Mark Jackson is at the top (along with Mike Fratello and Sam Mitchell) of David Kahn’s interview list. The two enjoyed a solid relationship when the recently hired Timberwolves president was Pacers assistant GM under Donnie Walsh. Then again, I thought Kahn and I were boys when we worked at NBC and he still hasn’t told me he even applied for the Minnesota opening.
Mark Jackson is the top candidate for the Minnesota Timberwolves’ coaching job, with Bill Laimbeer as a likely member of his staff.
League executives say new GM David Kahn will hire a coach whom he can hold a hammer over, and certainly Jackson would owe him. Jackson has wanted to become a head coach since his retirement five years ago, but no one has shown an inclination to hire him right out of the television booth. Kahn’s ex-boss, New York Knicks GM Donnie Walsh, came the closest to taking that leap of faith until Mike D’Antoni became available.
Kahn was an executive in Indiana when Jackson played point guard for the Pacers.
Mike Fratello is eager for the job, too, but it’s unlikely he’ll be given the chance to coach a young team. Fratello pursued the Sacramento Kings’ job hard, but was rebuffed. Fratello and Kahn worked together at NBC Sports in the 1990s.
Given the utmost confidence I have in Mark, arguably the biggest overachiever in NBA history, we may not be calling them the “L-Wolves” much longer.
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