The Weekly Minnesota Sports Survey

#-1: Lynx (Last Week: 0).  Make it seven in a row after Wednesday's 81-69 win over Phoenix at Target Center to finish the first half of the season.  Then, four of the five starters on the team made their way to Uncasville, Conn., for the WNBA All-Star Game.  It gets better: Because the starting Center for the Western Conference, the Mercury's Britney Griner, still is nursing an injury and couldn't play (let alone start), the head coach of the West -- which happens to be the coach of last year's Western Conference Champion, which, of course, is Lynx Head Coach Cheryl Reeve, installed one of her players, Lynx Forward Rebekkah Brunson, as Griner's replacement.  Nepotism?  Yes.  But since it's for our team, I don't give a shit.

Oh, and the West eked out a 102-98 win in Eastern Conference territory Saturday evening.  And they still have the best record in the league.  So why have I backed them back down to -1?  Um ... things can only go downhill from here?  The club is peaking too soon?  An injury is bound to happen?  Keeping them above negative numbers might give them big heads, and I don't want that?  I don't know.

The begin the second half of the season by finishing out their three-game homestand against San Antonio Friday (a game I might go to) and Seattle Sunday.

#-2: Twins (Last Week: -1).  Six gettable road games against two American League West squads (Anaheim and Seattle) that are not world-beaters by any stretch of the imagination ... and they go 3-3 for the week.  Guess that figures from an equally mediocre team.  The last game they've played, Sunday's 6-4 loss to the Mariners, was pegged on Kyle Gibson.  He was considered The Great White Hope (I didn't mean that in a racial sense, it's just the name of a movie ... OK, it's kind of racial), but now that he's got a track record, and one that is far from perfect -- well, you don't hear the clamoring for his name anymore.

The non-waiver trade deadline is Wednesday.  Who will be moved?  On Monday Jay Jaffe of SI.com continues to say what every other writer has said: If there is a Twin to be moved, it'll be Justin Morneau.  It's a fall from grace for the former Most Valuable Player whose career has been derailed, probably permanently, because of a concussion.  But he's fallen so far that he has very little trade value now.  Also remember that this is the last year of his contract.  It would make sense to trade him, but there's not much General Manager Terry Ryan can do if no one wants him.  Morneau can walk away as a free agent this offseason, which means they could wind up with nothing ... unless they offer him a contract good enough that, if he rejects it, will trigger a compensatory draft pick for the team next year.  That might be the Twins' best option.  That might be their only option.

If Morneau is moved off, he at least will have the dignity of being able to play in front of the team he came up with one final time: This week the club hosts Kansas City through Thursday.  They then host Houston for the weekend before visiting Kansas City for a three-game series starting Monday.