Feedback & Support » Nicos finished every single race this year apart

MINNEAPOLIS -- Nikola Pekovic didnt want to leave Minnesota, and the Timberwolves werent about to let him go. After weeks of negotiations, waiting and watching, the two sides came to agreement on Wednesday on a new five-year contract worth $60 million that includes an additional $8 million in incentives. "Hes a dominating offensive player," Timberwolves president of basketball operations Flip Saunders said in a conference call. "He plays extremely hard. He probably will work as hard as he can to live up to a contract he signs, whatever it is worth." After posting a career-high 16.3 points and 8.8 rebounds per game last season, the 27-year-old Pekovic was a restricted free agent when the NBAs fiscal year opened on July 1. That meant the Timberwolves had the right to match any offer he received from another team, and Saunders made it clear from the start that they would do whatever it took to keep him in Minnesota. In the end, that included adding a fifth year on the initial four-year, $48 million offer they presented Pekovic and his agent, Jeff Schwartz, a few weeks ago. "With him and Kevin Love and Ricky Rubio, weve got three cornerstones in that franchise that all complement each other," Saunders said. After three seasons in the NBA, Pekovic has emerged as one of the best offensive big men in an increasingly centre-scarce league. He figured to garner a lot of interest from other teams looking to add some size and scoring to the paint. He waited for Dwight Howard to choose between several suitors. When Howard signed with the Houston Rockets, the belief was that a lucrative offer from one of the teams that missed out -- perhaps the Hawks or Mavericks -- could be on the way. Both of those teams decided not to pursue Pekovic, but the Timberwolves were still left holding their breath in hopes that another team with abundant cap space like the Bucks would force their hand with a monster offer. That offer never came. With the market settling down and the likelihood of another offer growing more remote by the day, Saunders came through with the fifth year on the deal to get it done. Because Pekovic was a restricted free agent and not signing an extension on his rookie deal, the Timberwolves still have the one five-year, rookie scale deal allowed by the current collective bargaining agreement for Rubio, if they so choose. There was some question about whether giving Pekovic five years would agitate Love, who wasnt happy when previous president David Kahn refused to give him the teams "designated player" five-year extension in 2012. But Kahn was fired after last season and Saunders said he has had conversations about the Pekovic deal with Love, who gave his full support. "More than anything else Kevin wants to win," Saunders said. "As we talked about Pek, he said, You have to do what you have to do. ... I dont know whats been done in the past and I really dont care. As he said, were moving forward." The 6-foot-11 Pekovic averaged just 0.8 blocks per game last season, meaning he isnt the classic rim protector that would be the biggest asset for a Timberwolves defence that is short on stoppers. He also missed 20 games last season and 15 the year before due to various nagging injuries that come about due to his physical style of play. But keeping Pekovic was a priority for Saunders and Wolves coach Rick Adelman, who valued the Montenegrins soft hands and quick feet in the post as well as his underrated pick-and-roll defence. Now that his deal is done, Pekovic will team with Love and Rubio to form a promising young core for the Wolves, who will be pushing for their first post-season appearance since 2004. In a league that is getting smaller and smaller, with few dominant big men, the Wolves see Pekovics size and strength as one of their best chances to create consistent mismatches in the demanding Western Conference. The key will be keeping Pekovic on the floor. He has missed time due to various foot and ankle issues, most minor in nature that come from the pounding he takes on a nightly basis. When Saunders took over for Kahn earlier this summer, he said he thought the Wolves could make some adjustments that would help him and the rest of their players stay healthy over the long season. Saunders said Wednesday that the target will be "in the 70s" in terms of the number of games Pekovic will play. Nike NFL Jerseys 2020 . PAUL, Minn. Nike Baseball Jerseys . -- Vincent Lecavalier got everything but the desired result in his return to Tampa Bay. https://www.cheapmlbjerseysjustwholesale.com/ . Brad Jacobs and his Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., team took control of the game early. MLB Jerseys . Mats Zuccarello and Derek Stepan scored shootout goals, and backup goalie Cam Talbot earned his second win in two nights as the Rangers shook off a late tying tally and beat the Maple Leafs 2-1 Monday night. Authentic MLB Jerseys . Rinne played two periods in his first game since left hip surgery in early May. Gabriel Bourque scored 3:07 into the second period and Austin Watson tallied 5:15 later for Nashville. Lewis Hamilton says he will try to beat teammate Nico Rosberg by as big a margin as possible in Abu Dhabi, even though it may prove futile in his pursuit of a fourth world championship.Rosberg leads Hamilton by 12 points ahead of the final race of the season in Abu Dhabi, meaning Hamilton has to hope his teammate finishes off the podium to stand a chance of winning the title. The British driver has won the last three races with convincing margins over his teammate, but Rosberg has only had to finish second each time in the knowledge that he is still on course for the title.Faced with a title showdown that is not in his hands, Hamilton said all he can do in Abu Dhabi is try to beat Rosberg by the biggest margin possible.Obviously I have to continue what Im doing, he said. Nicos finished every single race this year apart, obviously, from Barcelona which we both didnt finish so hes had fantastic reliability, so I think riight now, as the way its going its going to be very hard to beat him.ddddddddddddhat doesnt mean I cant win the race, so Im going to take the energy I have now and the speed that I have -- which has been great these past few races -- and really try to push as hard as I can in that race to get as far ahead. Its all I can do.Although Rosberg only has to finish third in Abu Dhabi, he said he will try to emulate his victory at Yas Marina last year.Well, its going to be a great, exciting race weekend, a great battle for sure. I would like to win the race and Im going to try and do that for sure. Ive had good experience there in the past but of course thats not going to help this year.You know we all start from zero this year, every time we go to a different track. Yeah, feeling good so lets see. ' ' '