Minnesota Timberwolves: 5 candidates to replace Tom Thibodeau as head coach

2. Ettore Messina

Ettore Messina is a current assistant coach for the San Antonio Spurs. He’s another coaching candidate that will have to wait until the end of the regular season to be interviewed and hired.

He is already accomplished in Europe, winning EuroLeague Coach of the Year in 2006 and 2008. His head coaching record in the EuroLeague is 279-98. Unlike the Cleveland Cavaliers’ David Blatt, who struggled coaching stars like LeBron James in the NBA, Messina has spent time learning from best.

Messina is a perfect fit alongside Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich. He preaches that an inclusive offense with heavy ball movement can result in a more involved defense, an ideology that can help many players on the Timberwolves.

The only problem with Messina taking over after Tom Thibodeau is he may already be in line to take over the Spurs once Popovich retires. According to Brandon Wiggins of Business Insider, Popovich will retire by 2020. Why would Messina take over a team in salary cap ruin when he could wait a year and take over one of the most stable and winning franchises of the 21st century?

If the Timberwolves want to get on the right track, they need to make Messina an attractive offer and hope he is interested in turning things around in Minnesota.