Andrei Kirilenko not playing with the team he expected
Jeff Zillgitt, USA TODAY Sports, USA TODAY
After being named the Euroleague Player of the Year, Kirilenko's season with TWolves tough
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USATODAY
If Andrei Kirilenko ever said he wanted a do-over, you couldn't blame him.

Coming off a season with CSKA Moscow in which he was named 2011-12 Euroleague player of the year, and then the London Olympics, where he led Russia to a bronze medal, he got a chance to return to the NBA, where he had played for 10 seasons with the Utah Jazz.

A free agent, Kirilenko had his pick of teams. He liked the Minnesota Timberwolves' roster, and he heard positive words from other NBA players about coach Rick Adelman's offense. Kirilenko pictured himself fitting into Adelman's free-flowing style that gives players freedom, especially a 6-9 forward with scoring and passing skills.

He also pictured himself playing with forwards Kevin Love and Chase Budinger, center Nikola Pekovic and guards Ricky Rubio, Brandon Roy, Alexey Shved, Malcolm Lee, J.J. Barea and Luke Ridnour.

Instead, Roy and Lee were injured and are out for the season, and Budinger has been out and not expected back until after the All-Star Game at the earliest. Love, Rubio, Pekovic, Barea and Shved have all missed games because of injuries. Even Adelman missed 11 games to be with his ailing wife (he returned to practice Monday and should be back for Wednesday's game against the Los Angeles Clippers).

In all, Minnesota players have missed 162 games because of injuries. This wasn't the team he signed up to play with.

"We're a little bit banged up," Kirilenko told USA TODAY Sports, understanding his understatement. "We have a lot of guys out, and even the head coach, and it's pretty tough to play that way when the rotation is different."

Tough to play is another understatement. In the past 10 games, the Timberwolves are 1-9. In January, they are 3-11. This comes after being in the thick of the playoff race Jan. 1, a half-game game behind the Portland Trail Blazers for the final playoff spot in the Western Conference.

It really seemed to go downhill when Love broke his right hand — an injury that will keep him out until at least mid-March — on Jan. 3 and Lee needed knee and hip surgery a couple weeks later. Pekovic has missed the past five games with a bruised thigh.

"We stay together. We're not trying to blame somebody," Kirilenko said. "That says a lot. You can have bad games and bad situations, but when you're cursing each other and blaming each other, that's when it goes ugly. When you stay together and help each other and try to work and fix things, that's a good sign with this team."

Working things out is what Kirilenko did last season playing in Russia. He was one of the guys who didn't want to wait around for the end of the lockout and have to play a jam-packed schedule in a tight window. Instead of back-to-back-to-backs and five games in six nights, Kirilenko opted for the much more relaxed European schedule.

"I had a great opportunity to play in front of Russian fans, in front of my family and friends," Kirilenko said. "I used it for preparations for the Olympics."

In London, he often reflected on his year at home with the joy a 28-year-old might feel with a year back in college — minus the schoolwork.

"It worked out," he said. "I knew I would get back to the NBA."

Even with that great season, the NBA might be the only place he plays from now on. He said he's unsure if he'll play for Russia in this summer's EuroBasket Championships in Slovenia.

But that decision will have to wait. For now, he's doing what he can to help turn around the Timberwolves, which seems like a difficult task.

Still, he's quick to point out that before this recent skid, the team was better than .500.

"Our goal is the playoffs," Kirilenko said. "Right now, we're not playing as a playoff team. We have to get back to that level, which is probably the first 25 games we played, in order to make the playoffs. We can talk about the playoffs, but if we haven't played the last 10, 15 games as a playoff team. We have to change that direction."

For his part, Kirilenko has been solid in the face of the chaos. He has averaged 13.6 points, 6.7 rebounds, 3.1 assists, 1.5 steals and 1.2 blocks per game while shooting 51.5%.

"He's a veteran player who teaches young players how to play," said point guard Rubio, who has played in 16 games coming off knee surgery. "He's been in the league 10 years, but he plays like it's his first day. He's a leader of the team. He's smart. He knows how to handle the pressure and help us a lot."

Kirilenko says he's playing at a good level, yet another understatement when you consider he's had seven double-doubles this season (more than he had in his two previous NBA seasons combined) and three 20-point, 10-rebound games (he had one in his two previous NBA seasons).

Still, for now, all he can do is continue to play steadily and picture himself playing with that lineup he thought would be there when he chose Minnesota. Not one that's 17-24.

"When you have those guys, it's very easy to play the game," Kirilenko said. "They understand the game, and when you have them around, it's very easy to make decisions."