Minnesota Timberwolves Coaching Carousel: Will Absolute Power Corrupt Absolutely?

As distinguished a coach as Tom Thibodeau is, it is equally as important to remember: absolute power corrupts absolutely.   Note to Glen Taylor: please try not to mess this rendition of the Minnesota Timberwolves up.

As the 2016 NBA offseason officially commences for the Minnesota Timberwolves, the first order of business owner Glen Taylor has undertaken is to find and hire an appropriate and qualified head coach for his suddenly highly attractive team.

The Timberwolves’ 2015-16 season got off to somewhat of a sombering start, though; specifically, after the unexpected death of head coach and president of basketball operations Flip Saunders, the organization went into an unmitigated management flux.

His death wasn’t just devastating to those within his immediate family, but the entire Wolves brass as a whole — from the upper management brigade to the cohort of young prospects in which he hand-selected.

It also left general manager Milt Newton to handle the management side of things, while assistant coach Sam Mitchell was thrust into the head man role.

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Throughout the year, Mitchell’s coaching was met with intense scrutiny — from the way he pigeonholed Zach LaVine at the point guard position to the way he handled Karl-Anthony Towns‘ playing time.

In the eyes of Timberwolves nation, Mitchell simply could do no right.

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But, while no one will confuse Sam for an expert tactition by any means, the one-time NBA Coach of the Year is one hell of a motivator and did do a fine job of developing the aforementioned Towns and LaVine when looking out of the prism of the entire season.

In the end, Taylor made what many pundits would believe to be the right choice in relieving Mitchell of his head coaching duties.

In an ever so stealthy manner, might I add, firing the interim head man as the NBA world was still in its delirious state, the day after Kobe Bryant had just dropped 60 in his final game and the Golden State Warriors had won their recording-breaking 73rd game.

With such a move, the undivided attention now turns to Taylor, as his next move may dictate Minnesota’s fortunes for the next decade.

Of course, most Minnesota Timberwolves diehards are pulling for Tom Thibodeau — the defensive guru most known for leading the Boston Celtics to the 2008 NBA championship as their defensive coordinator, and the head coach who led the Chicago Bulls to five consecutive playoff appearances, while housing one of the league’s stingiest D year in and year out.

Conceptually, Thibs would be the ideal coach to turn defensive sieves – albeit, ones with tremendous physical gifts – in Andrew Wiggins and LaVine into the next Jimmy Butler and Luol Deng, while maximizing the capacity of perhaps the peskiest defensive point guard in the association in Ricky Rubio and everyone’s favorite young center in Towns.

And it’s not like years past, when the Timberwolves would have to literally beg for the attention of someone of Thibodeau’s coaching ilk.

In an unexpected turn, the Minnesota coaching gig has become the most sough-after coaching vacancy on the market — driven in large by the fine second-half play of the aforementioned foursome of Rubio, LaVine, Wiggins and Towns; not to mention, another probable top-five pick in this year’s NBA draft.

So what was the hold up? All of that sounds like a match made in heaven.

The thing is, while all reports indicate Thibodeau is finalizing a five-year deal to land the Timberwolves coaching gig, the tireless drill sergeant wants full control of personnel decisions — and who can blame him after enduring the multiple internal clashes with the Bulls’ front office during his tenure in the Windy City?

The problem is, the historical track record of giving someone complete control of a franchise has not been good — case and point: Doc Rivers.

The outlook may be all rainbows and sunshine for now, but if things turn sour, conflicts of interest may arise.

More explicitly, the interest and duties of the head coach is to manage the immediate, while the interest and primary focus of the president of basketball ops should be to position the franchise for sustained growth.

Does Thibodeau have the mental capacity to compartmentalize the two?

In the past, he has come off as someone who is incredibly competitive; so much so that his inherent intent is to win every game, regardless of his roster, minutes restriction, or opponent.  The said attitude is what made Thibs such a successful and adored coach — but, his shortsightedness is also the antithesis of what you would want in a senior-level manager.

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Finding a middle ground will be key during this negotiation phase with Thibs; and exploring the possibility of a Jeff Van Gundy — and to a much lesser extent, Mark Jackson — hire is a sound bargaining tactic.

For now, we will just have to sit and wait for the outcome, but as distinguished a coach Tom Thibodeau is, it is equally as important to remember: absolute power corrupts absolutely.   Just try to not mess this rendition of the Minnesota Timberwolves up, Glen.