Wittman on guard to help fix backcourt - 明尼蘇達灰狼 Minnesota Timberwolves

http://www.twincities.com/mld/twincities/sports/basketball/16639174.htm

Randy Wittman on Tuesday shouldered the onus of fixing the Timberwolves a day
after saying his point guards weren't getting the job done.

Perhaps it was an olive-branch gesture for a new coach who had called out his
team twice in the past week after embarrassing losses, including Monday
night's 28-point loss at Houston. Wittman needs to be careful so he doesn't
risk losing the locker room just weeks into his tenure as the boss.

"As I told the guys, our opportunity is now," Wittman said after practice.
"We've squandered whatever opportunities were presented, and that's behind
us. We've got to come together. I've got to help these guys better until we
get to the point where it becomes a more free-flowing thing. I wanted this to
be a more upbeat practice and look forward and ahead of us. Now's the time
for us to come together, help each other and fight through this. It's a tough
time."

Wittman repeatedly said he has to do a better job of helping the point guards
run the offense better. In recent days, he had said they need to execute the
offense better and take more initiative in calling plays.

So on Tuesday, Wittman talked with Mike James and Randy Foye again about
their roles and what's expected.

"It's a work in progress," Wittman said. "I'm going to have to help them more
than probably I have. Getting us in things, in the flow, in transition to
give them a couple things to concentrate on and not stray from that. We
worked on that today.

"We don't want to walk the ball up the floor. I want to flow into things. I'm
going to have to probably be a little bit more active on the sideline and get
something in their ear as they walk by."

The Wolves, with no obvious plan, lacked an identity against the Rockets.
Wittman said he didn't recognize what his players were trying to run on
offense.

Foye said Wittman expects more from his point guards than predecessor Dwane
Casey.

"Case was pretty much let (Kevin Garnett) be the point guard," Foye said.
"Witt is like, let the point guard control everything."

Foye continues to speak with Wittman on a regular basis, including three
times since the end of the Rockets game: once before they got on the plane to
go home, once before practice and once after practice.

"When you keep practicing and you keep going through things he wants you to
do, then you start to understand, you start to see the big picture," Foye
said.

Wittman wouldn't say whether he will change the starting lineup for tonight's
game against Golden State. He benched starters James and Ricky Davis to start
the third quarter against Houston. But Wittman did say it would be difficult
to play three point guards and unfair to the players.

Davis still hasn't commented on the benching. He left the practice court
Tuesday before reporters were allowed in the door.

James was clearly watching what he had to say in the wake of his comment
after the loss that he believed the point guards were being made scapegoats.
He wouldn't reveal his feelings on the benching or whether it was the right
move.

"That's how he felt," James said of Wittman. "That's what he felt like he
needed to do. He's the head coach, so you follow whatever his decisions are."

Wittman said he's not trying change the brand of basketball James plays. He
said he wants James to stay aggressive offensively.

"I don't want Mike to all of a sudden become somebody else," Wittman said.
"You can't do that. We've just got to make sure we've got direction on the
floor. You're going to make shots and miss shots. But how are we getting
shots is what I'm concerned about. Is it within the framework of what we're
trying to do?"

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