Wolves forward Andrew Wiggins earned the award. Wiggins led the team with 20.7 points per game last season

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The Chiefs didnt make a first-round selection in this years NFL draft. That hasnt stopped their rookies from making a major impact.Whether its been defensive tackle Chris Jones, their first pick who was taken in the second round, or cornerback D.J. White, taken in the sixth round but suddenly playing as many snaps as anybody on defense, those newcomers are a big reason why Kansas City is off to a 4-2 start.Its hard to gauge rookies on what they might contribute, said Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith, a former No. 1 overall pick. You get the full spectrum. Its different for everyone and every position.Still, the Chiefs picked a bevy of guys who have fit in right away, and injuries and poor play have conspired to move them up the depth chart heading into Sundays game against the Colts.Take their new defensive tackle out of Mississippi State.Jones was supposed to learn the ropes behind Dontari Poe, Jaye Howard and Allen Bailey, but a season-ending injury to Bailey changed that plan. Jones wound up starting his first career game in last Sundays win over New Orleans , playing 38 snaps and putting pressure on Drew Brees.He did a pretty good job against that explosive offense, Chiefs coach Andy Reid said.If anyone was expected to contribute right away, though, it was the guy taken with the 37th overall pick. But Jones aside, consider the rest of the selections that Kansas City made:- Fourth-round pick Parker Ehinger, an offensive guard out of Cincinnati, started the opener before sustaining a concussion. He missed three weeks but has started the last two games, which have coincided with some of the Chiefs best offensive output this season.- Fourth-round pick Eric Murray, a safety from Minnesota, has been active all five games and had a fumble recovery against the Jets. While hes played primarily special teams, Murray could be their future at the position if Eric Berry cannot be re-signed in the offseason.- Wide receiver Demarcus Robinson, their third fourth-round pick from Florida, has played mostly on special teams. In fact, he played 16 special teams snaps against the Saints.- Fifth-round pick Tyreek Hill, whose domestic abuse case sent his draft stock tumbling , not only leads the Chiefs in special teams tackles but also has three touchdown catches. One was an acrobatic 38-yard grab against the Saints. And perhaps most important, Hill has said and done all the right things when it comes to the off-the-field issues that plagued him in college.Training camp, it was a lot of new faces, Hill said, but right now I feel pretty good. Im laughing each and every day. Im having fun with these guys. The guys are starting to trust me and Im starting to trust them. Once you get that, you get comfortable.- White may be the biggest surprise of the class. The sixth-round selection out of Georgia Tech became a de facto starter with Phillip Gaines dealing with a knee injury, and has 11 tackles and three pass breakups despite getting picked on by opposing quarterbacks.He fractured his hand against the Saints, but it isnt expected to sideline him long.Hes obviously a rookie learning to play. The more he plays, I think the better hes going to get, Chiefs defensive coordinator Bob Sutton said. Hes got to battle like heck.- Fellow sixth-round pick Dadi Nicolas, a raw pass-rusher out of Virginia Tech, has been learning the ropes while helping out on special teams. He played eight snaps against the Saints.Even the two draft picks no longer on the team have been making an impact.Third-round pick KeiVarae Russell, a cornerback from Notre Dame, was surprisingly cut by Kansas City but latched on with Cincinnati, while fifth-round pick Kevin Hogan out of Stanford is expected to start at quarterback for Cleveland this week.Not a bad haul for a single draft. Especially one without a first-round pick.Game notes White had an X-ray Monday and promptly had surgery. ... LB Justin Houston (ACL surgery) is unlikely to play Sunday at Indianapolis, though Reid said hes making progress. Hes just going to come out here and work, Reid said. Well see. Well just see as we go. ... OG Mitchell Schwartz missed practice with a sprained ankle. Its unclear whether he will play against the Colts.---AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and AP NFL Twitter feed: http://twitter.com/AP-NFL Zapatillas Salomon Baratas España . -- Five former Kansas City Chiefs players who were on the team between 1987 and 1993 filed a lawsuit Tuesday claiming the team hid and even lied about the risks of head injuries during that time period when there was no collective bargaining agreement in place in the NFL. Zapatillas Salomon Baratas .com) - The Calgary Flames aim to bounce back from their first regulation home loss of the campaign on Friday night when they host a Detroit Red Wings club that they swept in three meetings a season ago. http://www.baratassalomon.es/ . -- Playing time has been limited for Maxim Tissot this season, so the Montreal Impact defender made the most of his first scoring opportunity on Saturday. Zapatillas Salomon España . Gather a group of friends, or find a league to join online, draft your team, set your lineup and compete in a number of different formats. Salomon Baratas Chinas . Speaking to the Chicago Tribune at baseballs Winter Meetings in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, Boras called the former home of the Expos a "tremendous environment" for baseball. The Memphis Grizzlies hope to build off last years playoff appearance. The Minnesota Timberwolves are just hoping to get to the playoffs for the first time in years.Those two teams will open their 2016-17 seasons on Wednesday in Memphis. And theyll each do so with new coaches.Memphis David Fizdale is in his first year as an NBA head coach. Fizdale, 42, spent the last six seasons as an assistant with the Miami Heat. He inherits a club that finished 42-40 last season, which was good enough for the seventh seed in the Western Conference.Fizdale has said he hopes to instill a balanced system in Memphis, with Mike Conley Jr. as the focal point. The Grizzlies also have weapons in Marc Gasol, Zach Randolph and new addition Chandler Parsons.When you know that the offense isnt just predicated on one guy and that every movement you make gives you a chance to be a part of the action, to make you a weapon, its empowering, Fizdale told Sports Illustrated.Conley begins this season on the heels of the largest contract in NBA history. This past offseason, the Grizzlies signed Conley to a five-year, $153 million deal to keep the point guard in Memphis. That will put an added weight on the shoulders of the nine-year NBA veteran.As far as the pressure, its hard to really gauge that because I put pressure on myself to perform regardless, Conley told ESPN.com this offseason. The amount of money I make is not going to change how I approach the game.Like Memphis, MMinnesota enters the season with a new coach and high expectations.dddddddddddd Tom Thibodeau, former Chicago Bulls coach, takes over after the Timberwolves let interim coach Sam Mitchell go following last years 29-win season.Thibodeau begins his first year in Minnesota with a pair of Rookies of the Year at his disposal. Karl-Anthony Towns emerged for a stellar rookie campaign last season, averaging a double-double (18.3 points and 10.5 rebounds). His honor as the top rookie came one year after Wolves forward Andrew Wiggins earned the award. Wiggins led the team with 20.7 points per game last season.Minnesota has been starved for a winning team for years. The Timberwolves havent finished above .500 since the 2004-05 season and had the fifth-worst record in the league last year.Thibodeau never had a losing season in five years as the Bulls coach and was ousted after going 50-32 two years ago. A record like that in Minnesota this year would be a huge step forward for the young Timberwolves.But even Thibodeau knows Minnesota has a ways to go in order to be competitive in the West.We dont want to fool ourselves, he told the Minneapolis Star Tribune. Were a 29-win team. We want to close the gap.These same two teams faced off in the preseason, with the Timberwolves topping the Grizzlies 101-94 in Minneapolis a week ago. ' ' '