MINNEAPOLIS -- Throughout most of last season, Minnesota Timberwolves president of basketball operations Flip Saunders and owner Glen Taylor remained steadfast in their stance that they would not consider trading Kevin Love. Brad Hand Jersey . They were determined instead to convince the All-Star forward that he should sign an extension to remain after next season. With the NBA draft lottery coming up this week and an increasing concern that Love will leave for another team after next year, that stance has softened, two people with knowledge of the situation told The Associated Press. The Timberwolves are now open to the idea of trading Love if the right deal comes along. The people requested anonymity because the team has not made any final decisions on Loves future in Minnesota. Love just finished the second year of a four-year deal that includes an option for him to opt-out in the summer of 2015. The contract terms were the first signs of strife for Love and the organization when former basketball boss David Kahn declined to give him the full five-year maximum deal that Love wanted. Kahn was fired in 2013 and Saunders has worked tirelessly to try to convince Love that he should stay in Minnesota where he can make about $26.5 million more than he can anywhere else. But the Wolves have not made the playoffs in 10 years, including all six of Loves seasons with the team, a lack of success that has one of the best power forwards in the game growing more and more impatient. Neither Love nor his representatives have gone so far as to ask for a trade, but as the NBA draft lottery approaches on Tuesday, the trade market figures to heat up. The Timberwolves are slotted to pick 13th in the first round. But they are holding out hope that they get lucky for the first time in franchise history in the lottery and jump up. Getting one of the top three picks in a strong draft could be an encouraging sign for Love. If that doesnt happen, the Wolves could look at making a trade if they felt it had a chance to make them better in the long run. Love has made three All-Star teams and helped Team USA win the gold medal at the London Olympics. He averaged 26.1 points, 12.5 rebounds and 4.4 assists last season, but the Wolves finished a disappointing 40-42 and missed the playoffs in the Western Conference. While there remains some question whether Love can be the best player on a championship-calibre team, there figures to be a long list of suitors to line up for his services via trade this summer or free agency next year. But Love would likely have to give any team that makes the Wolves an offer some kind of indication that he is open to signing an extension, much the way Chris Paul did when he was dealt from New Orleans to the Los Angeles Clippers in 2011. The uncertainty surrounding Love has also complicated the Wolves pursuit of a coach to replace Rick Adelman, who retired after the season. Saunders has been in the market for a proven, experienced head coach who can come and command respect right away while also handling what most assuredly would be a difficult season filled with constant questions about Loves status. Not surprisingly, most of the names near the top of Saunders list have been reluctant to entertain the idea of taking the job without knowing what is going to happen with Love. Some luck on lottery night could also make the job more attractive for an incoming coach. In the absence of any long-shot lottery luck, the Wolves will ramp up their coaching search after their draft position solidifies on Tuesday night. Names such as Lionel Hollins, Sam Mitchell and Scott Skiles will all get consideration. And return runs at Michigan States Tom Izzo, Floridas Billy Donovan or Iowa States Fred Hoiberg arent out of the question after all three gave them a tepid response early in the process. Randy Jones Jersey . And he said Sunday that players believe nobody in Sterlings family should be able to own the Los Angeles Clippers if hes gone. Jhoulys Chacin Jersey . -- Manager Bob Melvin shuffled the Athletics batting order and got the type of production he was looking for from the top of the lineup. http://www.authenticpadrespgear.com/customized/ .What they got was a bevy of players chipping in to pick up the slack.Josh Smith scored 18 points and James Harden added 17 as the Rockets used a balanced scoring effort to outlast the Mavericks for a 99-94 victory.NANCY, France -- France rallied from a 2-0 deficit to beat Germany 3-2 in the quarterfinals of the Davis Cup on Sunday. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga cruised past Tobias Kamke 6-3, 6-2, 6-4 to help France even the tie before Gael Monfils secured the winning point by defeating Peter Gojowczyk 6-1, 7-6 (0), 6-2. France improved to 8-2 against Germany and will next face the Czech Republic, which routed Japan 5-0. "This victory is logical and was expected, but we know nothing is logical in the Davis Cup," France captain Arnaud Clement told Sport Plus television. "We saw some courageous Germans who played their best tennis and even played above their usual level." Tsonga outslugged Kamke by making 45 winners to 19 for his opponent. The Frenchman jumped to a 3-0 lead in the first set and broke Kamke twice in the second. Tsonga slapped a forehand winner to break for a 2-1 lead in the last set before clinching the victory with an ace. In the fifth match, Monfils got off to a good start by winning the first five games. Gojowczyk saved two break points at 2-2 in the second set. However, Monfils fired threee forehand winners and an ace in the tiebreaker to go two sets up. Ozzie Smith Jersey. Gojowczyk dropped serve three times in the final set as Monfils capitalized on an unforced error from the German to convert his first match point. "Im very proud of their reaction after those two losses on Friday that really hurt us," Clement said. "They knew they had no room for error. Playing in such conditions is very tough. But they managed to react like men." On Friday, Kamke beat Julien Benneteau 7-6 (8), 6-3, 6-2, and Gojowczyk outlasted Tsonga 5-7, 7-6 (3), 3-6, 7-6 (8), 8-6 to give Germany a 2-0 lead. On Saturday, Michael Llodra and Benneteau defeated Kamke and Andre Begemann 6-1, 7-6 (5), 4-6, 7-5 to cut Germanys lead to 2-1. "We said it last year and we said it at the beginning of this year: our goal is to win the Davis Cup," Clement said. "Reaching the semis is not enough for this ambitious group." Germany stunned Spain 4-1 in the first round but missed its four best players for this tie: Tommy Haas, Philipp Kohlschreiber, Florian Mayer and Benjamin Becker. Wholesale Hoodies NFL Shirts Outlet Jerseys NFL Wholesale Cheap NFL Jerseys Free Shipping Wholesale Jerseys Cheap Cheap NFL Jerseys China Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys China Cheap NFL Jerseys ' ' '