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MINNEAPOLIS -- The Minnesota Timberwolves have accomplished their summer mission to bring better 3-point shooters and more positional balance to the roster. Now the questions left for this team to answer are whether it can successfully guard anyone and how to divide playing time among a suddenly deep, if healthy, group. The Timberwolves finalized contracts on Friday with a pair of small forwards whose skills were central to their plan, Chase Budinger and Corey Brewer, and another, first-round pick Shabazz Muhammad, whose playing-time prospect appears dim for this season after a flurry of post-draft moves. Budinger agreed to terms last week on a three-year, $16 million contract. Brewer agreed to a three-year, $15 million deal on Wednesday. The Wolves had to manoeuvr through the leagues complicated salary cap rules before they could actually sign them, which led to the trade of guard Luke Ridnour to Milwaukee. Brewer, of course, was the seventh overall pick in the 2007 draft by the Wolves, but he didnt hit his stride until after he left. Last season with Denver, he averaged 12.1 points in 24.4 minutes per game. Shooting is not his forte, but the Wolves badly needed a reliable defender on the wing, and his athletic ability to run the fast break with fancy-passing point guard Ricky Rubio was what cemented him as the right fit to replace the departed Andrei Kirilenko. "Its always different when you come in with the expectations of a top-10 pick and youre counted on to carry a team. Hes not going to have to carry this team," President of Basketball Operations Flip Saunders said. With Budinger and another veteran acquisition, shooting guard Kevin Martin, Brewer is probably bound for an energy-off-the-bench role. With him, Derrick Williams and the rookie Muhammad, finding time for everyone will be tricky. Williams played a lot of power forward when star Kevin Love was hurt, but with Love back and Dante Cunningham and Ronny Turiaf behind him, thats a crowded position, too. Saunders stopped short of declaring this the deepest team in the franchises woebegone history, but he said the group might be more versatile than the 2003-04 squad he coached with Kevin Garnett, Sam Cassell and Latrell Sprewell that reached the Western Conference finals. Thats the only year out of 24 that the Wolves have advanced past the first round of the playoffs. Budinger was limited to 23 games last season because of a lateral meniscus tear in his left knee. But his familiarity with coach Rick Adelmans system from their prior time together in Houston and his ability to shoot and move without the ball on the wing made him a priority for the Wolves to bring back. This also is a much taller team than last season, when the 6-foot-2 Ridnour was playing out of position at shooting guard. Assuming centre Nikola Pekovic is re-signed, there are three 6-foot-11 guys on the roster with rookie Gorgui Dieng and Chris Johnson. Brewer is 6-foot-9. Budinger and Martin are 6-foot-7. Ronny Turiaf, who was still in the process of finalizing the two-year, $3.2 million deal he agreed to on Thursday, will be a 6-foot-10 backup to Love. "I do believe that its going to be a very exciting team to watch play, just because of how we have the ability of the bigs inside to rebound, get out and run with Rubio," Saunders said, adding: "Our big question is, everyones going to say: We think you guys will be able to score. Are you going to be able to defend? Thats why getting Brewer and getting Turiaf, a perimeter defender and an inside defender, I thought was going to be very big for us." Saunders also praised Adelmans ability to produce capable team defence out of individuals who might not be the best at guarding. Once Turiaf signs, securing Pekovic is the last piece on the summer to-do list. Hes a restricted free agent. "People think he can go pretty much where he wants to go, and he can sign an offer sheet, but we have the ability to match anything," Saunders said. "Right now where were set in our budget, we have an ability to sign Pek, so we expect he will be back." Cheap Cleveland Indians Jerseys . Klitschkos management company says the bout will be the Ukrainian fighters 25th world championship fight. The 1.83-meter (6-foot) Leapai defeated the previously unbeaten Denis Boytsov in November to become the WBOs mandatory challenger. MLB World Series Jerseys China . -- Catcher Brett Hayes has agreed to a $630,000, one-year contract with the Kansas City Royals, avoiding salary arbitration. http://www.cheapworldseriesjerseys.com/ ... s-jerseys/ . Duchene scored two goals and had an assist, helping the Colorado Avalanche beat the Carolina Hurricanes 4-2 on Friday night to match the best 10-game start in team history. Cheap Cincinnati Reds Jerseys .S District Court against Major League Baseball, the Office of the Commissioner and his own union, the MLBPA. Authentic MLB World Series Jerseys . It was the second consecutive win for the Pacers (2-5), who lost their first five preseason games. Jeff Teague led the Hawks (1-5) with 17 points and eight assists and Al Horford had 12 points and seven rebounds. Mike Scott scored 15 of his 17 points in the second half. HOUSTON -- Kris Bryant gave the Houston Astros an up-close look at what could have been.Bryant hit a two-run homer, Jon Lester threw seven scoreless innings and Hector Rondon and Aroldis Chapman completed the shutout to give the Chicago Cubs a 2-0 win over the Astros on Friday night.It was Bryants first career game against the team that passed on him with the first pick in the 2013 draft to take starter Mark Appel, who was traded to Philadelphia this offseason before ever playing in the majors. Before the game Chicago manager Joe Maddon had a simple answer when he was asked about Houstons decision not to draft Bryant.Thank you, Maddon said with a smile.Bryant seemed to have grown weary of all the rehashing of that draft in the last few days, but seemed amused when he was asked if he likes hitting in Houston.Yeah, (batting practice) was fun for sure, he said. Just dont hit it to center.Bryant, taken second in that draft, avoided Houstons deep center field and smacked his 37th homer off Joe Musgrove (2-4) to the short porch in left field to put the Cubs up 2-0 in the fifth inning.Lester (16-4) allowed seven hits and struck out seven for his seventh straight win. He hasnt lost since July 3, hasnt allowed a run in three of those starts and gave up just one run in four others in that span.Rondon took over for the eighth and struck out two before Aroldis Chapman struck out one in a perfect ninth for his 13th save.The victory improved the Cubs to an MLB-best 90-50 a year after they won 97 games to give them consecutive 90-win seasons for the first time since doing it in three straight years from 1928-1930.The Astros had trouble stringing hits together against Lester, and didnt have more than one in an inning until the seventh when Yulieski Gurriel singled with one out and Marwin Gonzalez got another single with two outs. But Lester struck out Colby Rasmus looking to end the threat.Felt like that was the real big turning point in the game, Lester said. I felt like if we give up a hit there the momentum goes back on their side and it seems like theyre kind of built on that.Musgrove allowed three hits and two runs with five strikeouts in six innnings for his fourth loss in five starts.ddddddddddddManager A.J. Hinch was disappointed that Musgrove walked Dexter Fowler with two outs to set up Bryants homer.Im happy with his effort, and obviously, hell go home thinking about the walk to Fowler before Bryants big home run because that really was the only thing they got off of him, Hinch said.Fowler snapped an 0-for-19 skid with a leadoff triple. But Musgrove didnt allow another hit until Bryants homer with two outs in the fifth.Alex Bregman singled for Houston with no outs in the fourth inning and stole second base. But he was thrown out trying to swipe third, too, and the Astros lost a scoring opportunity.THAT HAD TO HURTPlay was stopped for a couple of minutes in the bottom of the sixth inning when home plate umpire C.B. Bucknor got hit on hit on his right shoulder with a foul ball from Teoscar Hernandez. Bucknor was shaken up after taking the hit and was checked on by a member of Houstons training staff. But the trainer soon left and he rubbed on his shoulder a couple of times before remaining in the game.TRAINERS ROOMAstros: SS Carlos Correa missed his third straight game on Friday with inflammation in his left shoulder. Correa said that he was feeling better on Friday and manager Hinch said they hoped to get him back sometime this weekend. ... Ace Dallas Keuchel, who is also out with inflammation in his left shoulder, wont throw until after Sunday. Keuchel was shut down on Monday because of the problem and said on Friday that he is feeling better, but is still struggling with the injury. Theres really no timetable set for return, he said. But I firmly believe were still going to be in the playoff hunt so hopefully I can help the guys out here in the next week or so.UP NEXTCubs: John Lackey (9-7, 3.36) is scheduled to make his second start since coming off the disabled list. He is 2-0 with a 1.65 ERA in his last five starts.Astros: Collin McHugh (9-10, 4.96) has won two straight decisions and the Astros have won the last four games that he started. cheap falcons jerseys cheap ravens jerseys cheap bills jerseys cheap bears jerseys cheap bengals jerseys cheap cowboys jerseys cheap lions jerseys cheap texans jerseys cheap colts jerseys cheap jaguars jerseys cheap chiefs jerseys cheap rams jerseys cheap dolphins jerseys cheap vikings jerseys cheap saints jerseys cheap giants jerseys cheap jets jerseys cheap eagles jerseys cheap steelers jerseys cheap 49ers jerseys ' ' '