Mark

Madsen

“I’m very optimistic,” he said of having the pins removed and looking forward to practice. “This is going to allow me to increase my activity level.”

Madsen is day-to-day. With Michael Olowokandi already out, Minnesota is thin on the front line.

Madsen missed another game last night with back spasms.

''I kind of tweaked it there, right at the end,’' he said. ''So now I have to see how it responds. It’s part of the process of coming back from an injury, testing it and seeing if it’s ready to go.’' Madsen said he was unsure if he’d be ready to play significant minutes Friday.

Horry had 13 points in 30 minutes. Madsen only managed two points and two rebounds in 19 minutes.

We’re hearing it’s a five-year deal, and we’re guessing that Kevin McHale is a lot more fired up about this than Kevin Garnett is. ''We’re excited to have re-signed Mark,’' team vice president McHale said. ''Mark brings so much to a team than just statistics. First and foremost, he brings energy, and tremendous work ethic. Plus, he is a good teammate and a great guy to have in the locker room.’' Wait a minute, isn’t he talking about Brian Scalabrine? Hopefully the Wolves didn’t spend as much on Madsen as the Celtics dropped on Scalabrine.

Madsen is day-to-day.

Yes, that Mark Madsen. He’ll take over the team as head coach, but there’s no word if he’ll bring his towel-waving skills and iconic dancing to the sidelines.

Madsen is starting because, “we had been having some bad energy to start games,” coach Flip Saunders said. “He gives us some good energy, does a lot of the little things. It’s been a combination of things.” Eddie Griffin has more fantay value, though.