The Minnesota Timberwolves are still hunting for a new head coach after Kurt Rambis was relieved of his duties. Recently, wandering NBA coach Larry Brown interviewed for the job, which makes him an interesting candidate.
Minnesota is quite a young team. Derrick Williams, Ricky Rubio, and Wes Johnson are just a few of the young bucks who make up the roster and Brown could be the right disciplinarian/veteran coach this team needs.
But what does Minnesota All-Star and cornerstone of the franchise Kevin Love have to say about Brown?
Obviously he’s got a different style than the other guys I mentioned … I’m hoping we can adapt to his style, but hopefully he can adapt to our style, too, because we’re going to be a team that wants to run and be up-tempo. And we want to play hard-nosed defense. We’re going to make mistakes, and hopefully he can work with us [while we’re] making mistakes and growing over time.
Brown does have a penchant for being tough on rookie and young NBA players. His hard-nosed coaching style may rub some people the wrong way on a young team, which means Minnesota will have to tread lightly. His history shows when he is at the helm of a veteran squad (like the Detroit Pistons) his coaching style gets results. On the other hand, when he is at the helm of a young squad (see: Charlotte Bobcats) well, not such good results.
Another aspect to Minnesota’s search for a new coach is keeping Love involved.
Again, he is their future. Keeping Love happy should be a priority and, let’s face it, Minnesota GM David Kahn does not have a glowing reputation as a GM. But Kahn might have actually done something right when he consulted with Love on the coaching search.
I have definitely been asked by David Kahn what I thought about the situation, and I gave my two cents. I told them I think we need a coach to help us grow and win in tough situations and learn how to win. A guy who is going to be able to work with young guys and go through the growing pains to help us become a better team. There were a few names thrown out to me prior to the interview process, and they’ve all interviewed so far.
Kudos to Kahn. Way to keep Love, who is probably the current lone bright spot for Minnesota, involved in the process. By doing so, Love totally invests himself in Minnesota’s long-term plans and he appreciates it.
I feel like I have a good vibe for basketball and know the game and know the difference facets of the game. I’m very happy to talk to our front office about that kind of stuff.
Circling back to Brown and his candidacy for the Minnesota job, as stated before, Love did have nice things to say regarding Brown, but it would appear he would like to see Rick Adelman patrol the sidelines:
I think a very intriguing prospect is Rick Adelman. For me, especially being a good passing big man and a good shooter and a guy that can play at the high post, being in his corner system and his corner offense and playing at the high post would be very intriguing and very fun to be a part of. Obviously there are other intriguing prospects out there and I’m hoping that management will make the right choice.
Not a good sign for Brown especially seeing how the Timberwolves are keeping Love in the decision making process.
One thing for sure, Minnesota may be looking at the present to fill their vacant head coaching spot but it’s their future they are also keeping in mind by keeping Love in love with the franchise.
