It’s hard to believe anyone is going to vote for Kevin Love when the MVP award is up. Too much of a numbers guy on a good, but not great Minnesota Timberwolves team. However, it’s hard to deny how well he’s playing, with the stats to show it, including 13 double-double performances since the start of the season, adding another one (17-16) as his team easily brushed aside the pathetic Brooklyn Nets 111-81.

A second straight year that an expensive, slightly megalomaniac project goes belly up. Adding old and expensive players like Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett hasn’t done any good, and the injury to Deron Williams’ ankle (once again) has dropped the Nets to 3-9. Thinking that Kidd’s leadership on the court translates right away into great head coaching was a bit naive, and is another thing keeping the Nets from fulfilling their limited potential.

Kevin Garnett – We created this monster. We’ve got to deal with it. You’re going to have the business of basketball come into play I’m sure and management is probably going to do what they’ve got to do, but that’s out of our hands. We’ve got to control our own destiny, who we are as individuals and players. So like I said, for the fifth time, look at yourself and try to fix this thing. Everybody’s frustrated. I don’t think there’s a happy person in here or a guy who’s smiling. There’s nothing to be smiling about right now.

Garnett doesn’t handle losing very well. That’s why he demanded a trade to leave Minnesota in 2007, becoming a champion with the Boston Celtics, adding an arrogant swagger to his already dirty tactics, which doesn’t really work well with his ability over the last couple of years. He sent a forearm to the chest of Kevin Love, getting a flagrant call for that. His trash talk and slightly violent demeanor didn’t really bother Love, who at some point “dared’ swat Garnett’s hands away from him. Playground bullies don’t react well to being confronted. Garnett finished with 8 points and 8 rebounds, but his Celtics partner of Paul Pierce had an awful 2-of-11 night, scoring only 6 points.

The Timberwolves? At home, it’s hard to find a team that’s more enjoyable to watch. Ricky Rubio running the floor better than anyone in the NBA right now, finishing with 12 points, 8 assists and 3 steals, making a meal of playing against Shaun Livingston and not Williams. The Timberwolves have better scorers than him, but Rubio is usually the barometer when he makes wise choices on offense.

The game was over after the first quarter, with the Timberwolves already leading 30-14. Kevin Martin didn’t have to be extremely efficient (17 points on 6-of-16 from the field) and Kevin Love didn’t need to be at his best from the outside, missing all three-point attempts he got. It doesn’t really matter when he and Nikola Pekovic had no problem manhandling any frontcourt duo the Nets tried to confront them with, simply looking older, slower, and not up to this level of basketball right now.

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