Everywhere the Timberwolves go, with every team they face, the lights burn longer at the practice facilities. Inside, opponents are cramming for what generally is considered the most comprehensive zone-defense test of the early season.

The Los Angeles Clippers showed up early Tuesday to work on their outside shooting, the surest way to deflate a good zone.

The Seattle SuperSonics were hyperaware of the strategy, too, and thwarted it 112-102 with quick, long, accurate shots. Still, Timberwolves coach Flip Saunders said Wednesday he wasn't worried about the rest of the league catching up to the Wolves' "50" formation. And he backed up his view with numbers.

"In 29 possessions [against man-to-man], they scored 42 points. About 72 percent of the time," Saunders said. "In 30 possessions of zone, they scored 42 percent of the time.

"[Seattle] scored 21 out of 29 times when we were in man. In 20 years, I've never been in a situation where a team has played man-to-man defense and only stopped a team, for a game, eight times. If we wouldn't have had the rule changes, we might have gotten beat by 40. Or 50."