Al Jefferson ramped up his activity in today’s morning practice, participating in run-throughs of the team’s offensive and defensive schemes both during the beginning and near the end of a two-hour workout at Bresnan Arena.

“First time he’s upped it to this level,” Randy Wittman said. “Still running on eggshells a little bit, I think. I don’t see it too much longer before he’s going to be pretty ready. As long as he doesn’t have soreness, mentally he’ll be fine.”

Wittman said Jefferson could join in contact drills before the Wolves break camp in Mankato after Saturday night’s scrimmage.

“It wouldn’t surprise me,” he said. “But I don’t want to put him out there with anything in his mind that he’s hurting.”

Other takes from this early on in camp:

*Shaun Livingston remains unsigned, but my bet is that he signs with Miami. Forget all that stuff Pat Riley said yesterday about his going to the Heat being a “dead issue.” Just remember all that silliness about Michael Beasley at draft time; whatever he says, you can usually believe the opposite. Since Livingson isn’t ready yet anyway, I’m guessing the Heat are just waiting until they can trade a salary to clear some cap space unless the Wolves decide to sweeten the pot.

*Tough to get a read on players this early because Wittman is running through so many of the basics so far and media weasles only get to see the closing minutes of practice, but one guy who has caught my eye is Sebastian Telfair. He just looks so much more assertive and decisive than he was last season, particularly early in the year. And when I’ve watched, he’s been making some jumpers.

*Wittman says it ain’t so and Kevin Love said maybe just a little, but it looks to me like the rookie has put back on some of those 15 pounds he lost preparing for the draft. His backside (not that I’m obsessed with it) just looks bigger than it did in June. He said it’s nothing that a training camp and preseason play can’t shed and says he is in the process of hiring a chef to prepare healthy meals for him this season.

*Calvin Booth visited a chiropractor Wednesday afternoon about his bad back. He has watched all four practices because of spasms.

*Just FYI: The Wolves are televising preseason games for the first time in their history, I believe. You can catch two of them — Target Center contests against Chicago and Milwaukee on consecutive nights  on Oct. 22 and 23 — on FSN.

*Wittman praised his team’s “effort” and “enthusiasm” after Wednesday night’s practice, when the team did some full-court offensive stuff for the first time.  (This time, it was the point guard who looked good; Randy Foye shot the ball well from three-point range.) Witt said his guys have picked up the defensive concepts he has concentrated on through four workouts quicker than he anticipated and said the fellows did well offensively well once they possibly tired a bit and slowed down.

“We were going 100 miles an hour,” he said, “but that happens the first day.”

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