense competitors,
he's still capable of carrying this team into the playoffs, but he needs a
little more help than he had a year ago. That help has arrived, potentially, in
the form of two versatile new guards.
Mike James is the team's big free agent prize. After years as a
complementary player on veteran teams, James exploded as a go-to performer on a
young Toronto team in 2005-06.
Garnett, 30, is no stranger to shouldering the load for his
team, but during the summer he indicated that his patience is wearing thin.
They also add rookie Randy Foye, who is drawing preseason R.O.Y.
buzz and comparisons to Dwyane Wade after an MVP showing at the Vegas Summer
League.
If Foye lives up to his advance billing, this is a team capable
of a 10 or 15 game improvement. They're one of the league's better defensive
teams, and they possess Garnett, one of the game's most lethal weapons
Plenty to be excited about, but plenty of unknown heading into
this season in Minnesota. Randy Foye will get every opportunity to perform in
his rookie season, but it is his rookie season. Very few rookies head in as a
sure thing -- a player worthy of a top five round pick. Foye is no different.
