Brandon Roy's knee appears to be holding up so far for the Timberwolves, an early sign that his $10.4MM contract might prove a shrewd gamble by GM David Kahn. We've heard about the influence Roy's friend and current teammate Will Conroy had on channeling him to the Wolves, but that's not the only push Conroy gave him.
- Roy wasn't sure about coming back at all until Conroy sold him on the idea, Ray Richardson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press writes. "He was one of the main influences for me to take it serious," Roy said about Conroy. "I was kind of playing around at first, but he was the one who told me, 'You're not done.' He was real big for my confidence."
- In the same piece, Conroy insists to Richardson that Roy's presence isn't the reason why he was invited to Wolves camp. "I'm here because they thought I could help the team," said Conroy, who was also in camp with the Wolves last year. "Kahn and (coach Rick) Adelman know what I can do."
- Richard Jefferson said he experienced "culture shock" after his trade from the Spurs to the Warriors last season, according to Marcus Thompson II of the Bay Area News Group. Jefferson says the laid-back atmosphere that disturbed him last year has changed with the additions of Jarrett Jack and Carl Landry, the return of Andrew Bogut from injury, and a stricter attitude from coach Mark Jackson.
- As for Bogut, the big man expects he'll be ready for game action when the regular season opens, but Matt Steinmetz of CSNBayArea.com says there's a legitimate chance he could need more time.
- Jeff Duncan of The Times-Picayune shares initial observations from some of the Hornets about top-pick Anthony Davis, two preseason games into his NBA career.
- Though to a smaller degree than Davis, 25th overall pick Tony Wroten is also making his presence felt for the Grizzlies, as Ronald Tillery of the Memphis Commercial Appeal examines.