Lost momentum: Wolves take 5-game skid into All-Star break

"I wouldn't say it's a good time for a break," Foye said. "I guess it's just a good time to get away and free your mind. Then when we come back, get ready to turn it around. Start preparing to be a better team."

Foye is most concerned about maintaining what has been a good vibe in the locker room. Losing can lead to tension behind the scenes. That's something Foye says the team cannot afford.

"Team. That should be our main goal. No matter what happens, stick with each other, stay together," Foye said. "We're trying to build here. The main focus coming off the break should be team and getting things done as a whole and not individually."

Owner Glen Taylor said he has been encouraged by the chemistry the team has developed off the court, and by the improvement shown by Jefferson and point guard Sebastian Telfair, among others. He read the stories a few weeks ago saying the team had turned the corner, but remains realistic about the timeline for success in the post-KG era.

"This is still a rebuilding program," Taylor said. "This is still a long-run program."

Which may not be such a bad thing. Several teams in the West are loading up for runs at the NBA title. Phoenix traded for Shaquille O'Neal, the Lakers grabbed Pau Gasol and Dallas is trying to get Jason Kidd from the Nets.

In March, Shaq will turn 36 and Kidd will be 35.

"In two, three years, they could be gone," Wittman said. "Now they've got to start over, Dallas and those guys. Maybe we'll be put in a position where we'll benefit from all this."

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AP Sports Writer Dave Campbell contributed to this story.