His arms are cut. His legs are toned. But the strongest part of Marc Jackson's 6-foot-10, 270-pound body may be his lungs.

Which are directly connected to his heart.

"That's the joy coming out,'' the Timberwolves reserve said in his booming baritone, which carries easily whether he's warning teammates of picks, cheering from the end of the bench or even talking on his cell phone on the team bus. "When I'm on the court, it's just love, like I love the Lord and I love the game of basketball. I'm just so full that my enthusiasm, my openness, my faithfulness is just coming out, just being able to play.''

Jackson, 27, made a lot of noise when he was traded from Golden State to the Wolves on Feb. 21, averaging 7.7 points and 6.3 rebounds in his first seven games with Minnesota. He has been quieter lately, averaging only 2.5 points and 2.6 rebounds over the past eight, and he admitted he has played poorly the past two weeks.

That soon could change because starting forward Joe Smith will attend the funeral of a cousin and won't play against Golden State tonight, and backup center Loren Woods did not practice Monday because of a sore right knee.

Maybe it was the thought of facing his former team tonight at Target Center.