http://www.twincities.com/mld/twincities/sports/basketball/13168695.htm Timberwolves rookie Rashad McCants said he's aware his reputation precedes him. Now it's just a matter of doing something about it. After being ejected for collecting two technical fouls Sunday night in Denver, McCants said Monday he will "tone it down" in regard to the emotion he shows during games. It's a fine line, though, between playing with emotion and getting hit with technical fouls. And it's one that McCants is struggling to understand. "Either you're an emotional player or you're not," McCants said. "Michael Jordan was very emotional. When he dunked on somebody … kind of like the Patrick Ewing dunk he did in New York. He got all up in his face. It's a reaction. In the heat of the moment, and the game is tight, you just kind of react. It's not anything disrespectful at all." In the fourth quarter of Sunday's game, McCants dunked on Marcus Camby, shoved him in the back and was hit with his second technical foul, which resulted in an automatic ejection. Wolves coach Dwane Casey said the incident was clearly taunting, and he criticized the rookie. Wolves all-star Kevin Garnett suggested McCants try to talk to official Bennett Salvatore about the ejection after the game. McCants said he didn't get the chance, but Garnett's point was understood. McCants has to take the initiative to change his reputation. At the University of North Carolina, McCants developed a reputation of having a questionable attitude. He once compared the restrictions of playing college basketball to being in jail. The scowl on his face during games became his trademark. "I think that's just going to come with time, seeing the refs, being familiar with them and them being familiar with me," McCants said. "I think a lot of people, whether it be this business or any other business, they only go by what they've heard. I haven't proven anything here (in the NBA), so they can only go by what I've done in the past. The reputation is what it is. … I just got to try to clear it up somehow." Contrary to a report, McCants will not be fined $1,000 for Sunday's incident, but he will be fined a total of $3,000. Each technical foul draws an automatic $1,000 fine from the NBA, and an ejection costs an additional $1,000. McCants' first technical on Sunday was called when he bumped chests with Garnett and yelled at him in celebration of a Garnett dunk. Casey said the first technical wasn't clear-cut but that McCants shouldn't have put himself in that situation. "We were down 14 at that time or something like that," Casey said. "There's no reason to be celebrating. I understand you're trying to get your teammates going, but do it in a professional way. The second (technical), he deserved." In regard to another ejection in the future, McCants said, "It won't happen again." But he's also not apologizing for trying to establish himself in the NBA as a rookie. The dunk on Camby was a highlight-reel play. "You can't be too passive, you can't just act like you're just showing up and punching the clock," McCants said. "You've got to enjoy the game. Fans are going to come to see dunks and defense, things like that. That's what brings the ticket-holders in." --

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