MANKATO, Minn. -- In 11 NBA seasons, Mo Williams has seen it all. Now, the newly minted Timberwolves guard says, his career has become about showing it all.
"I've been kind of on all sides," Williams said Wednesday, the first of two days of two-a-days at Minnesota State's Bresnan Arena. "I've been on bad teams, I've been on really good teams, I've been on good teams. The guys aren't going through much here (that) I didn't experience . . . in some kind of way."
Whether it's working his way up the ranks as a second-round pick, serving as an everyday starter three out of four years in Milwaukee, teaming up with LeBron James in Cleveland or bouncing up and down the western seaboard since, the 31-year-old Mississippi native has always been about establishing relationships with teammates, he said. That's especially important now as he seeks to impart wisdom upon 19-year-old first-round draft picks Andrew Wiggins and Zach LaVine and the rest of a young Wolves contingent.
Short of winning a championship, Williams has been through just about everything. Wiggins and LaVine haven't been through anything.
"They're going to have to learn on the fly, take their bumps and bruises," Williams said. "But at the same time . . . I can try to give them some experience from what I know."
Which is a huge reason coach and president Flip Saunders inked Williams to a one-year, $3.75 million deal July 30. The accord allows Minnesota to remain flexible for the future while finding a potentially more reliable backup point guard than J.J. Barea, who could be on the way out via either a trade or buyout in the near future.
Saunders liked Williams' late-game scoring ability, something he felt Minnesota greatly lacked in going 40-42 last season. He also liked Williams' work with Portland star Damian Lillard last year, both in terms of mentorship and playing either behind or alongside him.
He'll have a similar role with Rubio, Saunders said.
"Similar to (Saunders favorite) Chauncey (Billups), he's a guy that could probably coach in this league, GM if he wanted at some point, because of how he goes about doing things," Saunders said of Williams.
That's indeed part of the plan down the road, Williams said. But not for a while.
"I don't want to tell you all that, because ya'll are going to think I'm going to retire after this year," smiled Williams, who coaches his Mo Williams Academy AAU team during the summer. "I've got some years left in me."
Special guests: Speaking of Billups, the former Wolves point guard was at practice for the second day in a row Wednesday and will leave Minnesota on Thursday. He's reconnected with his old friend Saunders and spoken with Rubio, Williams and others about the expectations he'll have when coaching, particularly the demands he places upon point guards.
"We bring in different people to be around the guys and give them different aspects of what to look at," Saunders said. "Of course Chauncey's one of my favorites I've ever coached. He understands what I want to do and that. Sometimes . . . (a) different voice can relay the same message, it can maybe resonate a little different."
Saunders and Billups first joined forces for two seasons (2000-02) in Minnesota and were together for three more when Saunders coached Detroit from 2005-08. Those Piston teams reached the Eastern Conference finals every year Saunders was there.
Billups retired after last season and is weighing options for the next step of his career -- either front-office work, TV analysis or coaching. Saunders has done all three.
There was heavy speculation this summer Saunders would hire Billups as an assistant. Saunders again downplayed that notion Wednesday.
"Chauncey, he likes what he's doing right now," Saunders said. "It's an opportunity for him to come spend some time and for us to hang out for a few days."
A considerable buzz: Looking around Bresnan Arena during "Dunks After Dark" on Monday night into Tuesday morning, Saunders caught a glimpse of what could be during home games this season.
The first step for his revamped, green group is to win at the Target Center, he said. It won't be full of amped college students, but there's a growing movement of enthusiasm channeled by the arrival of Wiggins and LaVine that Saunders says he can sense.
The Wolves' version of Midnight Madness was just one example.
"Around town, I have more young people coming up (talking) about the team and asking, and that's good because they do bring a sense of enthusiasm to the event," Saunders said. "That's good. I believe that's getting back to your core. Sometimes your young fans are your truer fans, because they're so enthusiastic and passionate about what they do because they're so young."
Wiggins' fame as one of the top prospects in recent history helps. So does a concentrated marketing effort advertising the team's youth and athleticism and appearances at places like Minnesota State and the Minnesota State Fair.
The Wolves have already broken season-ticket sales records, including their highest volume in a single week immediately after Minnesota traded Kevin Love for Wiggins, Anthony Bennett and Thaddeus Young. Single-game tickets go on sale Saturday at 10 a.m.
"I think there's a buzz," Saunders said. "I think (younger fans) can identify with other 19-year-old kids. They want to see them do well. I definitely think that is a part of it."
Ocular enhancement: If you were watching closely early Tuesday morning, you noticed Bennett scrimmaging in a pair of sports goggles that would make George Mikan and Horace Grant proud.
But he didn't keep them on long, despite his doctor's orders to keep his eyes protected during games and workouts while they recover from LASIK surgery. The specs aren't very comfortable, Bennett said, limiting his peripheral vision and proving cumbersome to tote around the floor.
"I couldn't get comfortable with them, because I couldn't really see on the sides," Bennett said. "Everything was dark."
But he'll have to get used to them or find another pair, at least until his pupils are back to normal.
Corrective eye surgery was just one of the many makeovers Bennett underwent this summer. He had his tonsils and adenoids removed to help him sleep and breathe better -- Bennett suffers from asthma and sleep apnea -- and lost about 10 pounds working out with famed trainer Frank Matrisciano in California alongside Shabazz Muhammad and Ronny Turiaf.
After last season, Bennett had rotator cuff surgery on his left shoulder, too.
"You see a new man," the No. 1 overall pick in the 2013 draft said.
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