http://www.twincities.com/mld/twincities/sports/basketball/13504367.htm McHale says team in talks to acquire all-star Kevin McHale, the Timberwolves' vice president of basketball operations, acknowledged Wednesday that the organization is talking to the Indiana Pacers about acquiring Ron Artest. The acknowledgement came after the Pioneer Press reported Wednesday, citing a source, that the Wolves contacted the Pacers last week and are among 10 teams in the running for the services of the mercurial all-star. "A lot of people have talked to them, and we're one of the ones that have talked to them," McHale said. McHale declined to discuss the situation in detail, including when he thinks the Pacers might pull the trigger on a trade. Wolves forward Kevin Garnett said he thinks Artest could fit in with the club "under certain specifications." "We have a group that knows how to play with each other," Garnett said. "I'm pretty stingy when it comes to my teammates. I'm tight with (expletive) near everybody here. If not, I'm growing a relationship with them. It doesn't matter what I think half the time. They're going to do it (trade for Artest), or they're not going to do it." Garnett publicly expressed unhappiness earlier this season after the trade of Sam Cassell and the decision not to re-sign free agent Latrell Sprewell this summer. Now Garnett seems to be playing a hands-off role with regard to the possibility of a trade for Artest. Asked if he would welcome the addition, Garnett said: "I have no choice. (Expletive), I don't make no decisions around here. Whatever comes, I guess I've just got to live with it till the summer gets here." However, it's clear that Garnett's edginess isn't directed at Artest. Agent Mark Stevens told the Pioneer Press on Tuesday that his client would consider it an "honor and a privilege" to play with Garnett, praise that drew a humble response from Minnesota's eight-time all-star. "It's a compliment," Garnett said. "Ron's established himself as one of the most probably tenacious defenders in this league, one of the rare ones. There are very few defenders that can also score the ball." Artest was chosen an all-star and the NBA defensive player of the year in 2004. This season, he is leading the NBA in steals with an average of 2.63 a game to go with 19.4 points. He has played in just 16 games, with the Pacers shunning him while they negotiate a trade. It's that scoring ability that could make Artest even more appealing to the Wolves, who had lost six of their past seven games going into Wednesday's game against Seattle in part because of a lack of production from reserves. McHale said there is no question his team needs more scoring. "At this time, you either develop it or trade for it, unless you're waiting for next summer," McHale said. "I would assume that we're either going to try to make a trade for it — yeah, we definitely do need a little more scoring punch. Our defense has been solid. "Some of those tough losses pile up on a team a little bit. You can tend to start losing your confidence. The (other) team gets up six or eight points, and it's hard for this team to run off six or eight points." Garnett said he doesn't know Artest well, other than casual conversations during offseasons. "When he was going through his hardships, I put a call in, told him to keep his head up, that type of thing," Garnett said. "But other than that, nothing serious." Artest was suspended for 73 games and the playoffs last season after he attacked a fan in the stands during a November 2004 game at Detroit, sparking a brawl between the Pacers and fans. Artest lost about $5 million of his salary in the suspension. --

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