Minnesota Timberwolves Basketball Team

Minnesota Timberwolves President David Kahn told the Associated Press on Thursday that the team and Kurt Rambis were not close to a deal to name Rambis as its new head coach. Kahn said Wednesday that he is in a position to "do something within a week" and would like one or two of the coaching candidates to meet with owner Glen Taylor before a decision is made.

Minnesota Timberwolves guard Isaiah Rider is in trouble with the law once again. Rider was arrested in Oakland on Wednesday on a misdemeanor charge of gambling in public. Police said they saw him throwing dice on a street corner with eight to 10 other people, two of whom allegedly had several bags of marijuana. It was Rider's third brush with the law since June.

Isaiah Rider's ejection from the Minnesota Timberwolves' 104-96 loss to the Utah Jazz Sunday took a bizarre turn when his mother walked onto the court. Rider, ejected by referee Ken Mauer with 1:43 left in the first half, stayed on the court while teammates tried to calm him. As he continued to try to get close to Mauer, Minnesota teammate Doug West tried to coax him to the exit. Finally, Rider's mother, who was sitting courtside, walked onto the court, talking to Rider from a distance.

Moses Malone made it, but Bill Willoughby crashed and burned. Darryl Dawkins lasted 14 entertaining, if disappointing, seasons. Kevin Garnett is only the latest to jump from high school to the NBA and, like the others, he had to give up only one thing: His childhood. At 19, Garnett has a three-year, $5.6-million contract, a Lexus, a Land Cruiser and a job with the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Trade talks continued Monday between the Minnesota Timberwolves and the Lakers after a four-team proposal that would have sent All-Star forward Kevin Garnett to the Lakers collapsed. Minnesota owner Glen Taylor was expected to be in the Timberwolves' offices this morning before departing for a honeymoon in China. His appearance at team headquarters suggested a quick resolution on the Lakers' proposal, which includes forward Lamar Odom and center Andrew Bynum.

In Lakerdom, times aren't merely good or bad, they're more like heaven and hell. Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant are either feuding or posing for pictures with the Larry O'Brien Trophy. Kobe is either scoring 81 or bringing down some calamity on his head. Now, the team is either getting Kevin Garnett and going back to being the Lakers, or not and staring into the abyss. Anyone got a match? This may not have been the worst four weeks the Lakers ever went through, but it's up there.

If Monday brought expectation and exhilaration to Lakers fans, Tuesday delivered silence. Minnesota Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor met with team officials in Minneapolis and then left for a honeymoon in China without signing off on a deal to send Kevin Garnett to the Lakers for a package including Andrew Bynum and Lamar Odom, which put the Garnett-to-L.A. scenarios back where they were a week ago -- remote territory.

Accept it: Kevin Garnett is not coming to the Lakers. Definitely not in the four-team trade that would have involved the Lakers, Minnesota, Indiana and Boston. And, it became apparent Wednesday, not in the possible Lakers-Timberwolves trade that emerged as an alternative when the stars didn't align for the bigger deal. The Timberwolves want draft picks and young players and figured they could do better than the Lakers' offer of Lamar Odom -- and his $27.

Kevin McHale, who helped build a powerhouse in Boston in the 1980s, may be about to build another one. Of course, the first time, he played there. Now the Minnesota Timberwolves' vice president of basketball operations, McHale has reportedly agreed to a trade that would send Kevin Garnett to the Celtics for Al Jefferson, Gerald Green, Sebastian Telfair, Theo Ratliff, Ryan Gomes and two No. 1 picks.

Winning regularly requires consistent effort, a concept the Boston Celtics seem to have finally figured out. Paul Pierce scored 32 points, including 15 in the third quarter, to lead the Celtics past the Minnesota Timberwolves, 103-100, Sunday at Minneapolis. "I think we've been lackadaisical a lot of times," said Gary Payton, who had 22 points on 10-for-18 shooting. "A lot of guys have not been playing as hard as they should. And I think now we're playing together."