NBA notebook: T-wolves expect huge crowd for Garnett’s return

Kevin Garnett’s homecoming to the Minnesota Timberwolves will include extra seating for Wednesday’s game at Target Center.

Garnett, acquired by the Timberwolves at the trade deadline from the Brooklyn Nets, will be introduced to media Tuesday afternoon.

The fifth overall pick in the 1995 draft from Chicago’s Farragut Academy, last played for the Timberwolves in 2007.

Now 38, Garnett will take the court with the future of the franchise — 20-year-old Andrew Wiggins and Slam Dunk Contest champion Zach LaVine — to an anticipated packed house in Minneapolis.

Garnett joined the Boston Celtics in 2007 and was traded to the Nets along with shooting guard Paul Pierce.

The Timberwolves announced Monday afternoon they released all remaining ticket holds, adding 1,000 seats for the home game against the Washington Wizards.

—New York Knicks coach Derek Fisher says he won’t even try to interpret Phil Jackson’s tweets from Sunday night.

Hours after the Knicks were blown out 101-83 by the Cleveland Cavaliers at Madison Square Garden on Sunday, Jackson tweeted that the game gave the basketball gods “heartburn.” He ended with the acronym “smh” — meaning “shake my head.”

The Knicks (10-45) have lost seven straight games and have lost the last two games by 24 points to Miami and 18 to Cleveland.

Fisher said Monday he believes his team is “trying and giving effort” — and he did not interpret his boss’ tweets.

“I’m not really taking those as specific to any particular player, players, persons,” Fisher said. “Phil is the president of the team. He has his opinions. When you guys see him, you can, I guess, talk to him or ask him exactly what they mean. From my standpoint, I think our guys are trying and giving effort. But it’s a hard game. And we’ve been through a lot. It’s been a tough year.”

—The Sacramento Kings hired Vance Walberg as an assistant coach to join new coach George Karl’s staff.

A veteran coach with more than three decades of experience at the prep, collegiate and professional levels, Walberg spent the last two seasons in a similar capacity with the Philadelphia 76ers. Before his tenure with the 76ers, he was an assistant for Karl on the Denver Nuggets’ bench.

Walberg is known for his innovative offensive ideas and credited with developing the dribble drive motion offense — implemented by John Calipari at the University of Memphis and later Kentucky. His coaching resume includes three seasons at UMass as an assistant coach (2008-2011) after serving two seasons as the coach at Pepperdine (2006-2008).