Flip becomes new head coach of Wolves

[j804]

Marc Stein

Flip Saunders' decision to name himself coach of the Timberwolves on Thursday will have no bearing on star Kevin Love's stance on his future in Minnesota, sources briefed on the situation told ESPN.com?s Marc Stein.

Love has made it clear to Wolves that he intends to opt out and become a free agent in July 2015 and that has not changed with Thursday?s announcement, according to Stein.

Sources reiterated to ESPN.com on Thursday that Saunders' move back to the bench will have no impact on Love's determination to opt out of his contract and become an unrestricted free agent in 2015.

Saunders and Love have built a good relationship since Saunders replaced David Kahn as Minnesota's lead decision-maker, but sources say Love is determined to play for a contender after missing the playoffs in each of his first six NBA seasons. His concern, sources say, isn't who's coaching but the state of the roster.

ESPN.com reported earlier this month that Golden State and Chicago are two potential trade destinations that particularly intrigue Love in his quest to land with a team that can make some noise. The Rockets, Celtics, Knicks, Lakers and Suns are among the other teams, sources say, that have tried to engage the Wolves in exploratory trade talks.

We aren't exactly that a contender this is what scares me

[Greenbean]

When the GM suddenly says, "I'm the coach now too", it's a lot more like the ship owner trying to take the wheel from the Titanic's captain at the last second before impact. You get the feeling the owner basically said to Saunders, "I'm not hiring a coach if Love is just gonna walk. You coach them, keep Love around, and you can keep your job."

Not happening.

I tend to agree but this is all speculation.

This is the TWolves we are talking about. They have managed to botch things up with almost every quality player they have ever had. I dont expect Flip Saunders having anything to do with turning that trend around.

[sed522002]

Marc Stein

Flip Saunders' decision to name himself coach of the Timberwolves on Thursday will have no bearing on star Kevin Love's stance on his future in Minnesota, sources briefed on the situation told ESPN.com?s Marc Stein.

Love has made it clear to Wolves that he intends to opt out and become a free agent in July 2015 and that has not changed with Thursday?s announcement, according to Stein.

Sources reiterated to ESPN.com on Thursday that Saunders' move back to the bench will have no impact on Love's determination to opt out of his contract and become an unrestricted free agent in 2015.

Saunders and Love have built a good relationship since Saunders replaced David Kahn as Minnesota's lead decision-maker, but sources say Love is determined to play for a contender after missing the playoffs in each of his first six NBA seasons. His concern, sources say, isn't who's coaching but the state of the roster.

ESPN.com reported earlier this month that Golden State and Chicago are two potential trade destinations that particularly intrigue Love in his quest to land with a team that can make some noise. The Rockets, Celtics, Knicks, Lakers and Suns are among the other teams, sources say, that have tried to engage the Wolves in exploratory trade talks.

We aren't exactly that a contender this is what scares me

I feel that too, but with the East being so weak they could make some noise and reach the playoffs.

[mmmmm]

When the GM suddenly says, "I'm the coach now too", it's a lot more like the ship owner trying to take the wheel from the Titanic's captain at the last second before impact. You get the feeling the owner basically said to Saunders, "I'm not hiring a coach if Love is just gonna walk. You coach them, keep Love around, and you can keep your job."

Not happening.

I tend to agree but this is all speculation.

This is the TWolves we are talking about. They have managed to botch things up with almost every quality player they have ever had. I dont expect Flip Saunders having anything to do with turning that trend around.

The above was my initial thought, but now I'm leaning more towards the "We can't hire a coach because the candidates all know Love is leaving.  So I'll coach until after Love is long gone.  Then we'll hire a coach." school of thought.

[RJ87]

From Canis Hoopus, they're a funny bunch over there...

[LooseCannon]

If we can skip any commenting on his performance in office, can I just say that my first thought was of how Dick Cheney was head of George W. Bush's vice presidential search committee and ended up as the nominee?

[LarBrd33]

I dunno... what would you do if you were in charge of the Wolves.  First thing first, you prob try to get a Top 4 pick in this draft.  If someone is offering that, you take it.   I'd be negotiating hard with Cleveland and trying to convince K-Love it's a good destination.

Then if that doesn't work out, I'm probably looking to get potential all-star talent for him.  I'd call up Philly and try hard to pry some picks/players from them.  Even if they keep the #3, I'd try to do something around Nerlens Noel and future picks.   I'd call up the Wizards and try to get players like Beal.  I'd try to get a ton of tangible talent from teams like the Warriors Thompson, Lee, Barnes, for instance.  I might just try to get all of the Rockets play-off contributing talent like Parsons, Asik, Terrence Jones and other picks.   

I'd probably try to get a comparable all-star talent.  See if the Bulls will part with Noah. See if Atlanta will part with Horford. Maybe even wait to see what's happening with Miami and see if I can pry Bosh from them... Uncover every stone in an effort to make my team as competitive as possible.   

The #6 pick would be a very nice piece, but it wouldn't be my first option... even if a crap-sandwhich of late 1sts comes with it. 

[Tr1boy]

I dunno... what would you do if you were in charge of the Wolves.  First thing first, you prob try to get a Top 4 pick in this draft.  If someone is offering that, you take it.   I'd be negotiating hard with Cleveland and trying to convince K-Love it's a good destination.

Then if that doesn't work out, I'm probably looking to get potential all-star talent for him.  I'd call up Philly and try hard to pry some picks/players from them.  Even if they keep the #3, I'd try to do something around Nerlens Noel and future picks.   I'd call up the Wizards and try to get players like Beal.  I'd try to get a ton of tangible talent from teams like the Warriors or Rockets.   

The #6 pick would be a very nice piece, but it wouldn't be my first option... even if a crap-sandwhich of late 1sts comes with it.

+1.

[LarBrd33]

I dunno... what would you do if you were in charge of the Wolves.  First thing first, you prob try to get a Top 4 pick in this draft.  If someone is offering that, you take it.   I'd be negotiating hard with Cleveland and trying to convince K-Love it's a good destination.

Then if that doesn't work out, I'm probably looking to get potential all-star talent for him.  I'd call up Philly and try hard to pry some picks/players from them.  Even if they keep the #3, I'd try to do something around Nerlens Noel and future picks.   I'd call up the Wizards and try to get players like Beal.  I'd try to get a ton of tangible talent from teams like the Warriors Thompson, Lee, Barnes, for instance.  I might just try to get all of the Rockets play-off contributing talent like Parsons, Asik, Terrence Jones and other picks.   

I'd probably try to get a comparable all-star talent.  See if the Bulls will part with Noah. See if Atlanta will part with Horford. Maybe even wait to see what's happening with Miami and see if I can pry Bosh from them... Uncover every stone in an effort to make my team as competitive as possible.   

The #6 pick would be a very nice piece, but it wouldn't be my first option... even if a crap-sandwhich of late 1sts comes with it. 

+1.

You'll probably lose any trade you make... I might even try to make a move for someone like Rondo in an effort to convince Love to stick around.  I'd have several months to make a decision.  Let's see how the start of this season goes...  maybe the Wolves make some noise.  There will still be plenty of offers at the trade deadline and I'll have a better idea of what some of those 2014 draft prospects look like.  Mildly risky waiting, but there will be plenty of teams interested in bringing in Love at the trade deadline.

[Rondo9]

I dunno... what would you do if you were in charge of the Wolves.  First thing first, you prob try to get a Top 4 pick in this draft.  If someone is offering that, you take it.   I'd be negotiating hard with Cleveland and trying to convince K-Love it's a good destination.

Then if that doesn't work out, I'm probably looking to get potential all-star talent for him.  I'd call up Philly and try hard to pry some picks/players from them.  Even if they keep the #3, I'd try to do something around Nerlens Noel and future picks.   I'd call up the Wizards and try to get players like Beal.  I'd try to get a ton of tangible talent from teams like the Warriors Thompson, Lee, Barnes, for instance.  I might just try to get all of the Rockets play-off contributing talent like Parsons, Asik, Terrence Jones and other picks.   

I'd probably try to get a comparable all-star talent.  See if the Bulls will part with Noah. See if Atlanta will part with Horford. Maybe even wait to see what's happening with Miami and see if I can pry Bosh from them... Uncover every stone in an effort to make my team as competitive as possible.   

The #6 pick would be a very nice piece, but it wouldn't be my first option... even if a crap-sandwhich of late 1sts comes with it.

Wizards aren't trading Beal Noah is not going anywhere, Miami doesn't have enough pieces and Houston's assets are mediocre. Boston has better assets than Atlanta, and a top 10 pick in a loaded draft is much better than the Bulls, Wizards, Heat and Rockets picks.

[Tr1boy]

I dunno... what would you do if you were in charge of the Wolves.  First thing first, you prob try to get a Top 4 pick in this draft.  If someone is offering that, you take it.   I'd be negotiating hard with Cleveland and trying to convince K-Love it's a good destination.

Then if that doesn't work out, I'm probably looking to get potential all-star talent for him.  I'd call up Philly and try hard to pry some picks/players from them.  Even if they keep the #3, I'd try to do something around Nerlens Noel and future picks.   I'd call up the Wizards and try to get players like Beal.  I'd try to get a ton of tangible talent from teams like the Warriors Thompson, Lee, Barnes, for instance.  I might just try to get all of the Rockets play-off contributing talent like Parsons, Asik, Terrence Jones and other picks.   

I'd probably try to get a comparable all-star talent.  See if the Bulls will part with Noah. See if Atlanta will part with Horford. Maybe even wait to see what's happening with Miami and see if I can pry Bosh from them... Uncover every stone in an effort to make my team as competitive as possible.   

The #6 pick would be a very nice piece, but it wouldn't be my first option... even if a crap-sandwhich of late 1sts comes with it. 

+1.

You'll probably lose any trade you make... I might even try to make a move for someone like Rondo in an effort to convince Love to stick around.  I'd have several months to make a decision.  Let's see how the start of this season goes...  maybe the Wolves make some noise.  There will still be plenty of offers at the trade deadline and I'll have a better idea of what some of those 2014 draft prospects look like.  Mildly risky waiting, but there will be plenty of teams interested in bringing in Love at the trade deadline.

Trade rondo for dieng, muhammad, 13th

[D.o.s.]

From Canis Hoopus, they're a funny bunch over there...

Fantastic.

[LooseCannon]

I dunno... what would you do if you were in charge of the Wolves.

If I were in charge of the Wolves, I'd probably be desperate to just make the playoffs for a few years in a row instead of having a contend-or-tank mentality.  I would gladly take a few consecutive first-round exits instead of blowing everything up.

[knuckleballer]

Hopefully, this is like an ML Carr type of situation where he hires himself to tank and trades Love to the Celtics.

[RJ87]

I dunno... what would you do if you were in charge of the Wolves.

If I were in charge of the Wolves, I'd probably be desperate to just make the playoffs for a few years in a row instead of having a contend-or-tank mentality.  I would gladly take a few consecutive first-round exits instead of blowing everything up.

But can they improve enough to get the 48-50 wins needed to get the 8th seed in the Western conference? And if they do somehow manage to leapfrog Dallas, Memphis, or Portland, they lose their 2015 top 12 protected 1st to Phoenix (another good young squad they have to get past) further hurting their chances to add a low-cost, quality piece longterm.