Love: 'I have faith in this team'

Now that he's returned to Minnesota with a gold medal around his neck and seen the new faces that Timberwolves president David Kahn brought in this summer to add some much-needed experience to one of the youngest teams in the league, Love can't wait to get to work.

"I have faith in this team," Love said on Tuesday. "I have faith in what we've done this offseason."

The Wolves signed shooting guard Brandon Roy, forward Andrei Kirilenko, big men Greg Stiemsma and Lou Amundson and Russian guard Alexey Shved in addition to trading for hard-nosed Memphis forward Dante Cunningham. The massive makeover adds maturity, grit and, if Roy's knees hold up, some fourth-quarter playmaking to a team that desperately needed all of those things.

The Wolves also jettisoned Darko Milicic, Anthony Randolph and Michael Beasley in an effort to inject some more professionalism and commitment to a locker room that Love thought didn't take the games seriously enough.

One of the biggest things that stood out to Love in his run with Team USA at the London Olympics was the mentality that superstars like LeBron James, Kobe Bryant and Kevin Durant took in every practice and every game. As the tournament wore on, Love's role with the team steadily increased until he became one of coach Mike Krzyzewski's most trusted players. Love was on the court in the fourth quarter of close games, including the gold medal win over Spain, something that has him brimming with confidence as he prepares to enter his fifth season in the league.

"It was a tremendous summer for me, and a tremendous summer for our team," Love said. "I think heading forward, there are a number of guys that will help us, especially in relation to last year. There are a lot of guys that will help us and help our locker room."

Love averaged 26 points and 13.3 rebounds per game for the Wolves last season, cementing himself as the game's best power forward. He starts a new four-year, $60 million contract this season and it was no secret that Love was unhappy when the Wolves declined to give him a five-year max deal in January. The team can only use the five-year deal once, and Kahn wanted to save it to give him the most flexibility possible going forward.