Kevin McHale insists he isn’t thinking that far ahead, but Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor said he wants him back as coach next season.
Taylor left no doubt during a telephone interview Wednesday that he would like McHale to remain on the bench and doesn’t see him returning to his former role as vice president of basketball operations.
“I think we’re beyond that,” Taylor said. “I think Kevin has taken over coaching. I don’t think he’s making a decision of going back to that or not. I think the decision that he will make is he said he’d commit with this team to coach them (this season). I think that’s the direction that he’s chosen, I’ve chosen, and I think that’s the direction that we’re looking at. I anticipate that he will be here in coaching.”
On Wednesday, McHale was asked about the chance of him coaching another year. It quite possibly could be his only choice to remain full time with the organization.
“I’ve got to improve a lot as a coach, too,” he said. “I’ll worry about that later. I’ve got to worry about being a good coach against Utah, not next year. I’m not that worried about that right now.”
Timberwolves center Al Jefferson is back in the Twin Cities after last week’s surgery to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee, but his rehabilitation could take a bit longer than forward Corey Brewer’s.
“Al had a little bit of cartilage they had to sew up on him, so he’s a little different,” coach Kevin McHale said before tonight’s game against Utah. “I think Brew after a week was out of the brace and was using a crutch. Al will be in a brace and on crutches for the next 2-4 weeks.”
Judging from some of the comments here, you might have noticed Kevin Love wasn’t on the floor for a second in the fourth quarter of the last two games. Kevin McHale said that will change today. He said he was experimenting with lineups Tuesday in Toronto to see if he could find one that could bring home victory, but admitted before tonight’s game that Love has to be part of that equation.
“I probably should have played him some last night, but I think we’re all looking to see what we’ve got here,” McHale said. “I was experimenting with some things, trying to figure out what kind of groups and style we’re going to play to end games. I think Kevin’s got to be part of that group because of his rebounding and all he does. It’ll be good for him. He needs to be out there.”
So, why did it take Foye so long to get into a groove and become a big contributor? According to McHale, it comes down to one word: rhythm.
“He’s a good player, he’s played real well, it’s just that basketball is a strange thing and you’ve got to get going. He missed half of last year because he was hurt and basketball is a rhythm thing. If you find your rhythm and you’re a good player than your usually play really well. And rhythm comes and goes, just like the weather and you’ve got to just stay in it.”
The Bosh-Cardinal thing was kind of interesting because you almost knew that it would get Bosh going a little bit. I’ve got all the time in the world for pesky, choppy, floppy guys like Cardinal. Guys like him Bruce Bowen, Jared Dudley, James Posey – they don’t make for great highlights, but the way they play is the easiest for the average person to relate too, and you have to respect guys who have to play on that competitive edge all the time to even have a chance of making a real impact on the floor. But when playing that role you’re best served by being kind of dumb about it and saying ‘excuse me’ a lot, especially when matched up against a clearly superior player. That way you can bump and grind and hack and pull and then have Bosh get angry at the officials, not you.
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