This is a bigger surprise than the things that will come out of your Uncle Phil’s mouth at the family Thanksgiving dinner once he’s had a few too many beers. But Timberwolves fans don’t care because this is great news:
Kevin Love has been put on the active roster and will start for the Timberwolves Wednesday night against Denver, tweets Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune.
Love broke his hand while doing knuckle pushups before the season started, has not played in a game yet, and the timeline was he was expected to return around Thanksgiving. However, aside the fact he took part in a team walkthrough this week there was no indication he was this close.
Love is an All-Star and Olympic gold medalist who gave Minnesota 24 points and 12.3 rebounds a game last season. He is strong on the offensive glass but has the touch to shoot 37 percent from three. Minnesota’s offense just instantly got better.
Minnesota went 5-4 without Love (and they still await the return of Ricky Rubio some time in December). That keeps them in the playoff hunt in the West, and with other teams experiencing injuries they have a real shot at making the cut.