http://www.startribune.com/511/story/1130227.html When Justin Reed, Trenton Hassell and Timberwolves assistant coach Rex Kalamian either tried to stop Ricky Davis from leaving the court on that Friday night in January or went through the tunnel at Target Center to retrieve him, they weren't just hoping to keep their friend and teammate in the game or spare him a fine. They essentially were trying to save their season. That game -- a 104-98 loss to the Detroit Pistons in double overtime -- was the ultimate turning point in a season that, a few days later, would be characterized by a far more obvious one: Coach Dwane Casey was fired on Jan. 23 and replaced by assistant Randy Wittman. Under Casey, grappling with inconsistency, underachievement and some muddy roles, the Wolves were 20-20, good enough for eighth place in the Western Conference. Under Wittman, the team took another plunge in the standings, a 12-30 swoon to rival last season's 13-28 finish after a convulsive trade (involving Davis, Wally Szczerbiak and five others) at nearly the same point. The tear in the Wolves' season couldn't have been more apparent: On Jan. 15, in their most complete and poised game of 2006-07, they beat the Pistons in overtime at The Palace of Auburn Hills, pushing their record to 20-16. Two nights later, the Wolves were horrible in a 105-88 home loss to lowly Atlanta. Then Davis walked out on his team in the third quarter of Detroit's visit to Minneapolis. Kevin Garnett, visibly agitated by all the drama, got kicked out for throwing the ball and taking a poke at Pistons forward Antonio McDyess with 5:18 left in the fourth, the score tied. With the game stretching 10 extra minutes, the Wolves ran out of key players and gas, and lost. Then, without Davis (team suspension) and Garnett (NBA suspension) two nights later, the Wolves lost at Phoenix. The next night, they played little defense at Utah and lost again. Casey got fired the following afternoon. Wittman took over, and they lost six of their next eight. After a 3-1 spurt heading into the All-Star break, the Wolves come back refreshed, serious about chasing down a playoff spot and ... go 3-11, falling to 28-38. Turning point? More like a trauma. When Davis left the court and Garnett lost his composure, one leading to the other, the team's lack of chemistry and character flaws were exposed even to the casual fans, and it all dropped off quickly. But things already were pointed downhill. Too many cooks Casey, after his 33-49 rookie season as an NBA head coach, acknowledged some failings, changed up his coaching staff and even agreed to have Wittman back -- the longtime Flip Saunders assistant had spent 2005-06 in Orlando -- to add experience. Skeptics figured it was only a matter of time before Wittman, popular with vice president of basketball operations Kevin McHale and owner Glen Taylor, would be promoted into Casey's job. But it wasn't Wittman over Casey's shoulder that bothered the head coach. It was McHale and others in the front office giving too many different versions of the program to players and spending more time coaching on the practice floor than, maybe, in their personnel chores. At least, that's how some players took it. And when someone unhappy with his playing time, such as guard Marko Jaric, could request and get meetings directly with Taylor, the message got muddied, the coaches felt undermined. There wasn't a lot of unity on this team to begin with. Nine of the 13 players still on the roster had been with the Wolves for one season or less when training camp began. It hurt, too, that so many of the players with guaranteed contracts were backcourt players. The overlap didn't just show up in the five players the Wolves put on the floor, it showed up in how they related to each other and searched for their place in some pecking order. "You aren't going to be as close, if you've got five [at the same position], as a group if you're wondering who's who here," Wittman admitted. Help for Garnett? That's where leadership was so vital and Garnett, as the team's franchise player and lone All-Star, so desperate for help. Should he, at age 30 as the undisputed alpha dog of the team, have needed help? If he thought so, then apparently so. Garnett missed the easy veteran style of former Wolves center Ervin Johnson. And he slumped when camp addition Vin Baker, another vet, didn't have enough game left to keep him around. --

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