The Timberwolves planned to meet with Jackson after interviewing Van Gundy and former Chicago Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau, a person with knowledge of the process told The Associated Press on Tuesday.
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And way, way, prior to that, back in 1989-90, Thibodeau got his start as an assistant coach with the expansion franchise Minnesota Timberwolves.
The Timberwolves had a 29-53 record under interim coach Sam Mitchell, who stepped in for the late Flip Saunders and was sacked last week.
This news now brings the end of the speculation as to Thibodeau becoming the next New York Knicks head coach.
He was sacked last season after clashing with management over his hard-driving style.
Minnesota hasn’t traditionally been a team to attract big-name coaches, big-name front office executives or big-name free agents, so this is a breath of fresh air for Wolves fans.
Since then, he has become an established coach in the National Basketball Association, winning a championship in 2008 as Assistant Coach of the Boston Celtics before being awarded his first head coaching position in the NBA for the Chicago Bulls in 2010. Joining Thibodeau in Minnesota as the team’s new general manager will be Scott Layden, a former longtime member of the Jazz organization.
“Tom’s resume speaks for itself”, Taylor said.
Thibodeau was the most coveted coach on the market. In five seasons with the Bulls, Thibodeau compiled a 255-139 record.
“In getting to know Scott, he has impressed me with not only his basketball acumen, but also his character and integrity”, Taylor said.
Thibodeau and Layden will have plenty of time to put their heads together heading toward the summer, and the Timberwolves will add another talented young player with a lottery pick in June’s draft. Layden is still somewhat of a question mark, as he was behind drafting John Stockton and Karl Malone in Utah but made a series of questionable decisions in NY that put the Knicks in a whole for years.
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It’ll certainly be interesting to see what Thibodeau does with some more say in who he plays. Hopefully it will be a good collaboration, with Layden consulting with Thibs on what he needs and then doing the work find the appropriate players.
