Even so, owner Glen Taylor has said he expects McHale to return and to have the situation resolved within a couple of weeks, when the team names a new head of basketball operations.
Taylor also has said that McHale isn’t a candidate to return to his former job of vice president of basketball operations, leaving him with a coach-or-nothing decision.
The Wolves’ non-pursuit of former coach Flip Saunders, who reportedly is headed to Washington, or any other top coaching candidates speaks volumes about their expectations.
Still, no one but McHale, perhaps, knows for sure which way the decision will go.
From Mike Max/WCCO:
If you’re wondering whether or not Kevin McHale will call Target Center home next year, consider that sources say they’ve talked to six potential general manager candidates. Two from inside the organization — Fred Hoiberg and Jim Stack. McHale does have to decide if he wants to coach next year but the general manager gets to decide who the head coach is as well.
Don’t post that: A little birdie says the Washington Wizards had targeted ex-Timberwolves coach Flip Saunders for a month as their next coach.
That’s interesting because the Wolves probably could have had the popular Saunders again had they decided against Kevin McHale returning. With the Wizards waiting, Saunders couldn’t wait for the Wolves. That’s an indication McHale, for about a $2 million salary increase, will return to coach the Wolves.
That’s where Minnesota Timberwolves head coach Kevin McHale finds himself these days, pacing the sidelines helping his young players grow and develop on the court, when he’d really prefer to be watching the game from a suite or an office – especially the road games. Unfortunately, the sideline is where Timberwolves brass would prefer for him to be. It’s where he’s had his greatest success this season, but he’s not sure he’s willing to commit to the job long-term.
“Well . . .we’ll see . . .(looking away),” says McHale, who pauses for a while before continuing with a distant look in his eyes. “It’s a crazy business. It’s consuming, it takes a ton of time, your life is completely put on hold, everything is screwy . . .it’s like being a player but you don’t get to play, which is the only fun part about being a player. It’s like all that without the fun. There are nights, though. You do enjoy watching your guys play better, so there are some positives to it. I can tell you, though, that with the lifestyle, the only thing that made it tolerable as a player was that you got to play the game. I couldn’t stand the rest. About 7:30 I liked it a lot.”
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