Kevin McHale, the Timberwolves' vice president of basketball operations, acknowledged Wednesday that the organization is talking to the Indiana Pacers about acquiring Ron Artest.

The acknowledgement came after the Pioneer Press reported Wednesday, citing a source, that the Wolves contacted the Pacers last week and are among 10 teams in the running for the services of the mercurial all-star.

"A lot of people have talked to them, and we're one of the ones that have talked to them," McHale said.
McHale declined to discuss the situation in detail, including when he thinks the Pacers might pull the trigger on a trade.

Wolves forward Kevin Garnett said he thinks Artest could fit in with the club "under certain specifications."

"We have a group that knows how to play with each other," Garnett said. "I'm pretty stingy when it comes to my teammates. I'm tight with (expletive) near everybody here. If not, I'm growing a relationship with them. It doesn't matter what I think half the time. They're going to do it (trade for Artest), or they're not going to do it."