They have been called old. Rickety. Not just over the hill, but beyond it.
However, when forward Kevin Garnett ponders the Utah Jazz, who play the Timberwolves tonight at Target Center, one word comes to mind.

Greatness.

"So many times people label greatness on victories, on wins, on stats, and I've always viewed greatness on how someone plays, night in and night out," Garnett said. "Karl Malone, John Stockton, they've had 20 years of bringing it every night -- they've been bringing their hard hats, their lunch -- they bring it every single night."

The subject came up Wednesday night after the Timberwolves' 95-77 victory over the Bucks as Garnett rhapsodized on his respect for, and his responsibility to advance, the history of the NBA. It seemed a fitting turn to talk about the Jazz, who still have several active bits of history on their roster.

It's an old subject, really. John Stockton, at 39, is a 10-time all-star who leads the league in all-time assists and steals. Karl Malone, at 38, is a 13-time all-star who ranks second all-time, behind Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, for points scored. As if that weren't enough wisdom for one team, the Jazz boast two other children of the '60s: 32-year-old John Crotty and 36-year-old John Starks.

But after 16 seasons of watching Stockton and Malone make history together, some are beginning to wonder if they are history. Although Utah, which hasn't played since Saturday, comes to the Twin Cities with the seventh-best record in the Western Conference, the Jazz are above .500 for the first time this season. As little as a month ago, they were 6-11, a team that looked its age mostly because even its two superstars had dwindled to role players. Uncharacteristically, they lost leads in the fourth quarter. Uncharacteristically, postgame comments were often negative.

The Jazzzzzzzzzzz, as one Utah columnist dubbed them for their rather sleepy play, have turned their record around with defense. In winning 10 of their past 14 games, Utah has forced 14 consecutive opponents to shoot under 50 percent, and held 10 of its past 11 foes to fewer than 100 points.

"Now, who knows?" Malone told Utah reporters last week. "We're back playing .500 basketball. The way we started off, a lot of people probably figured that was kind of a long shot."

Wolves coach Flip Saunders didn't. He said Utah always has been a slow-starting team, and said the rules changes -- which allow zone defense -- took more of an adjustment for the pick-and-roll masters. He said Utah "definitely" is still a playoff team.

"Even though they don't have the rings, even though you guys (in the media) don't view them as great, a young guy like myself, I label them as great because I respect people who, every single night, find a way to get it done," Garnett said. "And I think the respect grows throughout the league when you do that -- not just from one player's standpoint, but from the league's standpoint."

Smith doubtful: Wolves forward Joe Smith pedaled a stationary bike and shot some during Thursday's practice, but he did not participate in contact drills and is listed as doubtful tonight.

Smith already has missed two games with a bruised left calf. Saunders said Smith has not had a magnetic resonance imaging test, but other tests show the leg is bruised, and not anything more serious. The Wolves are 2-0 with Gary Trent starting in place of Smith.

"We'll continue to take it a day at a time and see where it's at," Saunders said. "I think it's one of those things where he's going to wake up one day and it will feel good."

Robbi Pickeral can be reached at [email protected].