Wolves injuries nothing new, but now so much worse

MINNEAPOLIS -- Andrew Wiggins playing 48 minutes Monday night in Salt Lake City. Sean Kilpatrick speeding up Interstate 95 in his BMW X3 to get to Madison Square Garden in time. Nikola Pekovic honoring his nicknamesake with a Godfather-style suit on the Timberwolves bench.

There are injuries. There are multiple injuries. There are strings of multiple injuries.

And then there's this.

Minnesota's current injury report reads like one of those side-effects disclaimers crammed in at the end of a Prilosec commercial. Pause. Deep breath. Then a list of names and ailments that takes so long to belt out, Voiceover Guy would've been better off just saying "you know, don't bother."

Five of the past six games, a minimum eight Wolves have dressed. In Monday night's victory at Utah, only seven saw the court, because Kevin Martin's hamstring wasn't in playing shape, according to the team.

It's gone on all year, of course. And really, even longer. But every time Flip Saunders thinks to himself, "well, it can't get worse than this," it starts pouring outside like that graveyard scene in Young Frankenstein.

Nine injured players at present. Two league-granted roster limit exceptions at different junctures. Three starters out for the better part of the season's first half, which prompted Saunders to start clearing the shelves and trade veterans Corey Brewer, Mo Williams and Thaddeus Young.

And now this list of casualties:

(Pause. Deep breath.)

Ricky Rubio (sore right ankle, has missed 48 games this season). Kevin Garnett (sore left knee, has played in just five of the Wolves' 17 games since they traded for him at the deadline). Pekovic (sore right ankle, sat out Minnesota's past seven games and 39 total this year). Shabazz Muhammad (ruptured finger ligament, left middle finger, done for the season). Anthony Bennett (sprained right ankle, hasn't played since Feb. 20, a 16-game span). Robbie Hummel (broken right hand, missed the past 27 games). Gary Neal (two sprained ankles). Justin Hamilton (headache).

Yes, you read those last couple right.

"It's been hard for me," Saunders said, half-opening a vein, half-responding jokingly when asked about how difficult this slew has been for his team. "What about me?"

Again, it's nothing new. Just amplified all the more.

Of a possible 700 combined individual games played, the 10 current Wolves players who have been around since the start of the season have taken part in 344 -- that's less than 50 percent. Last year, for comparison's sake, the number was 79 percent.

And in 2012-13, when Kevin Love missed almost the entire season and Rubio was coming back from a torn ACL? 66.8 percent.

With the Wolves at 16-54, they'd get the second-best NBA Draft Lottery seed if the ping-pong balls came out of the chute tomorrow. If this was a playoff push, some players with nagging pains might be available.

For example, Rubio returned well from a severe ankle sprain suffered five games into the season but has some lingering soreness that's keeping him out.

"If he's hurt, he's going to be nonproductive from that perspective, we won't push him," Saunders said. "I'll leave that up to the player and the trainers."

Some have cried "tanking," essentially suggesting part or all of the injury report is an outright fabrication. Saunders defended the organization's integrity vehemently when Jazz television broadcasters hinted the Wolves might be sitting players to bottom out for a top draft pick.

"That's totally irresponsible; we're not tanking games," Saunders said. "They should come down before the game, they should find out what's going on, who's hurt and who's not. . . . We're playing to win.

"It's irresponsible for them to go on TV and say that. If you're working at ESPN, you get fired for doing stuff like that."

Saunders points to a perceived uptick in ailments around the NBA, saying the problem extends well beyond Minnesota's borders.

More back-to-backs. Increased travel. Players playing too much basketball as youngsters on the AAU circuit, then spending most of the summer with personal trainers, international teams or both.

"We're not the only team that's had a lot of injuries," Saunders said. "It's a league-wide thing. It's something the league, I'm sure, everyone's going to look at and try to address at the end of the year."

It's already been discussed. Stretching out the schedule to avoid back-to-backs is one solution. The NBA had a longer All-Star break this year, but that made for a more back-loaded slate, Saunders has lamented.

That's just one reason. For that one and a multitude of others, Kevin Durant, Derrick Rose, Paul George, Jamal Crawford, Carmelo Anthony and Dwight Howard all have missed significant time this season.

"It's a tough league," Pekovic said. "You can see it when guys are falling apart."

When he coached the Pistons to three straight Eastern Conference finals in the mid-2000s, Saunders had a rule. For six weeks after the season, players were mandated to rest.

That's harder to get away with now, he said, especially with a youthful, raw roster that needs work.

"It's a catch-22, because you have young guys that need time, too," Saunders said. "But we're going to try to reevaluate that situation and make sure they get some rest."

Probably not a bad idea.

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