Wolves' new GM ousts head coach McHale
After weeks of discussions with the Minnesota Timberwolves' new general manager, Kevin McHale is no longer the franchise's head coach.
Multiple league sources said that new GM David Kahn was determined to replace McHale, his predecessor as the Wolves' top executive, and hire his own candidate for the job. McHale had been a front-office executive for 15 years, and took over as coach in December after the firing of Randy Wittman.
Sam Mitchell, the 2006-07 NBA Coach of the Year who played 10 seasons for the Wolves, is expected to be a candidate for the job. Mitchell was fired as head coach of the Toronto Raptors 17 games into last season.
Under the right circumstances, McHale wanted to return to coach a solid nucleus of young talent, including Al Jefferson(notes) and Kevin Love(notes).
"Kevin made it clear to [Kahn] that he wanted to speak his mind and be honest about what he thought about matters with team," a league executive said Wednesday morning. "That's who Kevin is. It doesn't seem like Kahn was too interested in that."
