List of Minnesota Timberwolves head coaches
Encyclopedia
The Minnesota Timberwolves
are an American professional basketball
team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota
. They play in the Northwest Division
of the Western Conference
in the National Basketball Association
(NBA). The team was one of two expansion team
s that joined the NBA in 1989. The Timberwolves has never been in the NBA Finals
. The team have played their home games at the Target Center
since 1990. The Timberwolves are owned by Glen Taylor
, and Jim Stack
is their general manager.
There have been nine head coach
es for the Timberwolves; the first was Bill Musselman
, who coached for two seasons. Flip Saunders
, who coached for ten seasons with the Timberwolves, is the franchise's all-time leader for the most regular-season games coached (737), and the most regular-season game wins (411). He is the only head coach to have been to the playoffs with the Timberwolves, with a playoffs record of 47 games and 17 wins. Sidney Lowe
is the only person to have been a player (1989–1990) and a head coach (1993–1994) for the Timberwolves. Kevin McHale
and Dwane Casey
have spent their entire NBA coaching careers with the Timberwolves. Though none of the Timberwolves coaches have been elected into the Basketball Hall of Fame as a coach, McHale has been elected into the Hall of Fame as a player in 1999. McHale was on his second tenure as the head coach of the Timberwolves in 2008, until being fired in 2009; he was replaced by Kurt Rambis
, the current head coach.
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Note: Statistics are correct through the end of the .
Minnesota Timberwolves
The Minnesota Timberwolves are an American professional basketball team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. They play in the Northwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association . Founded in 1989, the team is currently owned by Glen Taylor...
are an American professional basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
. They play in the Northwest Division
Northwest Division (NBA)
The Northwest Division is one of the three divisions in the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association . The division consists of five teams, the Denver Nuggets, the Minnesota Timberwolves, the Oklahoma City Thunder, the Portland Trail Blazers and the Utah JazzThe division was...
of the Western Conference
Western Conference (NBA)
Below is a list of current Western Conference NBA team rosters.-Western Conference:There are a total of 15 teams in the Western Conference. The current leading team of the Western conference are the Dallas Mavericks....
in the National Basketball Association
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in North America. It consists of thirty franchised member clubs, of which twenty-nine are located in the United States and one in Canada...
(NBA). The team was one of two expansion team
Expansion team
An expansion team is a brand new team in a sports league. The term is most commonly used in reference to the North American major professional sports leagues, but is applied to sports leagues worldwide that use a closed franchise system of league membership. The term comes from the expansion of the...
s that joined the NBA in 1989. The Timberwolves has never been in the NBA Finals
NBA Finals
The NBA Finals is the championship series of the National Basketball Association . The series was named the NBA World Championship Series until 1986....
. The team have played their home games at the Target Center
Target Center
The Target Center is an arena in downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota. It is sponsored by Target Corporation. The arena has a capacity of 20,500 people. It contains 702 club seats and 68 suites....
since 1990. The Timberwolves are owned by Glen Taylor
Glen Taylor
Glen A. Taylor is an American businessman who is the majority owner of the Minnesota Timberwolves basketball team, owner of the Minnesota Lynx WNBA basketball team, and a former member of the Minnesota Senate.-Biography:...
, and Jim Stack
Jim Stack
Jim Stack is the general manager of the NBA's Minnesota Timberwolves, a position he has held since 2004.Previously, Stack worked in the New York Knicks organization as a scout. He played a significant part in the formation of the Chicago Bulls as a powerhouse in the 1990s, beginning in 1988. He...
is their general manager.
There have been nine head coach
Head coach
A head coach, senior coach or manager is a professional at training and developing athletes. They typically hold a more public profile and are paid more than other coaches...
es for the Timberwolves; the first was Bill Musselman
Bill Musselman
William Clifford Musselman was an American basketball coach in the NCAA, the ABA, the WBA, the CBA, and the NBA. He was a fiercely intense coach who once was quoted as saying "defeat is worse than death, because you have to live with defeat."-Early life:Musselman was the second of five children....
, who coached for two seasons. Flip Saunders
Flip Saunders
Phillip "Flip" Saunders is an American basketball head coach of the Washington Wizards. He previously coached the Detroit Pistons and the Minnesota Timberwolves.-High school and college player:Saunders was born in Cincinnati, Ohio....
, who coached for ten seasons with the Timberwolves, is the franchise's all-time leader for the most regular-season games coached (737), and the most regular-season game wins (411). He is the only head coach to have been to the playoffs with the Timberwolves, with a playoffs record of 47 games and 17 wins. Sidney Lowe
Sidney Lowe
Sidney Rochell Lowe is an American basketball coach and is currently an assistant coach with the Utah Jazz. He is a former NBA player and head coach, and has served as the head coach at North Carolina State University,.-Biography:Lowe began his career at DeMatha Catholic High School in...
is the only person to have been a player (1989–1990) and a head coach (1993–1994) for the Timberwolves. Kevin McHale
Kevin McHale
Kevin Edward McHale is a retired American professional basketball player and current head coach of the Houston Rockets. After his playing career, he worked for the Minnesota Timberwolves as the team's general manager and later its coach. He was fired as coach in June 2009...
and Dwane Casey
Dwane Casey
Dwane Casey is a former NCAA basketball player and coach who currently is a head coach in the NBA for the Toronto Raptors.-Early years:Casey was born in Morganfield, Kentucky, and graduated from Union County High School in 1975....
have spent their entire NBA coaching careers with the Timberwolves. Though none of the Timberwolves coaches have been elected into the Basketball Hall of Fame as a coach, McHale has been elected into the Hall of Fame as a player in 1999. McHale was on his second tenure as the head coach of the Timberwolves in 2008, until being fired in 2009; he was replaced by Kurt Rambis
Kurt Rambis
Darrell Kurt Rambis is a retired American professional basketball player and former head coach for the NBA's Minnesota Timberwolves.-Biography:...
, the current head coach.
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Key
| GC | Games coached |
| W | Wins |
| L | Losses |
| Win% | Winning percentage Winning percentage In sports, a winning percentage is the fraction of games or matches a team or individual has won. It is defined as wins divided by wins plus losses . Ties count as a ½ loss and a ½ win... |
| # | Number of coaches |
| * | Spent entire NBA head coaching career with the Timberwolves |
Coaches
| # | Name | Term | GC | W | L | Win% | GC | W | L | Win% | Achievements | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||
| 11 | – | 164 | 51 | 113 | .311 | — | — | — | — | |||
| 22 | – | 111 | 21 | 90 | .189 | — | — | — | — | |||
| 33 | – | 135 | 33 | 102 | .244 | — | — | — | — | |||
| 44 | – | 102 | 27 | 75 | .265 | — | — | — | — | |||
| 55 | – | 737 | 411 | 326 | .558 | 47 | 17 | 30 | .362 | |||
| 66 | * | 31 | 19 | 12 | .613 | — | — | — | — | |||
| 77 | * | – | 122 | 53 | 69 | .434 | — | — | — | — | ||
| 88 | – | 143 | 38 | 105 | .266 | — | — | — | — | |||
| 9— | * | 63 | 20 | 43 | .317 | — | — | — | — | |||
| 109 | – | 164 | 32 | 132 | .195 | — | — | — | — | |||
| 1110 | –present | — | — | — | — | |||||||