McHale Named Western Conference Coach of the Month

Two months ago, Kevin McHale was the Wolves VP of basketball operations and he had a public approval rating somewhere south of Dubya’s.

Today, he is the Western Conference Coach of the Month after leading the Wolves to a 10-4 record in January that ended up with losses to Detroit and the L.A. Lakers.

They are 12-15 under McHale this season after a 4-15 start under former coach Randy Wittman.

Minnesota’s 10 wins during the month were the most since the Wolves went 10-5 during March 2005 in McHale’s previous stint as head coach. The .714 winning percentage was the team’s highest since going 6-0 in April 2004. Only the San Antonio Spurs (.800) and Los Angeles Lakers (.750) posted higher winning percentages among Western Conference teams during January.