An entire generation of Croatian basketball players grew up captivated by the 1990s exploits of Drazen Petrovic, Toni Kukoc and Dino Radja. These legends paved the way as pioneers for European basketball in the NBA, inspiring a wave of talent that dreamed of following in their footsteps across the Atlantic.
One of those inspired was Damjan Rudez, a 6-foot-10 sharpshooter who finally broke into the league at 28. Despite going undrafted in 2008, Rudez used a stellar European career to propel himself to the league. His first stop was with the Indiana Pacers, where he shot a blistering 40.2 percent from beyond the arc.
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That marksmanship caught the eye of the Minnesota Timberwolves, who brought him to the North the following season. Reflecting on that period in a recent interview with “Index”, Rudez opened up about the unique geography of the Twin Cities.
“Minnesota is absolutely beautiful, geographically as well. It has lakes right in the city, kind of like Orlando. Orlando is warm, of course — the weather there is nice. Minnesota, on the other hand, is freezing, like crazy cold. But it’s still beautiful. It’s not something you can really understand until you experience it. At one point, it was below 100,” Rudez said.
“They have an interesting system there: all the buildings downtown are connected by skyways. Basically, on the first floor of every building, there are enclosed walkways, like indoor bridges, that connect everything. So you can walk through the entire city center without going outside,” he added.
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Minneapolis Skyway System
Minnesota has long been viewed as one of the league’s “small market” teams, largely due to a climate that is anything but inviting for the NBA’s biggest superstars.
The temperatures, as Rudez noted, can often veer into the unbearable. While the franchise has seen its share of legends like Kevin Garnett, Kevin Love and current stars like Anthony Edwards and Karl-Anthony Towns, these players almost exclusively arrived via the draft. Very few marquee names choose to navigate the frozen North by choice.
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However, as Rudez admits, the city has a secret weapon against the elements: the Minneapolis Skyway System. This network of enclosed, climate-controlled bridges allows residents to traverse the urban core without ever touching a snowflake or feeling the sting of a sub-zero gust at street level.
“That’s how it works — at below 100, you’re fine in a tank top, because life happens inside those passages. There are shops, restaurants and every building has intersections inside with signs telling you which way to go, like streets within the buildings. It’s really fascinatingly organized,” Rudez recalled.
An entire separate existence thrives apart from the outside world
Much like something out of “The Matrix”, an entire separate existence thrives apart from the outside world to make life manageable in temperatures that Rudez noted can reach 40 degrees below zero.
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This architectural wonder is the longest continuous system of connected pedestrian bridges in the world, stretching over 9.5 miles and linking more than 80 city blocks.
Inside the skyways, you’ll find a bustling ecosystem of restaurants, shops, offices, gyms and hotels. It is theoretically possible to live and work in downtown Minneapolis without ever stepping into the cold.
The system links major landmarks like the Target Center and U.S. Bank Stadium to numerous office buildings. It is a minor architectural miracle that originated in the 1960s and has evolved over decades into the phenomenal lifeline that citizens and NBA players rely on today.
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This story was originally published by Basketball Network on May 5, 2026, where it first appeared in the Off The Court section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.