2000–01 Minnesota Timberwolves season

The 2000–01 NBA season was the Timberwolves' 12th season in the National Basketball Association.[1] After the tragic death of Malik Sealy, the Timberwolves scrambled to find a replacement for him, signing free agent Chauncey Billups,[2][3] a close friend of Kevin Garnett, and signing LaPhonso Ellis during the off-season.[4][5] Meanwhile, the Timberwolves secret free agent deal signed by Joe Smith was voided by the NBA, who ruled their proper procedure in signing the contract, while stripping their first round draft picks for the next five seasons and fined the team $3.5 million; Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor, and General Manager Kevin McHale were both suspended for one year.[6][7][8][9] Smith would later on sign a free-agent deal with the Detroit Pistons.[10][11]

2000–01 Minnesota Timberwolves season
Head coachFlip Saunders
General managerKevin McHale
OwnersGlen Taylor
ArenaTarget Center
Results
Record47–35 (.573)
PlaceDivision: 4th (Midwest)
Conference: 8th (Western)
Playoff finishFirst round
(lost to Spurs 1–3)
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com

Despite the troubles, and losing four of their first six games, the Timberwolves won 13 of their next 18 games, posted an 11-game winning streak between January and February, and held a 32–18 record at the All-Star break.[12] At midseason, the team signed free agent Felipe López, who was previously released by the Washington Wizards.[13] The Timberwolves finished fourth in the Midwest Division with a 47–35 record.[14]

Garnett averaged 22.0 points, 11.4 rebounds, 5.0 assists, 1.4 steals and 1.8 blocks per game, and was named to the All-NBA Second Team, NBA All-Defensive First Team, and selected for the 2001 NBA All-Star Game.[15][16][17] In addition, second-year star Wally Szczerbiak averaged 14.0 points and 5.5 rebounds per game, and won the MVP award in the Rookie-Sophomore Game during the All-Star Weekend,[18][19] while Terrell Brandon provided the team with 16.0 points, 7.5 assists and 2.1 steals per game, Anthony Peeler contributed 10.5 points per game, Billups contributed 9.3 points and 3.4 assists per game, and Ellis provided with 9.4 points and 6.0 rebounds per game off the bench.[20] Garnett also finished in fifth place in Most Valuable Player voting with 1 first-place vote,[21] and finished in second place in Defensive Player of the Year voting,[22] while Ellis finished in third place in Sixth Man of the Year voting.[23]

However, in the Western Conference First Round of the playoffs, the T-Wolves would lose in four games to the top-seeded San Antonio Spurs.[24][25][26][27] Following the season, Ellis signed as a free agent with the Miami Heat,[28] and Tom Hammonds retired.

Draft picks
Main article: 2000 NBA draft
Round Pick Player Position Nationality College
251Igor RakocevicPG/SG Serbia

Roster
2000–01 Minnesota Timberwolves roster
Players Coaches
Pos.No.NameHeightWeightDOBFrom
PG 5 Avery, William 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 197 lb (89 kg) 1979–08–08 Duke
SG 4 Billups, Chauncey Injured 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 202 lb (92 kg) 1976–09–25 Colorado
PG 7 Brandon, Terrell 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1970–05–20 Oregon
SG 11 Day, Todd 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 188 lb (85 kg) 1970–01–07 Arkansas
PF 3 Ellis, LaPhonso 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 240 lb (109 kg) 1970–05–05 Notre Dame
PF 21 Garnett, Kevin (C) 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 1976–05–19 Farragut Academy (IL)
C 22 Garrett, Dean 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 225 lb (102 kg) 1966–11–27 Indiana
PF 20 Hammonds, Tom 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 1967–03–27 Georgia Tech
PG 13 López, Felipe 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1974–12–19 St. John's
SF 42 Mitchell, Sam 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 1963–09–02 Mercer
C 8 Nesterović, Rasho 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 255 lb (116 kg) 1976–05–30 Slovenia
SG 44 Peeler, Anthony 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 208 lb (94 kg) 1969–11–25 Missouri
PF 35 Slater, Reggie 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 1970–08–27 Wyoming
SF 10 Szczerbiak, Wally 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 244 lb (111 kg) 1977–03–05 Miami (OH)
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (DP) Unsigned draft pick
  • (FA) Free agent
  • (S) Suspended
  • Injured Injured

Roster
Last transaction: February 28, 2001

Regular season

Season standings
Midwest Division
 W L PCT GB Home Road Div
z-San Antonio Spurs 5824.707–33–825–1619–5
x-Utah Jazz 5329.646528–1325–1614–10
x-Dallas Mavericks 5329.646528–1325–1614–10
x-Minnesota Timberwolves 4735.5731130–1117–2411–13
Houston Rockets 4537.5491324–1721–2011–13
Denver Nuggets 4042.4881829–1211–3013–11
Vancouver Grizzlies 2359.2803515–268–332–22
Western Conference
# Team W L PCT GB
1 z-San Antonio Spurs5824.707–
2 y-Los Angeles Lakers5626.6832
3 x-Sacramento Kings5527.6713
4 x-Utah Jazz5329.6465
5 x-Dallas Mavericks5329.6465
6 x-Phoenix Suns5131.6227
7 x-Portland Trail Blazers5032.6108
8 x-Minnesota Timberwolves4735.57311
9 Houston Rockets4537.54913
10 Seattle SuperSonics4438.53714
11 Denver Nuggets4042.48818
12 Los Angeles Clippers3151.37827
13 Vancouver Grizzlies2359.28035
14 Golden State Warriors1765.20741
z - clinched division title
y - clinched division title
x - clinched playoff spot

Record vs. opponents
2000-01 NBA Records
Team ATL BOS CHA CHI CLE DAL DEN DET GSW HOU IND LAC LAL MIA MIL MIN NJN NYK ORL PHI PHO POR SAC SAS SEA TOR UTA VAN WAS
Atlanta —1–30–42–22–20–21–10–42–00–22–21–11–10–31–30–21–32–21–30–30–21–11–10–21–12–20–21–12–2
Boston 3–1—0–42–12–10–22–03–10–21–11–32–00–22–21–31–14–01–31–30–42–01–10–20–22–01–31–10–23–1
Charlotte 4–04–0—3–12–20–20–22–22–00–23–12–00–22–23–11–14–01–22–12–20–20–21–11–10–23–11–11–12–2
Chicago 2–21–21–3—1–30–20–20–40–20–20–40–20–21–30–40–22–21–31–31–30–20–20–21–10–20–40–21–12–1
Cleveland 2–21–22–23–1—1–11–12–22–00–21–30–20–22–21–30–23–02–21–30–40–21–11–10–20–20–41–11–12–2
Dallas 2–02–02–02–01–1—3–11–14–02–21–14–00–42–01–13–12–01–11–11–11–32–22–21–33–12–02–23–12–0
Denver 1–10–22–02–01–11–3—1–14–03–11–12–22–20–21–12–21–11–10–21–10–42–22–22–22–20–21–34–01–1
Detroit 4–01–32–24–02–21–11–1—1–10–21–30–20–20–41–30–24–01–22–20–41–10–20–20–22–02–20–21–11–2
Golden State 0–22–00–22–00–20–40–41–1—1–32–01–31–30–20–22–21–10–20–20–22–20–40–40–40–40–21–31–30–2
Houston 2–01–12–02–02–02–21–32–03–1—2–01–31–31–12–02–21–12–01–11–11–31–30–41–32–22–01–34–02–0
Indiana 2–23–11–34–03–11–11–13–10–20–2—2–01–11–22–21–12–22–22–20–31–10–22–00–21–10–40–22–04–0
L.A. Clippers 1–10–20–22–02–00–42–22–03–13–10–2—1–30–21–12–20–21–11–11–12–22–21–30–40–41–10–42–21–1
L.A. Lakers 1–12–02–02–02–04–02–22–03–13–11–13–1—1–10–23–12–00–22–01–13–12–23–12–20–42–02–24–02–0
Miami 3–02–22–23–12–20–22–04–02–01–12–12–01–1—1–21–13–12–33–11–30–21–11–11–11–12–21–12–04–0
Milwaukee 3–13–11–34–03–11–11–13–12–00–22–21–12–02–1—0–24–01–24–02–20–20–22–02–00–23–12–01–13–1
Minnesota 2–01–11–12–02–01–32–22–02–22–21–12–21–31–12–0—1–10–21–11–13–13–12–21–33–12–02–23–11–1
New Jersey 3–10–40–42–20–30–21–10–41–11–12–22–00–21–30–41–1—2–21–31–31–10–20–21–11–11–20–21–13–1
New York 2–23–12–13–12–21–11–12–12–00–22–21–12–03–22–12–02–2—3–11–31–11–11–12–01–11–30–21–14–0
Orlando 3–13–11–23–13–11–12–02–22–01–12–21–10–21–30–41–13–11–3—3–11–10–20–21–11–12–10–22–03–1
Philadelphia 3–04–02–23–14–01–11–14–02–01–13–01–11–13–12–21–13–13–11–3—1–11–11–11–11–11–31–12–04–0
Phoenix 2–00–22–02–02–03–14–01–12–23–11–12–21–32–02–01–31–11–11–11–1—3–11–32–23–12–02–23–11–1
Portland 1–11–12–02–01–12–22–22–04–03–12–02–22–21–12–01–32–01–12–01–11–3—1–31–32–22–03–12–22–0
Sacramento 1–12–01–12–01–12–22–22–04–04–00–23–11–31–10–22–22–01–12–01–13–13–1—2–22–22–03–14–02–0
San Antonio 2–02–01–11–12–03–12–22–04–03–12–04–02–21–10–23–11–10–21–11–12–23–12–2—3–11–14–04–02–0
Seattle 1–10–22–02–02–01–32–20–24–02–21–14–04–01–12–01–31–11–11–11–11–32–22–21–3—0–20–43–12–0
Toronto 2–23–11–34–04–00–22–02–22–00–24–01–10–22–21–30–22–13–11–23–10–20–20–21–12–0—1–12–04–0
Utah 2–01–11–12–01–12–23–12–03–13–12–04–02–21–10–22–22–02–02–01–12–21–31–34–01–30–2—4–02–0
Vancouver 1–12–01–11–11–11–30–41–13–10–40–22–20–40–21–11–31–11–10–20–21–32–20–40–41–30–20–4—2–0
Washington 2–21–32–21–22–20–21–12–12–00–20–41–10–20–41–31–11–30–41–30–41–10–20–20–20–20–40–20–2—

Playoffs
2001 playoff game log
First Round: 1–3 (home: 1–1; road: 0–2)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation
Attendance		Series
1 April 21 @ San Antonio L 82–87 Kevin Garnett (25) Kevin Garnett (13) Terrell Brandon (8) Alamodome
33,983		 0–1
2 April 23 @ San Antonio L 69–86 Kevin Garnett (18) Kevin Garnett (12) six players tied (2) Alamodome
31,759		 0–2
3 April 28 San Antonio W 93–84 Kevin Garnett (22) Kevin Garnett (8) Terrell Brandon (9) Target Center
17,676		 1–2
4 April 30 San Antonio L 84–97 Wally Szczerbiak (20) Kevin Garnett (15) Terrell Brandon (6) Target Center
16,336		 1–3
2001 schedule

Player statistics
Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field-goal percentage  3P%  3-point field-goal percentage  FT%  Free-throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game

NOTE: Please write the players statistics in alphabetical order by last name.

Season
Player GP GS MPG FG% 3FG% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
William Avery
Chauncey Billups
Terrell Brandon
Todd Day
LaPhonso Ellis
Kevin Garnett
Dean Garrett
Tom Hammonds
Sam Jacobson
Felipe Lopez
Sam Mitchell
Rasho Nesterovic
Anthony Peeler
Reggie Slater
Wally Szczerbiak

Playoffs
Player GP GS MPG FG% 3FG% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG

Awards and records

Transactions

References
  1. 2000-01 Minnesota Timberwolves
  2. "Timberwolves Sign Billups, Smith". Associated Press. August 28, 2000. Retrieved July 27, 2021.
  3. "NBA Capsule -- Minnesota Timberwolves". United Press International. October 29, 2000. Retrieved October 19, 2022.
  4. "Transactions". The New York Times. October 5, 2000. Retrieved October 16, 2021.
  5. Wise, Mike (October 30, 2000). "PRO BASKETBALL; West Side Story, the Sequel". The New York Times. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
  6. McKinley Jr., James C. (October 26, 2000). "PRO BASKETBALL; Timberwolves Pay Dearly for Secret Contract". The New York Times. Retrieved November 26, 2022.
  7. Sheridan, Chris (October 26, 2000). "NBA Fines Minnesota for Secret Deal". Associated Press. Retrieved June 9, 2022.
  8. Wise, Mike (October 27, 2000). "PRO BASKETBALL; Timberwolves Might Face Additional Punishment". The New York Times. Retrieved March 15, 2017.
  9. Adande, J.A. (October 28, 2000). "Minnesota Feels Stern's Wrath". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 2, 2022.
  10. "PRO BASKETBALL; Smith Is Signed and Sealed, and Pistons Look to Deliver". The New York Times. Associated Press. November 21, 2000. Retrieved January 11, 2022.
  11. "Joe Smith Ends Up Signing with Pistons". Los Angeles Times. Associated Press. November 21, 2000. Retrieved October 19, 2022.
  12. "NBA Games Played on February 8, 2001". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved September 12, 2022.
  13. "Lopez Latches on with Minnesota". United Press International. February 28, 2001. Retrieved November 27, 2022.
  14. "2000–01 Minnesota Timberwolves Schedule and Results". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved June 26, 2021.
  15. "2001 NBA All-Star Recap". NBA.com. NBA.com Staff. September 13, 2021. Retrieved May 14, 2023.
  16. "2001 All-Star Weekend - at Washington: February 9-11". Eskimo North. Retrieved May 14, 2023.
  17. "2001 NBA All-Star Game: East 111, West 110". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved November 28, 2021.
  18. Robbins, Liz (February 11, 2001). "BASKETBALL: ALL-STAR NOTEBOOK; Szczerbiak Schools Rookies". The New York Times. Retrieved October 19, 2022.
  19. "2001 NBA Rising Stars: Sophomores 121, Rookies 113". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved January 15, 2022.
  20. "2000–01 Minnesota Timberwolves Roster and Stats". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved June 26, 2021.
  21. Brown, Clifton (May 16, 2001). "PRO BASKETBALL; 76ers' Fans Called It: Iverson Is Most Valuable Player". The New York Times. Retrieved May 27, 2022.
  22. "Mutombo Voted Best Defensive Player for 4th Time". The Washington Post. April 24, 2001. Retrieved October 19, 2022.
  23. "2000-01 NBA Awards Voting". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved November 25, 2021.
  24. "N.B.A.: PLAYOFF ROUNDUP AND SCHEDULE; San Antonio Clinches". The New York Times. Associated Press. May 1, 2001. Retrieved May 27, 2022.
  25. "Spurs Handily Pass Their First Test". Los Angeles Times. Associated Press. May 1, 2001. Retrieved June 3, 2022.
  26. "San Antonio 97, Minnesota 84". United Press International. April 30, 2001. Retrieved November 26, 2022.
  27. "2001 NBA Western Conference First Round: Timberwolves vs. Spurs". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved May 14, 2023.
  28. "PLUS: PRO BASKETBALL; Ellis Moves Again, Signing with Heat". The New York Times. July 29, 2001. Retrieved January 12, 2022.

See also
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