BASKETBALL

Frederick: Kevin Durant trade makes sense for Timberwolves … if the price is right

Jace Frederick / St. Paul Pioneer Press — Fri, 20 Jun 2025 16:00:00 GMT

It’s Kevin Durant.

That’s the thought in many minds when trade winds circulate regarding one of the better scorers to ever touch a basketball.

Few have put the ball in the bucket with the volume and efficiency at which “KD” has done it. Even at 36 (he’ll be 37 when the 2025-26 campaign tips off), Durant averaged 26.2 points per game last season with elite shooting efficiency.

How do you not trade for that guy if the opportunity presents itself? Especially Minnesota, which is searching for ways to take that next step after reaching the Western Conference Finals in consecutive seasons.

But it’s not that simple, and not just because Durant reportedly isn’t all that interested in playing in Minnesota — the reality is he doesn’t have final say on that, though the Wolves probably wouldn’t want to bring in an already disgruntled player.

But also because this is not prime Kevin Durant. While he’s still a supreme shooter, he doesn’t put pressure on the rim — Durant took just two shots per game in the restricted area this past season (for reference: Naz Reid averaged 2.8, and Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Donte DiVincenzo were both at 1.5) — and his defensive impact has waned over the past two seasons.

Whether the latter is due to age or Phoenix’s team-wide defensive ineptitude remains to be seen.

It’s quite possible Durant could seamlessly slip into Minnesota’s roster and perfectly handle the defensive assignments given to him on a team where talent on that end of the floor is abundant. And offensively, as Oklahoma City has demonstrated in these playoffs, it sure is beneficial to have someone who can consistently get and bury a contested 16-foot jumper when the going gets tough. Durant is also an excellent floor spacing option.

Does he fit Minnesota’s roster? Yes. For that reason, such an acquisition makes a lot of sense for the Timberwolves. But only if the roster he would come into post-trade still resembles today’s.

Rudy Gobert is a logical salary to go the other way to Phoenix in a Durant trade. He also would fill the Suns’ gaping hole at center. But doesn’t Durant fit best on a Wolves roster that still has Gobert? One with a defensive anchor who has steadied the ship for a few years now in Minnesota and creates a high regular-season floor?

Durant was just part of a team missing a legitimate center option in Phoenix. That didn’t go great. Ideally, he’s entering a situation where he contributes but isn’t overly leaned upon for rebounding and defense.

And Durant would alleviate Minnesota’s spacing concerns. But those largely exist with Gobert in the fold. A Durant-Gobert frontcourt feels like a good complement to one another. Swapping out Gobert for Durant may swing Minnesota’s pendulum too far the other direction.

More versatile, but also far more volatile?

Perhaps you could live with that if you’re Tim Connelly and Co. The regular season could be more complicated in a post-Gobert world, but if you could still chart a course back to the conference finals, Durant could help you break through that ceiling that the current roster with Gobert has hit on multiple occasions.

But if such a trade also features Donte DiVincenzo, the No. 17 pick in this year’s draft and Terrence Shannon Jr., now your wing depth is depleted to the point where re-signing Nickeil Alexander-Walker becomes a must, with no guarantee that it will be feasible to do so. Otherwise, you’re staring down a reserve backcourt of Rob Dillingham and Jaylen Clark behind an aging Mike Conley. That’s an even scarier proposition without the great stabilizer — Gobert — there to cover up holes.

Minnesota’s depth would be strained, as would the cupboard of assets it could use to address any potential weak points on the roster.

Trading for Durant would be a clear championship-level swing. And believing Durant could help them reach such a goal is the only reason the Timberwolves would make such a move. The Wolves clearly believe they’re close.

Would they be closer after such an acquisition?

That depends on the cost.

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Lynx stay unbeaten with second-half surge to down Valkyries

Field Level Media — Mon, 02 Jun 2025 03:11:18 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO — Natisha Hiedeman scored all eight of her points in two second-half runs, Napheesa Collier returned from a night off with a game-high 24 points and the Minnesota Lynx surged past the host Golden State Valkyries 86-75 on Sunday night.

Returning from a sore knee, Collier completed her third consecutive double-double with a season-high-tying 11 rebounds, and Courtney Williams added 20 points for Minnesota, which remained unbeaten through seven games.

Veronica Burton had a team-high 21 points and Kate Martin a career-high 14 for Golden State, which led by one at halftime and retained a 56-53 advantage after Kayla Thornton's interior hoop in the third minute of the third period.

But the Lynx, who made the WNBA finals last season, took charge from there, starting with a 14-2 burst that featured 3-pointers from Hiedeman, Williams and Bridget Carleton.

Attempting to avoid a third consecutive loss, the Valkyries hung within 68-60 through quarter's end, before Hiedeman had two hoops -- one that she turned into a three-point play -- and Collier added a basket in a 7-0 flurry to open the fourth period that broke the game open at 75-60.

Williams also found time for five rebounds and a team-high five assists. Her three 3-pointers in seven attempts helped Minnesota outscore the hosts 33-27 from beyond the arc despite taking eight fewer attempts.

Kayla McBride chipped in with 16 points and six rebounds, while Carleton had 12 points for the Lynx, who completed a two-game Western sweep after dispatching the Phoenix Mercury on Friday without Collier.

The Lynx and Valkyries were meeting for the first time.

Thornton finished with 11 points and a team-high seven rebounds for Golden State, which had played the defending-champion New York Liberty on the road in its two previous games.

Julie Vanloo dished off a team-high four assists and swiped two steals for the Valkyries, an expansion team that has sold out all three of its home games at the spacious Chase Center, home of the Golden State Warriors.

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Lynx spoil Kelsey Plum's home debut with victory over Sparx

Field Level Media — Mon, 19 May 2025 01:03:21 GMT

LOS ANGELES — Napheesa Collier scored 23 points on 10-for-18 shooting, and the Minnesota Lynx pulled away for an 89-75 win over the host Los Angeles Sparks on Sunday evening.

Alanna Smith finished with 18 points on 7-of-10 shooting for Minnesota, which won its second straight road game to start the season. Courtney Williams posted a double-double with 13 points and 10 assists, and Jessica Shepard added her own double-double off the bench with 11 points and 10 rebounds.

Azura Stevens scored 21 points on 7-of-12 shooting to lead Los Angeles. Dearica Hamby scored 20 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, and Kelsey Plum finished with 18 points in her home debut with the Sparks.

Minnesota shot 47.9 percent (34 of 71) overall and 40 percent (10 of 25) from beyond the arc. Los Angeles shot 40 percent (24 of 60) from the field and 34.6 percent (9 of 26) from 3-point range.

The Lynx outscored the Sparks 43-30 in the second half to secure the victory.

Minnesota started the third quarter on a 9-2 run to pull ahead 55-47. That included a 3-pointer by Williams, a layup by Collier and back-to-back baskets by Bridget Carleton and Smith.

Natisha Hiedeman made a pair of free throws to put the Lynx on top 70-62 in the final minute of the third quarter.

The Lynx held off the Sparks the rest of the way, outscoring them 19-13 during the fourth quarter.

Minnesota led 46-45 at the half. Collier led all scorers with 17 points at the break.

The Lynx jumped to a 30-25 lead at the end of the first quarter. Hiedeman drove for a floating jump shot with three seconds left to make it a five-point edge.

The Sparks outscored the Lynx 20-16 in the second quarter to cut the deficit to one. Los Angeles scored the final five points of the first half thanks to a 3-pointer by Plum and a jump shot by Hamby.

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Timberwolves aim to maintain urgency with chance to close out Curry-less Warriors

Jace Frederick / St. Paul Pioneer Press — Tue, 13 May 2025 21:00:00 GMT

Anthony Edwards leaned over to Warriors guard Gary Payton II during Game 3 on Saturday in San Francisco and said, “Y’all tryna get to Game 6 and get Wardell back.”

Wardell is the official first name of Steph Curry, who has been absent from the series since he left the second quarter of Game 1 with a hamstring injury.

“That is the plan,” Payton said.

Of course it is. Golden State cannot hang with Minnesota with its superstar on the bench. But when Curry is on the floor, all bets are off. It’s no guarantee he’d be back on Sunday, but Curry’s most likely return date was always Game 6.

Minnesota is one win away from ending the Western Conference semifinal before that return could come to fruition. That’s a big reason for Minnesota to take care of business in Game 5 on Wednesday at Target Center, which could serve as Minnesota’s first series closeout victory in Minneapolis since 2004.

It would be easy for Minnesota to overlook Wednesday’s bout. Two of its last three wins over the Warriors have come with relative ease. The Timberwolves are 10½-point favorites in Game 5. The general assumption is that the Wolves buried the Warriors in Game 4 on Monday in San Francisco.

And perhaps that’s true. Maybe Golden State will walk onto the Target Center floor Wednesday merely out of obligation and go through the motions for 48 minutes before confirming offseason travel plans.

More likely, though, is that the Warriors will battle, just as they’ve done all series and even when undermanned. Sans Curry, Golden State’s brand of basketball has not been pretty, but you cannot accuse the Warriors of not playing hard. Minnesota has gotten itself into sticky situations throughout the series when it has not matched Golden State’s intensity.

The Wolves lamented the closing five minutes of Monday’s Game 4 victory, in which they were outscored by 14 points by Golden State’s end-of-the-bench unit. There can be no letup.

“We’ve just got to drown out everything and then lock into this simulation. Like we’re in this focus of Golden State-Minnesota. Nothing else matters,” Wolves guard Nickeil Alexander-Walker said. “Being present, being in the moment. Making sure that we’re not playing for Game 5 with three minutes left in Game 4. And tip your hat to the guys that came in and played hard and really made us play hard. We took our foot off a little bit.

“But stuff like that, small things like that, carry over. Because who knows if they had 30 more seconds? Who knows?”

It was a similar story in the first half on Monday, during which Golden State outexecuted and outworked Minnesota for the game’s first 24 minutes, and led by two at the break because of it.

“Just gameplan mistakes that can’t happen if you want to beat a championship team and if you want to move into the Finals — or Western Conference Finals, at least. You can’t,” Anthony Edwards said. “You can’t let those things happen. You’ve got to be better.”

Golden State’s narrow path to success since losing Curry has been clear. The Warriors have to play in transition, get numerous defensive stops and win the possession battle via turnovers and rebounds. The good thing about that, Alexander-Walker noted, is that those are all controllables.

“It’s just kind of accepting the challenge. You know they’re going to play hard. You know they’re going to be scrappy and physical,” Wolves guard Mike Conley said. “And so we can’t come into any game relaxed or calm or getting comfortable. It’s just about how our edge has to continue to show up early in the game and last throughout the four quarters, because they’re going to just keep throwing everything at you and keep competing.”

Minnesota has lauded Golden State’s “championship DNA” throughout the series. The Wolves don’t expect that to wane with the Warriors in a do-or-die scenario Wednesday. While doubt has likely entered the Warriors' minds, it would only take a bit of reason to believe Wednesday for Golden State to begin to envision a series-extending victory that could welcome Curry back into the fold.

“It’s still just a one-game series for us. The most important one is always the next one,” Conley said. “We know this team we’re up against, and the coaching that they have and how prepared they’re going to be. They’re going to be giving us every look they can. They’re going to come out playing hard, and we have to look to match it and exceed it to win this one, because it’s going to be the toughest one.”

And a win on Wednesday would earn Minnesota additional rest ahead of the start of the Western Conference Finals. Every time the Wolves have had time off to prepare and recoup over the past two seasons, it has served them well.

Alexander-Walker said Minnesota needs to understand “the moment” on Wednesday.

“Can’t live in the past. Can’t jump too far ahead. Have to be present and understand that these are situations that are pivotal,” Alexander-Walker said. “You have a chance to close out on your home court as opposed to having to go elsewhere and try to win and then do it again and come back on the road and travel. As much of an advantage as you can gain in these playoffs, you want to keep that and play with that and use that. … For us, it’s just about defending home court, being better than that and growing. It’s far from over.”

Well, not far — not if Minnesota brings the proper approach on Wednesday evening.

“We’ve got to take care of business, we’ve got to be locked in,” Conley said. “And then we’ll worry about the rest later.”

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Paul Bunyan Communications announces March Mania winners

Pioneer Staff Report — Sat, 26 Apr 2025 17:00:00 GMT

Paul Bunyan Communications recently announced the winners of the first-ever Women’s Pick-it March Mania Challenge.

A total of 405 participants entered the free online contest to pick the winners of the women’s college basketball tournament games for a chance to win a credit on a PBC account.

The top 10 finishers all won a credit on their account.

First place: Christopher White of Bemidji, $500 credit Second place: Edward Ahrens of Grand Rapids, $250 credit Third place: Michael Jourdain Sr. of Red Lake, $100 credit Fourth place: James Picha of Bemidji, $50 credit Fifth place: Dean Barkey of Park Rapids, $50 credit Sixth place: Paul Iverson of Bemidji, $50 credit Seventh place: Scott Schafer of Bemidji, $50 credit Eighth place: Jerry Miller of Bovey, $50 credit Ninth place: Chelsea Bush of Bemidji, $50 credit Tenth place: Jon Berquist of Bemidji, $50 credit Random prize drawing: Dennis Hensel of Park Rapids, $100 credit]]>

First all-Indigenous 3-man officiating crew makes history at basketball state tournament

Alex Faber — Tue, 25 Mar 2025 16:46:41 GMT

On March 14, Dan Jourdain made his first MSHSL state basketball tournament appearance in over two decades.

Back in 2003, he made it to state while playing for Red Lake High ��. But this time around, Jourdain donned the black and grey uniform of an MSHSL referee to officiate his first-ever state tournament.

Jourdain didn’t just make personal history with his appearance, though. Joining Jonathan White and Phillip Johnson, Jourdain became a member of the first all-Indigenous three-man referee crew to officiate a Minnesota basketball state tournament game. The trio officiated Caledonia’s 69-63 win over Sauk Centre in the Class AA girls basketball state tournament consolation bracket semifinals.

Jourdain is a Red Lake Nation member, while Johnson and White are members of the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe.

“Now you’re in a different role, you're in a different position representing your community,” Jourdain said. “It feels surreal because there’s not many Native officials out there and there is not many people from my community that do that, and to be that one out there representing and supporting my nation — it’s kind of hard to explain in one word because there’s so many emotions that go into it, so much pride that goes into it.”

Making the cut

Getting to the state tournament as an official isn’t an easy task. The MSHSL selects around 100 referees for its basketball state tournaments out of all who are registered across Minnesota.

Officials must be evaluated, go through background checks, have the proper certification, and, of course, have proof of experience.

“You basically have to work your butt off to get to this position,” Jourdain said. “Do really good at the regular season games, and hopefully, by chance, you can get selected. … (It’s) kind of a tough pool, a really small, narrow pool.”

Jourdain has eight years of experience at the prep level, but before that, he was refereeing plenty of youth and adult tournaments around the region, adding another roughly six years to his total experience.

White and Johnson also each put in extensive work to reach the state tournament level of officiating. White had been officiating junior high and mid-level basketball since high school and began certification for the high school level around 2020. Likewise, Johnson was reffing youth basketball before he was certified to officiate high school hoops in 2017.

Johnson called his first state tournament last year, while White and Jourdain each made their first appearances at the event this season.

“The overall sense of the feeling of making it by merit and not by virtue was absolutely phenomenal,” White said. “And that is hard work. You’re usually trying to go four, five times a week to continuously work on your craft — and obviously, it’s needed because the officials have the games — but just to continuously work night in and night out and get awarded like that felt good.”

This year, the “stars aligned” to get the three on the same officiating crew. However, Michael Thomas, an Indigenous referee who has years of experience officiating the state tournament, had been advocating for more representation for years.

“Michael Thomas has been putting a bug to the coordinators for years at the state level, some of the main section, main coordinators down in Minneapolis," Jourdain said. “We just kept pushing for it and advocating and trying to get more exposure to our assignors, the ones who evaluate us.”

Rising numbers and representation

Johnson likes to “fly below the radar.” He was certainly proud to make it back to his second state tournament this year, but like most officials, Johnson understood that the best official typically goes unnoticed.

However, Johnson and the other members of the three-man officiating crew knew there was an opportunity to spread the news about the history-making event. Giving Indigenous players, referees and the community at large representation at such a high level of officiating was important for the trio.

“I always remember how I felt when I walked into my game, whether I was on the road somewhere, whether it’s football, or baseball or basketball, and then to see somebody like an official that looks like you, and then you’re just like ‘Oh, that’s pretty cool,’” Johnson said. “That’s kind of what I compared it to for myself, at least for me personally.”

On Facebook, news of the all-Indigenous officiating crew reached tribes as far as Arizona and California, offering proof of just how much the story resonated in their communities.

“A story like this really impacts not only our communities, but we hope that it changes somewhere down the road that we see something great out of all of us or we see a benefit to someone or somebody or something,” Jourdain said.

“We’re not looking for the credit but we want to make a great story, not only for the communities, (but) for kids that are coming up too. We just hope that it’s inspiring to them and it just helps out in some way.”

There’s a referee recruitment problem across the country, and it’s been no different in Minnesota. Along with offering representation, Johnson, Jourdain and White hope their story of hard work and dedication offers an inspiration of sorts for those considering officiating, regardless of their background.

“Usually they say when you referee a basketball game, if they notice there’s no refs, you did your job,” Johnson said. “For me, I like to stay under the radar and get out there and do my job. But the message that we know was just to encourage people to come out and do it. … It’s anybody, the more people that come do it, more men, more women, anything, we need numbers and I just encourage people to come out and try it one time.”

“We would hope to see a lot more numbers come up,” Jourdain said. “Just that exposure of seeing this in the press. Just hope that it sheds light to something bigger down the road, to say that these officials paved the way, these officials went through the hard sacrifice of whatever it may be.”

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Highlights from Bemidji's 3rd annual Unified basketball game

Annalise Braught — Wed, 12 Feb 2025 23:40:13 GMT

BEMIDJI — Students from Bemidji High �� and Menahga hit the court once again on Feb. 5 to participate in the area's third annual Unified basketball game.

The Lumberjacks took home the win this year with a final score of 28-22. Spectators packed the BHS gym despite an ongoing blizzard outside to show their support for the pair of Unified Champion ��s.

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Bemidji Middle �� to host National Champion Basketball Coaching Clinic

Pioneer Staff Report — Fri, 07 Feb 2025 20:21:46 GMT

BEMIDJI – The National Champion Basketball Coaching Clinic will be held on Saturday, April 12, 2025, at the Bemidji Middle �� North Gym.

The clinic focuses on high school, middle school and youth basketball x’s and o’s development. The clinicians of the on-court demonstration with players include two national college champions and coach of the year honorees and one multiple national college coach of the year honoree. Clinic check-in is from 8:15 a.m to 8:50 a.m., and the clinic ends at 6:30 p.m.

Clinicians include Lisa Stone, head women’s coach at Washington-St. Louis (MO.), former head coach at Saint Louis, Wisconsin, Drake, Wisconsin-Eau Claire and Cornell. In 2015-16, she was named the College Sports Madness High Major National Coach of the Year. In 2000, she earned the News/Molten Division II National Coach of the Year honor. She was also named the 1997 WBCA D-III National Coach of the Year.

Mike Apple, the head men’s coach at Sandhills Community College (NC), is also attending. He’s a 2020 and 2012 NJCAA D-III Men’s National Champion and NJCAA D-III National Coach of the Year. He’s joined by Steve Gomez, head women’s coach at Lubbock Christian in Texas. Gomez is a 2015-16, 2018-19 and 2020-21 NCAA Women’s D-II National Champions. Gomez was named the 2015-16 WBCA NCAA D-II National Coach of the Year.

Each registrant will receive the downloaded National Champion Playbook, a complementary Championship Productions Streamed Video, lunch on site, a refreshment break and a drawing chance. Registration fees are as follows:

Early Bird Pre-Registration Postmarked Deadline Feb. 15: $79 per registrant

Regular Pre-Registration Postmarked from February 16 to April 8: $89 per registrant.

Late and Day of Registration Fee: $99 per registrant.

Canada Registrants: Contact Dan Ninham for pre-registration fees and procedures.

Registration Procedures: Send a check or money order payable to Coach Dan Ninham Basketball and mail to Dan Ninham, PO Box 652, Red Lake, MN, 56671. Include the date of the clinic, registrant name, mailing address, email address and cell number. PayPal Code: coach.danninham@midco.net.

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Bemidji Unified celebrates alumni and program growth in annual basketball game

Jared Rubado — Fri, 07 Feb 2025 00:59:28 GMT

Aidan Skala and Cash Knutson were friends long before they played together on the Bemidji High �� Unified basketball team.

“I’ve known him since I was 5 years old,” Knutson said. The duo grew up together at Kids and Company — an after-school program for students in kindergarten through fifth grade.

“I remember he wouldn’t let me play with his Legos,” Knutson said with a laugh.

“Yeah, that’s true, but they were my Legos,” Skala quipped back at Knutson.

Skala and Knutson’s friendship came full circle on Wednesday night at the BHS Gymnasium. They took part in the third annual Unified basketball game, a night in which Bemidji and Menahga welcome the community to celebrate inclusion in a sporting event that features student-athletes with and without intellectual disabilities.

Skala has played in all three games at BHS.

“It was awesome because I like hanging out and seeing the friends I grew up with,” Skala said. “It’s really special that I get to share my last year with them and everybody. That’s what this is all about for me.”

Before the game, BHS went through its typical Unified routine. The rosters for each team were read by public address announcer Joel Hoover. Kal-El Spears read the Unified pledge, which promotes inclusion while exemplifying the harmful effects of using the R-word.

However, before the game tipped off, Unified program leader Jackie Stoffel had a surprise.

She introduced members from the first BHS Unified basketball team three years ago. Each of them, including Skala, received a gift bag.

“We officially have alumni,” Stoffel said. "We called those guys and asked if they wanted to come back. When you look back at the very beginning, it was something that was new. I think having (people) who are willing to try something outside the box was huge for the first step in creating this program and making it what it’s become.”

One former team member, Will Duncan, also spoke, showcasing one of many of his patented “dad jokes.”

“It’s awesome to see the friendships they make,” Stoffel said. “It’s always bittersweet to see kids graduate because you’re sad about that. But new kids come in and new friendships are built. You can’t describe what it feels like to see our kids meet new people, to see them walk down the halls saying hi to everyone. It really has an impact on our whole school.”

The aforementioned impact has reached the surrounding schools as well.

Menahga program director Isaiah Hahn has brought his Unified kids to Bemidji each of the last three years. It’s an anticipated trip, to say the least.

“Every year on the first day of school I have kids asking me, ‘When do we go up to Bemidji?’” Hahn said. “It’s just such a fun event. You have to give a lot of props to Jackie, she does such an amazing job with this program. It’s just super fun to come up here. We have our kids who know and are on social media talking to the Bemidji kids, having a good time. That’s what it’s all about, right? It’s about building relationships.”

The annual Unified basketball game at BHS showcases two teams with differing enrollments. Bemidji High �� enrolls over 1,400 students, while Menahga is a little under 300.

Despite the discrepancies in town population and school enrollment, Menahga’s inclusion efforts make it possible for its kids with intellectual disabilities to take part in athletics.

“It’s about rolling up your sleeves and getting to work,” Hahn said. “It’s about the kids. I’ll never forget when we started a Special Olympics program, and now that program has moved over to a Unified Champion ��, just like Bemidji is. It’s just so fun. The people our kids get to meet — from athletes to Unified partners to adults — it’s about building those relationships.”

After all, Unified sports are rooted in connections. Bemidji’s bond with Manahga is paramount to the growth of the annual basketball game.

“Our relationship with Menahga is amazing,” Stoffel said. "We host events and invite them, they host events and invite us. When people talk about rivals in typical sports, we don’t have that. We don’t have rivals. But Menahga, they are our people. We get to play against and be around our people and celebrate all of this with them.”

Once again, the bleachers at the BHS Gymnasium were packed. Spectators filed into the high school on a Wednesday night in the middle of a blizzard to show their support for a pair of Unified Champion ��s.

“It was awesome, I felt like I was at the Target Center out there,” Skala said. “I like the big crowd, and that’s what makes Unified special.”

“Honestly, it’s a little nerve-racking being out there in front of all of those people,” Knutson said. “It’s honestly just a very positive environment. If you make a mistake, there’s nothing to worry about because this is all about supporting other people.”

Knutson and Skala helped lead BHS to a 28-22 win. But as always, nobody cares about the score. It’s hardly a formality when it’s all said and done.

“Everybody I talk to talks about how great it is for these kids who have intellectual disabilities,” Hahn said. “I think about how awesome this is for the kids who don’t have intellectual disabilities and how this program shapes their character and ability to communicate with these individuals, both when they’re in and out of school. That’s what fills my heart every time.”

For Knutson, an accomplished offensive lineman on the BHS football team, joining the Unified program broadened his perspective on athletics.

“I’m part of this because I feel like it’s important to get everybody involved with sports in some capacity,” Knutson said. “It’s important to get everyone playing together and having fun together. It’s a very positive culture, everyone is positive and fired up to be here.

"This program really changes your perspective on things. Actually participating in it instead of watching, I feel a lot more involved than when I’m sitting in the stands with my buddies.”

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Pacesetter set to hold Tour of Champions camp at Bemidji Middle ��

Pioneer Staff Report — Thu, 31 Oct 2024 19:50:47 GMT

BEMIDJI — Pacesetter will be running a Tour of Champions basketball camp at Bemidji Middle �� on Saturday, Nov. 23.

Pacesetter director Jeff McCarron will be the camp director. He was a state champion at Sherburn in 1970 and a Big Ten champion with the Minnesota Gophers in 1972. He has run over 250 camps in 49 years.

The first session of the day will go from 9:00 a.m. to noon and includes players from seventh to 12th grade. The session with cost $45.

From 12:30-2:30 p.m., players in third and fourth grade can join the second session of the day for $35.

Lastly, participants in fifth and sixth grade will begin their session at 2:30 p.m. and wrap up at 4:30 p.m. for $35.

McCarron will provide players with his “best tips” for success at each age.

Players may register at www.pacesettersports.net.

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