|
Written by SG
|
|
Tuesday, 09 December 2008 07:35 |
"It's been a tough day, no question," Wittman said by telephone Monday night. "Ultimately, the responsibility falls on me. From the standpoint of where we are today, I take responsibility for that. My job is to get us where we can still go."
Wittman took consolatory calls from friends and colleagues most of Monday believing that things should have turned out differently.
"After 10 games, we legitimately should have been 5-5," Wittman said, referring to a number of games when the Wolves held double-digit leads and still lost eight of their first 10 games. "But that's not the reality of it. We weren't, and from there it snowballed and we just couldn't get it back."
Wittman said he was not surprised to get the news from Taylor...
Long-time Timberwolf Mark Madsen said the players had three meetings Monday — one with owner Glen Taylor and the rest of the team's management, one with just Taylor and one with only the players. Madsen said the players-only meeting lasted about 45 minutes and gave the team a chance to talk to each other candidly about the season so far.
"I feel bad personally because I feel like coach Wittman worked extremely hard, he has a great knowledge of the game, and ultimately it's on us as players, we didn't get it done," Madsen said. "When there is a coaching change, that is one of the biggest issues, that we were not getting it done on the court. We had plenty of time to talk about that today as a team, players only. Guys got things off their chests, guys communicated very openly with each other. Now we have to move forward and try to turn this around."
It was after practice but before McHale, the new Wolves' coach, met the press. McHale had his arm around Jefferson. McHale smiled, talked, then gave Jefferson a hug before the Wolves' big man headed into the locker room. McHale sat down in a chair, leaned back, sighed deeply, then rose and headed to the interview room...
"He was talking to me ... letting me know how it was going to be," Jefferson said. "He was telling me how excited he was, making sure I was on the same page with him. I was."
Read 0 Comments... >> |
|
Written by SG
|
|
Tuesday, 09 December 2008 06:47 |
That trade rumor of recent vintage – Gerald Wallace to the Minnesota Timberwolves for two expiring contracts ( Jason Collins and Rashad McCants) is totally bogus, according to Bobcats general manager Rod Higgins.
Beyond it making little sense – you'd dump a core player for nothing but salary-cap relief? – Higgins said it's never even been discussed. He said he's never had a conversation with the T'Wolves involving Wallace.
On Sunday, Taylor asked McHale to leave the front office and become the head coach. He gave McHale the day to decide. McHale said his wife, Lynn, urged him not to return to coaching. He made up his mind while attending mass Sunday, where, he said, "I got that calm, peaceful feeling."
"I thought long and hard," he said. "I love the practices and the games. I didn't like the travel [his first time coaching]. If you can play all home games, I'm in. I'm just traveled out."
McHale told Taylor Sunday night that he would coach. On Monday morning, Taylor fired Wittman -- who joined the Wolves as an assistant just after Taylor bought the team 14 years ago -- with the rest of this season remaining on Wittman's contract. McHale will proceed without a contract.
"He's never had a contract since he has worked with me," Taylor said. "Still doesn't."
Named full-time coach Monday to replace the fired Randy Wittman, the Wolves' former vice president of basketball operations said he has two main goals going forward.
"Once you have an identity and a style of play, you're going to step on the floor and do the same thing over and over again," he said. "That's what we've got to do. I think the style of play and an identity gives the team a comfort level and gives them a chance to go out there and play."
McHale wouldn't say what lineup changes, if any, might go along with that, but he provided a general outline of how he wants his team to play.
"Of course, playing off Al (Jefferson), but we've got to get some pace in the game offensively," he said. "It's an offense that should flow, and you shouldn't have to look over at the coach very much. You should be up and down the floor."
On whether he will look to hire another vice president now that McHale has relinquished his post with the team as vice president of basketball operations: "We're not going to do anything until the end of the year. Let's just see how this plays out. I have complete confidence that the people that are in place will handle this year. How we go forward after that, give me time to think about that and evaluate that."
On the perception that McHale has been hired to complete this season as coach and then hire someone else to coach the team with McHale returning to his vice president role: "That would be the wrong decision to make."
Bob Sansevere/Pioneer Press interviews former Timberwolves player Tony Campbell.
Rashad McCants and Mike Miller attended a Reading Time Out with 2nd graders from City View Elementary School on December 8, 2008 at Build-A-Bear in Ridgedale Mall in Minnetonka, Minnesota.
Click here for the forum's thread on tonight's game against Utah.
Game previews:
And color Sloan, who celebrates the anniversary when Jazz visit the 4-15 Timberwolves tonight, disappointed.
"I hate to hear that," Sloan said of the fourth coach firing in the NBA this season, along with those in Oklahoma City (P.J. Carlesimo), Washington (Eddie Jordan) and Toronto (Sam Mitchell).
Read 0 Comments... >> |
|
Written by SG
|
|
Tuesday, 09 December 2008 02:09 |
McHale didn't seem to like coaching very much in his first go-around, although he said Monday that it is the travel, not the games or the practices, that wear on him. Those closer to the team will tell you that McHale doesn't have any problem whatsoever with coaching -- he just prefers to do it without portfolio. Unofficially. Clandestinely even, with no portion of his rump on the line.
That's why one team insider said that he both does and doesn't feel sorry for Wittman. Sure, a likable guy lost a rare and lucrative job, with paychecks that run out in April. But Wittman was coping with McHale's strong advice and ideas, sometimes offered through him, sometimes put directly to the players. "You can't have two voices with players,'' the observer said. "You can't give them an out.''
What if McHale had declined to hitch up his pants, take over as coach and give up his VP duties? Would Taylor's request have turned into an ultimatum — or perhaps, had it been put to McHale that way from the get-go?
"I don't want to answer that question," Taylor said. "I'm telling you what happened. I didn't get into the second [option].''
OK, well, had McHale turned down the request to coach, would Wittman still be the coach? Would McHale still be the VP?
"I'm not going to answer the question. That's just speculation," the team owner said...
You know all of this — the losing, the empty seats at Target Center, the economy at large — was wearing on Taylor, because he strayed from his standard evaluation period by a whole game. When he and McHale cut loose Bill Blair in 1995 in their first coaching dismissal, the Wolves were 6-14. When they dumped Casey, the team was 20-20. Taylor likes to evaluate the season in 20-game bites but only got as far as 19 this time.
Apparently, no one has the guts to tell Taylor he’s wrong on both accounts.
The Timberwolves have more talent than their 4-15 record indicates? WRONG. Their record is actually a very accurate reflection of their personnel.
They can make substantial progress under McHale, who has 31 games of head coaching experience and reportedly didn’t even want the job this time around? WRONG. Not even Red Auerbach could turn this basketball water into wine -- or anything close to a winner.
But having a lot of money doesn’t make you smart, a truth that’s been proven by too many NBA owners within the past year alone.
From RandBall: Timberwolves Game Recap (Brandon): So this is how the Randy Wittman era ends
Making the Northwest even tougher, the executive said, are the Timberwolves and the Thunder despite those teams' combined 6-34 record to start the season.
"After the All-Star break I think it's going to really heat up in the division because teams like Minnesota and Oklahoma City are young teams with new coaches," he said. "Those guys are going to be playing I think with a better energy level so they won't be easy outs."
The Wizards Insider at the Washington Post declares the Wolves the "Team Of The Weak."
As a coach, McHale is staring down a rough road. Minnesota's next eight games before Christmas are against Utah, Denver, San Antonio (twice), the Los Angeles Lakers, Cleveland, Houston and, uh, Sacramento - where Coach Randy Theus is on the hot seat.
Right now, those six -- those same plucky Warriors, plus Memphis, Sacramento, Minnesota, the Los Angeles Clippers and Oklahoma City -- are well on their way to being seriously awful, and the signs say the breakout team from that bunch, probably the Clippers, would be lucky to get to 30 wins by season's end...
Through hard bungling, timely injuries and just plain cruddiness, the Subterranean Six all look awful in their own special ways, and even though they play each other a lot between now and tee time (38 games, including tonight's Warriors-Thunder arch-rivalry game in Oklahoma City), it is hard to see more than one team making a serious run at the magical 30-win mark.
Read 0 Comments... >> |
|
Written by SG
|
|
Monday, 08 December 2008 22:28 |
|
WCCO has some video from today's press conference announcing the firing of Randy Wittman and the naming of Kevin McHale as his replacement.
Update:
Taylor said McHale's reassignment wouldn't result in any other immediate changes to the team's front office.
The Wolves have been grooming assistant general manager Fred Hoiberg as McHale's successor, but Taylor said he would continue in his current role through this season, as will general manager Jim Stack and assistant general manager Rob Babcock.
Taylor added that McHale will continue to answer directly to him, but his role will be that of a coach going forward and there are no plans for him to return to the front office.
Asked who would make the call if some team called with a trade offer, Taylor said, "Jim Stack."
"I didn't offer him an interim (job)," Taylor said. "I just offered him the coaching job. ... I'm very aware of the alternatives I had. I just felt like this is the best alternative for us to have a successful season. Kevin's my first choice, and I'm glad that he accepted."
McHale said if he had turned down Taylor's offer, he would've "hired someone else." But Taylor's bluntness, and McHale's well-documented personnel blunders over the years, left little doubt: This was a demotion McHale was in no position to turn down.
When asked why he decided McHale was the best choice to take over for Wittman, who was 38-105 since taking over for Dwane Casey in January 2007, Taylor didn't exactly give McHale a ringing endorsement.
"Mostly that has to do with just the timing," Taylor said. "We're in the middle of a season, we've laid out a plan, and a lot of that plan has to do with Kevin's direction anyway. He's selected most of the players and he's worked with Randy in setting up the plan..."
The job is not an interim one. McHale said he "plans on being here'' for the long term and general manager Jim Stack and assistant GMs Fred Hoiberg and Rob Babcock will take over his executive duties for the remainder of the season.
Now it's up to McHale to breathe some life into a team that wasn't responding to the hard-nosed Wittman.
"It just looks like the guys are very beaten down,'' McHale said. "They've only played 19 games this season. They have 63 games left. It's no time to be beaten down. There's still time to rally and get going.'
"I put the guys together. The responsibility falls on me, if it doesn't work it will be on me," McHale said. "The plan remains the same, we have a lot of cap room, we have multiple picks, and nothing is going to change. The only change is I'm going to spend all my time coaching. For me, I thought I would jump in with both feet with this."
The Wolves are off to a rough start to the 2008-09 season with a 4-15 record that started with promise after a thrilling opening night victory against the Kings. However, the lack of improvement led to the dismissal of head coach Randy Wittman on Monday after compiling a 38-105 mark in two years with the team...The struggles are evident with a five-game losing streak including a 23-point loss to the Clippers. An exchange between McHale and owner Glen Taylor would follow the defeat on Saturday night.
"Glen looked at me and said that was an unacceptable performance, effort wise." I said it's hard to argue against that. First of all, we have to rehabilitate the effort but I think we can do that pretty easily. Then we have to get our guys playing confidently, getting out there and playing the style of ball that fits them," McHale said.
Read 0 Comments... >> |
|
Written by SG
|
|
Monday, 08 December 2008 20:59 |
|
How do we evaluate Kevin McHale as a Head Coach? He has disdain for certain parts of the job which are unavoidable including travel and dealing with the media. Insiders tell me McHale almost walked away from the coaching position during the 31 games he coached ending the 2005 season. The 19-12 finish after replacing Flip Saunders sounds good but lets not forget Cassell and Sprewell had pouted throughout the year over contract talks and conveniently played better when the final decision maker was now the Head Coach.
Click here to listen to Hartman and Mark Rosen's interview with Wolves owner Glen Taylor from this afternoon.
This is the 14th season that McHale has had his job. Fourteen. From one Lions fan to the Minny faithful, I can only say, "This too shall pass. It's got to, right?"
T-Wolves owner Glen Taylor "convinced" McHale to relinquish his front-office duties in order to take over the club and concentrate on coaching.
Reading between the lines, a rather long honeymoon is finally nearing an end for McHale in the Twin Cities.
In contrast to his interim head-coaching role three years ago, McHale will relinquish his position as vice president of basketball operations to focus on the task at hand. Despite four wins on the season, the Wolves feature a roster with an all-star caliber player in Al Jefferson, sharpshooter Mike Miller, along with a stock of youthful talent.
"I truly believe that we have a talented group of players in our locker room who have a great amount of potential," said McHale. "I'm confident that we can get this turned around and get back to playing a brand of basketball that our fans can be proud of."
If becoming a coach is the only way McHale scrams out of Minneapolis, then it's what must be done. Really, this is a victory for Wolves fans who'd like to see McHale go. Unless you think the guy can whip these kids into shape and finish strong, McHale looks to be gone at season's end.
There will be a familiar face coaching for the Minnesota Timberwolves on Tuesday for Jerry Sloan's 20th anniversary game.
The Timberwolves fired Randy Wittman on Monday and replaced him with Kevin McHale, the team's vice president of basketball operations. It was the 223rd coaching change around the NBA since Sloan took over for Frank Layden on Dec. 9, 1988.
But in some ways, it really makes sense to have the former Celtic great on the bench. Think about every time you’ve heard about the Timberwolves interests in the free agent market or in the NBA draft. It always seems as if McHale is drafting a team under the auspices that he’s going to help develop the players.
The Timberwolves are not a good team, but it doesn't seem realistic to put all the blame on Wittman. He didn't put the roster together, and the Wolves are right about where everyone outside of the organization expected them to be. Firing Wittman is just about finding a scapegoat instead of addressing the real issues.
Read 0 Comments... >> |
|
Written by SG
|
|
Monday, 08 December 2008 19:14 |
|
A comment Rick Bonnell/Charlotte Observer left on his blog about rumors of McCants being traded to the Bobcats for Gerald Wallace.
I asked a source about that Minnesota stuff. He didn't totally dismiss the idea of some trade with the Timberwolves, but he sounded like Wallace for McCants and Collins would be pretty hard to justify.
In my mind, that would be nothing but a salary dump. What does this team need with another shooting guard and another $6 million center of limited ability? The only incentive for such a deal would be acquiring short-term contracts in exchange for Gerald's long-term deal.
But what a terrible message you'd be sending to the fans; Gerald plays as hard as anyone in this league, and you'd exchange him for some future cap room?
Read 1 Comments... >> |
|
Written by SG
|
|
Monday, 08 December 2008 19:07 |
|
It was hard to check scores from Saturday's games and not have the Clippers' 107-84 victory at Minnesota and Denver's 118-85 victory at Sacramento catch your eye, especially if you're getting ready to write a 20th anniversary story this week about Jerry Sloan taking over as Jazz coach.
For the record, there have been 222 coaching changes since Sloan took over for Frank Layden on Dec. 9, 1988. The question is if there will be a 223rd before Tuesday's game at Minnesota, with the leading candidates being Timberwolves coach Randy Wittman and Sacramento's Reggie Theus...
Memphis' Marc Iavaroni and Philadelphia's Maurice Cheeks also have to be considered on the hot seat, but it looks like a two-coach race between Wittman and Theus to become No. 223 (maybe we'll have 223 and 224). Wouldn't it be something for Sloan's anniversary game to come Tuesday against an interim coach?
Read 0 Comments... >> |
|
Written by SG
|
|
Monday, 08 December 2008 18:05 |
|
This is a mass email I received this afternoon.
Dear Sonia,
As a valued member of our Timberwolves family, I want to inform you of a decision that I reached regarding the future of our team. Earlier this morning I relieved Randy Wittman of his coaching duties. I hold Randy in the highest personal regard but believe that a change was needed to get our team back on track.
To replace Randy on the bench, I have decided to name Kevin McHale as our new head coach. Kevin will relinquish his role in basketball operations so he can devote his full time and energy to his head coaching responsibilities. No one knows this team better than Kevin and this new opportunity allows us our best chance to develop our young group of players.
I know many fans have been frustrated at the pace of our rebuilding and our challenges in the win and loss column. As a fan first and foremost, I share this frustration. But I also know that our young team is incredibly talented. I continue to have high hopes for this group of players and believe that this coaching change is our best opportunity to accelerate the rebuilding process and make significant gains for the remainder of this season.
Know that I continue to be passionate about Timberwolves basketball and remain committed to building a franchise that we can all be proud of.
Thank you for your continued support and I look forward to seeing you at Target Center.
Regards,
Glen Taylor
Read 0 Comments... >> |
|
Written by SG
|
|
Monday, 08 December 2008 18:01 |
|
Tune into WCCO.COM at 2 p.m. for a live press conference with the Timberwolves.
Fox Sports North will broadcast the 2 p.m. Target Center press conference live and then re-air it at 7 p.m. as well.
Read 0 Comments... >> |
|
Written by SG
|
|
Monday, 08 December 2008 17:19 |
|
The big news out of Target Center this morning is not that Kevin McHale takes over for Randy Wittman as coach, but that McHale is leaving his front-office job to concentrate solely on coaching.
As reluctant as McHale was to coach the first time around, this sure seemes like Glen Taylor’s move to finally send the franchise in a new direction.
Randy Wittman, the eighth head coach in Timberwolves history, was fired today and will be replaced by Kevin McHale, the team will announce at a 2 p.m. news conference.
McHale, who said the team said would relinquish his front-office duties to concentrate on coaching, was expected to lead his first practice today at 11.
The Wolves were 38-105 under Wittman. He coached one full season and parts of two others.
"There were certain goals and expectations that we had for this team at the start of the season, and we have not lived up to them," Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor said in a statement.
"I am disappointed in our record and believe that we have more talent than our record indicates. A change had to be made and with three-fourths of the season remaining, there is still time to make substantial progress this year. I want to thank Randy for all of his contributions to the Timberwolves through the years as both a head coach and an assistant coach, and wish him the best in the future."
It is the NBA's fourth firing already this season, following dismissals in Oklahoma City (P.J. Carlesimo), Washington (Eddie Jordan) and Toronto (Sam Mitchell).
"I truly believe that we have a talented group of players in our locker room who have a great amount of potential," said McHale. "I'm confident that we can get this turned around and get back to playing a brand of basketball that our fans can be proud of."
This will be McHale's second stint as an NBA head coach, the first coming on an interim basis for the final 31 games of the 2004-05 season. McHale guided the Wolves to a 19-12 record during that stint. He started with the Timberwolves front office in 1993-94 as a special assistant before moving to assistant general manager for the 1994-95 season.
UPDATE:
It is not known whether assistant general manager Fred Hoiberg, who has been groomed as McHale's replacement, would immediately be elevated to his former front-office position...
Interestingly, Tuesday's game will mark the 20th anniversary of Jazz coach Jerry Sloan's hiring.
The Wolves, who are celebrating their 20-year anniversary, have gone through eight head coaches during that time: Bill Musselman, Jimmy Rodgers, Sidney Lowe, Bill Blair, Saunders, Casey, McHale and Wittman.
“I want to thank Randy for all of his contributions to the Timberwolves through the years as both a head coach and an assistant coach, and wish him the best in the future,” Taylor said.
Now it’s up to McHale to try and turn things around, and he has experience in this kind of situation. He went 19-12 in the final 31 games of the 2004-05 season after firing coach Flip Saunders.
“Kevin has assembled the players on this team, and believes in their talent and skill level,” Taylor said. “It is my expectation that Kevin will be able to get the most out of our team and our players in his new role as head coach.”
Read 0 Comments... >> |
|
Bloguin is the revolutionary blog network specifically focused on helping bloggers get the most out of their websites. We're currently working on building a large network of online communities and hope to expand our blogging coverage to include a wide range of topics. 
The Bloguin Network allows advertisers to promote their products and services to our ever-growing number of visitors. We offer both site-specific ad placements as well as the ability to run a network-wide campaign. If you're interested in working with Bloguin to meet your advertising needs, please contact us.
The Bloguin Network is always looking to expand. Here are some of our high-priority areas that we're specifically looking to grow. If your a blogger and interested in joining our network, please fill out our application form.
The Bloguin Login gives you full access to everything our network has to offer. Your name and password will work for each and every one of our sites. Signing up is simple, and will allow you to post in all our forums, create member blogs, and access other cool features! What are you waiting for? Create an Account!