Timberwolves Name Ryan Saunders Head Coach

The Minnesota Timberwolves have officially removed the "interim" tag off of Ryan Saunders title by officially hiring him as head coach beginning with the 2019-2020 season.

NBA.com is reporting that after interviewing several candidates, new Timberwolves GM Gersson Rosas signed Saunders to a multi-year deal to lead the team.

Saunders took over as the Wolves head coach after the team fired Tom Thibodeau following a 19-21 start.  While Saunders record was just 17-25 to close out the season, he was dealing with a not ready for prime time roster. He also has the backing of Wolves players, including All-Star center Karl-Anthony Towns.

Of course, Ryan Saunders is the son of late Timerwolves coach Flip Saunders, so I don't think there's anyone in Minnesota not rooting for him to put his stamp on this team and help guide it to the next level.

The Timberwolves also announced today that they have hired the Brooklyn Nets' director of global scouting Gianluca Pascucci as its new assistant GM.