Minnesota Timberwolves: Tom Thibodeau firing a long time coming

Despite the odd timing of the move, it was clear the Minnesota Timberwolves needed to relieve Tom Thibodeau of his head coaching duties.

In a move where the timing may have been more surprising than the actual decision, the Minnesota Timberwolves have relieved Tom Thibodeau of his duties as both head coach and president of basketball operations, according to The Athletic‘s Shams Charania.

The original signing of Thibodeau in April of 2016 was met with a lot of praise around the league. Thibs had amassed a .647 winning percentage with the Chicago Bulls over five seasons, which included overcoming multiple big-time injuries and a Coach of the Year award in 2011.

A defensive-minded coach whose Bulls teams routinely ranked among the best in that department, it was thought that Thibodeau could not only improve a defense ranked 28th in defensive rating the year prior, but also help end a playoff drought that, to that point, had lasted a dozen seasons.

Oddly enough, the Wolves’ defense never got up to Thibodeau standards, ranking 18th and 17th in points allowed per games in his two full seasons at the helm. And while Minnesota would break a 13-year playoff drought, it didn’t come in the most convincing way — in the final game of the regular season, actually, with an overtime victory over the Denver Nuggets.

The Wolves rarely got out in transition despite having some of the highest of flyers. They ranked dead-last in 3-point attempts in consecutive seasons under Thibs. Thibodeau earned his stripes in the 90s as an assistant coach, and it’s clear his faith still resides in that style of play. This was fine when such was still the norm, but the game has changed, and as history has shown us, those who don’t evolve tend to go extinct.

Part of Thibs deal with Minnesota made him president of basketball operations, creating a difficult dual role that rarely works out. Thibodeau seemed desperate to recreate his days in Chicago, bringing in former Bulls such as Taj Gibson and Derrick Rose when neither seemed to be ideal fits with the rest of the roster.

And who could forget the infamous Jimmy Butler saga, where the supposed Thibs loyalist went directly to his coach following their first round exit in April and asked to be traded? This would be followed by those requests being made public in September, one of the more unique practice sessions at Wolves training camp and an eventual trade with the Philadelphia 76ers seven months after Butler first expressed his desires.

If your star player — one who is set to be an unrestricted free agent the following summer — asks for a trade, it’s a clear message he no longer wants to remain with the organization. Being so stubborn as to think you can change his mind is a ridiculous idea, and it’s one that may have cheapened Butler’s value on the trading block.

Given how well received the hiring of Thibodeau was, it’s a shame he couldn’t revitalize Timberwolves basketball to the level most had expected, but in reality, he has nobody to blame but himself.

Minnesota never seemed to adapt to modern times in more ways than one, and it was the accumulation of all these little things Thibs didn’t do combined with the way he handled Butler’s exit that ultimately led to his demise.