"He's shown flashes," Wolves assistant coach Jerry Sichting said. "I think he's still trying to find his confidence. It's the old story, chicken or the egg, which comes first, success or confidence?"

The question is three years old now, dating back to Nesterovic's arrival for the final games of the 1999 lockout season. The Wolves' first-round pick in 1998, he has tantalized and teased the team ever since with his mixture of touch, height, passiveness, quickness, strong work habits and lack of physical strength.

After an encouraging 1999-2000 season, during which he started 55 games and averaged 21 minutes, 5.7 points and 4.6 rebounds, Nesterovic regressed last season. His confidence and the coaches' patience slumped with him.

"Rasho's got to relax and play," said Kevin McHale, vice president of basketball operations. ". ... Where he's got to get better is when he has a couple bad things happen to him in a game, and fight through that."

Nesterovic added 10-15 pounds over the summer, mostly to his upper body. He played well for the Slovenian National team in the 2001 European Championships, averaging 15.6 points and 9.0 rebounds.