Mike Woodson interviews for the Minnesota Timberwolves head coaching job – NBA Update
Mike Woodson, former head coach of the Atlanta Hawks had an interview for the Minnesota Timberwolves head coaching job on Monday, it has been revealed. The Timberwolves have been hunting for a head coach since Kurt Rambis was shown
the door in acrimonious circumstances.
Mike Woodson was initially believed to be the frontrunner for the head coaching post vacated by John Kuester at the Detroit Pistons. Woodson was the assistant to Larry Brown when the Pistons won the NBA World Championship back
in 2004. He left Detroit to take over at the Atlanta Hawks and that side progressed under him significantly. His stint there ended with Atlanta’s loss to the Orlando Magic in the 2010 playoffs.
Woodson is still in the frame for the Detroit job but the Pistons new owner Tom Gores is believed to be inkling towards Boston Celtics assistant coach Frank Lawrence, therefore Mike seems to be keeping his options open.
Minnesota Timberwolves could be an interesting destination for the coach who overall has a good record in the NBA. The Timberwolves are in the process of rebuilding after two disastrous years under Kurt Rambis, although to be fair,
Minnesota were never going to be a strong force after Kevin Garnett departed.
They have assembled a talented young roster now though and are looking for a quality coach to take the franchise on to the next level. Woodson certainly has good credentials but his qualities do not match with what Timberwolves
GM David Kahn is looking for.
Kahn confessed that he wanted someone who can turn up the tempo of the team to make the most of the exciting talent at their disposal. Woodson’s teams are not known for that at all. He would certainly shore up the Timberwolves
defence, but he is someone who likes his teams to play at a very slow pace.
Woodson’s coaching style could be particularly prohibitive of the young Spanish point guard Ricky Rubio, who will be directing traffic for Minnesota next season. Michael Beasley and Derrick Williams, who is the 2nd overall
pick in the 2011 NBA draft, are also more suited to thrive in a fast paced offensive system.
There is no indication whatsoever so far of who will actually land the job. Woodson is just one of the candidates as veteran coach Don Nelson is also interested and Kahn has made contact with him. In addition Terry Porter, a former
head coach of the Phoenix Suns, has also been interviewed.
It is believed that the Timberwolves want to take their time and exhaust the selection process before they reach a final decision.
Tags: