Minnesota Timberwolves center Darko Milicic has raised his bar

Darko Milicic is the latest Timberwolves player who might have set high standards for his performance the rest of the season.

Kevin Love raised the bar with his 31 points and 31 rebounds against New York on Nov. 12. In the Wolves' next game, Love followed up with a respectable 22 points and 17 rebounds at Atlanta, earning praise from Charlotte coach Larry Brown for "following up" his big night against the Knicks.

Will Milicic be able to do the same Monday night at Oklahoma City? The 7-foot center had a career night Friday in the Wolves' loss to the Los Angeles Lakers — 23 points, 16 rebounds, six blocked shots and five assists.

"The biggest problem in my career has been consistency," Milicic said. "I would have a great game and the next game I would come out flat. I'm going to work on my consistency this year and keep trying to play hard."

Milicic has been criticized during his seven-year NBA career for failing to live up to expectations as the No. 2 pick in the 2003 draft. The emergence of Love and Michael Beasley, plus Milicic's poor shooting earlier in the season, had put Milicic in the background of the Wolves' game plans.