Garnett stays put as rumor mill spins - 明尼蘇達灰狼 Minnesota Timberwolves

http://www.twincities.com/timberwolves/ci_6256533


Timberwolves vice president of basketball operations Kevin McHale scoffed at
rampant trade rumors involving all-star Kevin Garnett and said he assumes his
franchise player will be a member of the team when training camp starts.

"Kevin's a member of the team right now," McHale said Thursday night. "I
assume he'll be a member of the team this fall."

Asked if he had spoken with Garnett to reassure him of his future with the
team, McHale said he had talked to Garnett's agent but wouldn't reveal
details.

"Those (trade) rumors are fed by you guys" in the media, McHale said. "I
actually got a charge out of most of the stuff. Man, I tell you what, there's
a lot more stuff going on in this league that I'm doing that I didn't know I
was, that's for sure."

At this rate, eventually all of the teams in the NBA will have been close to
a deal for Garnett, if the wild trade rumors quickly splashed on the Internet
are to be believed.

Thursday brought another round of rampant rumors fromESPN.com, all of them
attributed to anonymous sources.

The latest rumor was that the Wolves contacted the Charlotte Bobcats to try
to complete a deal for Garnett after a potential three-way deal involving
Phoenix and Atlanta hit a snag.

But that deal with Charlotte didn't materialize. Charlotte made its No. 8
pick, which turned out to be Brandan Wright, and traded him along with the
rights to second-round pick Jermareo Davidson to Golden State. In return, Charlotte received veteran Jason Richardson.
The trade rumor was published before Minnesota drafted Florida's Corey Brewer
seventh overall. Then the draft was completed, and no trades involving the
Wolves were announced.

But that doesn't mean there won't be any trades. Apparently they just won't
involve Garnett, if McHale is to be believed.

"We've had a lot of different talks with a lot of different teams," said
McHale, who didn't discuss specifics. "I think there are probably a few deals
that we're pretty far down the road on."

With trades being his first priority, McHale said he doesn't expect the
Wolves to get heavily involved in pursuing free agents perhaps until late in
the summer.

As for Garnett, the draft might have been an unofficial deadline of sorts.
The Wolves could have controlled their destiny had they acquired picks before
the draft and made their own selections.

Another important date is Sunday. If a trade is made involving Garnett before
Sunday, the extra cash coming from his trade kicker, up to $6.75 million,
could be applied to last season and next season. Starting Sunday, the trade
kicker will be applied in full to next season's salary, which could push
Garnett's total compensation to almost $29 million.

McHale's assumption that Garnett won't be traded could quiet some of the
rumors. But Garnett's future will continue to be uncertain unless McHale
makes a more definitive statement that Garnett is off limits.

Brewer's first comments to the Twin Cities media included doubts about
Garnett's status.

"I hope he's there, but I have no idea," Brewer said. "You never know what
can happen with that."



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