For the first time in forever, things seemed to be going well for the Minnesota Timberwolves. They doubled their win total from a year ago, pushed the favored Memphis Grizzlies in a six-game playoff series and, perhaps most importantly, seemed to have achieved some level of organizational harmony in the front office, coaching staff and locker room that has been elusive since Flip Saunders passed away in 2015.
In so many ways, there was a strong argument to stay the course, to be encouraged by the steps taken in 2021-22, to lean on stability and continuity to help build on them next season. It is not often comfortable in these parts. But it felt comfortable this season.
Instead, Marc Lore and Alex Rodriguez eschewed comfort for ambition. Rather than keeping things intact, Lore and Rodriguez pushed forward with an aggressive plan to recruit an experienced, respected new voice to lead the front office. They were transparent in their belief that hiring a “top five” executive was at the core of their plan to remake the Timberwolves, and that transparency hovered over the existing staff as the season came to a close. In recruiting, and landing, former Denver Nuggets President Tim Connelly, Lore and Rodriguez showed that they are willing to make things uncomfortable in pursuit of their vision for the franchise.
For most of their first year in Minnesota, Lore and Rodriguez made their presence felt on the sideline at games and laid the groundwork for the future look and feel of the Timberwolves once they take over from Glen Taylor. But the move to go get Connelly, and spare no expense to do it, was the most emphatic sign yet of their vision for the franchise under their stewardship.
Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations Sachin Gupta did a superb job steadying a shaky front office in the wake of Gersson Rosas’s abrupt firing, forming a tight working relationship with coach Chris Finch. While he did not make any signature moves at the 2022 trade deadline, he had support internally to get the job full time. Few would have questioned ownership had they decided to stay the course going into next season.
Lore and Rodriguez made it clear to Taylor they wanted a bigger name in that top spot. Taylor empowered them to go out and find one, and then signed off on the move after meeting Connelly and his family on Saturday.
There were bread crumbs being laid throughout the season to foreshadow the eventual arrival of a new day in Minnesota. Lore and Rodriguez played a major role in the decision to fire Rosas just days before training camp, amid turmoil in the front office. The addition of Marquise Watts from Klutch Sports Group as Chief Experience Officer, a new position created by Lore and Rodriguez to help the franchise better care for its players and their families, was driven by the two new minority owners.
In another move not connected to basketball operations, play-by-play announcer Dave Benz did not have his contract renewed for next season. It was a joint decision by Bally Sports North and the Timberwolves, but one that was, on a smaller scale, comparable to their decision to hire Connelly over Gupta. Benz and Jim Petersen formed a highly respected pairing for 10 years, and fans responded forcefully to the news that he was not returning. But the Wolves believe they are entering a new era of sustained competitiveness, and now there will be a search for a new voice to narrate the next phase.
Connelly is now the voice for the front office, armed with a five-year deal and the belief from ownership that he will help this team take the next steps up the ladder in the Western Conference. He is a laid-back personality with a knack for identifying talent in the draft, but he also serves as the embodiment of the bold new approach the team is taking with Lore and Rodriguez in the fold.
It is a new day in Minnesota. The Timberwolves lured a top executive away from a division rival with a two-time MVP that will be among the favorites to come out of the West next season if everyone is healthy. Their decision to pursue Connelly does not guarantee success, but it does send a signal to the rest of the league that a franchise that has rarely been a threat on the national scene is operating at a different frequency. It is now a team that needs to be taken seriously.
Some other takeaways from a monumental move:
Gupta’s standing
The announcement of Connelly’s hire featured a notable, clear statement from the team. “Connelly will work closely with Timberwolves executive vice president of basketball operations Sachin Gupta, as well as head coach Chris Finch, whom Connelly worked with in Denver during the 2016-17 season,” it read.
Finch signed a contract extension just before the playoffs began, so that much was never in doubt. Gupta, on the other hand, was in the running for the top job and certainly wanted it. Gupta has not commented since the news became official on Monday, but to be passed over must have been a disappointment. But the inclusion of the language in the statement indicates that Connelly approves of Gupta staying and that Gupta wants to stay as well.
Sources say that Wolves ownership remains very fond of Gupta and see him as part of the team’s long-term vision. They envision Connelly and Gupta having complementary skill sets. Connelly’s background is in scouting, which is how he came up the ranks in Washington and New Orleans before landing the top job in Denver. Gupta’s background is in analytics, and one of his accomplishments over the last year has been working to build out that wing of the front office. He has hired John Sears as vice president of basketball analytics and Madeline Schemel as a quantitative analyst to beef up a department that also includes Director of Basketball Analytics Aaron Blackshear.
Connelly is expected to make some hires of his own, but he also has a reputation for connecting with people. His conversations with Taylor at his home in Mankato included an expressed willingness to work with people already under contract, most notably with Gupta. Wolves ownership believes that there are no redundancies between Connelly and Gupta and both have the kind of low-key personalities that can make for a strong pairing. But they have never worked together before, so their relationship will be starting from scratch.
Connelly is the seventh lead executive in Minnesota since 2015. Finch is the fifth head coach. They are both under contract long term and Gupta gives them one of the most well-qualified supporting front office members in their franchise’s history. They had hope of stability before, but Thibodeau lasted only two and a half years and Rosas didn’t didn’t make it to his third season. Rosas also started with Ryan Saunders as coach, a situation that had a temporary feel.
Going back even further, David Kahn and Kurt Rambis were up against the wall after just one season. By the time Rick Adelman came along to coach the team, it was clear Kahn’s days were numbered. When Flip returned to the front office, Adelman was on his way to retirement, and Flip installed himself as coach in a model he acknowledged was only meant to be short term.
Now the Timberwolves have another chance, and maybe the most hope for sustainable leadership since Kevin McHale and Flip were paired together from 1995 to 2005.
Connelly’s experience
One reason that Connelly appears to be a good match for Minnesota is the previous stop where he enjoyed success. The similarities between Denver and Minnesota, as cities and as basketball markets, are numerous.
Like Minnesota, Denver has never been a glamour destination for free agents and needed to rely heavily on drafting and developing. Connelly built the Nuggets into a team that has made the playoffs in each of the last four seasons, advancing out of the first round in three of them, through a series of shrewd drafts that included Nikola Jokic, Jamal Murray, Michael Porter Jr., Monte Morris and Bones Hyland. He also drafted Gary Harris and R.J. Hampton, who were used to acquire Aaron Gordon in a trade, not to mention getting current Timberwolves Malik Beasley outside the lottery and Jarred Vanderbilt in the second round.
The Timberwolves face similar challenges to the Nuggets. Like Denver, Minnesota is a mid-size media market without a beach or a major city to attract free agents. Depending on the Timberwolves’ contract management, they could be in position to have major cap room next summer. But the best chance for continuing the success the team had this season is through draft picks and trades.
Connelly has the No. 19 pick in the first round and three second-round picks in next month’s draft at his disposal to acquire players or make trades, which is a good start. He is not taking over the Los Angeles Lakers or the New York Knicks, teams in glitzy markets that enter the fray for massive free agents almost every summer. Not only has he done the general manager job for nine years, but he has done it for a franchise remarkably similar to the one he comes to now.
The difference is that Connelly now has an ownership group that appears to be determined to invest to help overcome those built-in challenges. That makes it easy to see why Connelly was so appealing to the Wolves beyond just his resume.
The ownership situation
Ever since Lore and Rodriguez joined the Timberwolves ownership group last year, there has been persistent intrigue about the arrangement. The two friends didn’t take control immediately, buying in at 20 percent with a plan to acquire 60 percent by the end of 2023. There were several reasons for the structure, including that Taylor wasn’t quite ready to give up full control just yet. He has long sought to bring in a person or people to ride shotgun with him, learn from him and ease into the big chair.
For years, Taylor found that difficult. Anyone who started negotiations with him was eager to take the wheel right away. You buy the car, you want to drive it. But Lore and Rodriguez were amenable to the deal. It allowed them to learn a league they only really knew from watching on television, have Taylor introduce them to important stakeholders and get all of their financial ducks in a row to buy the team valued at $1.5 billion.
People around the league looked at it quizzically and have wondered if the two have the money to make it work. The whole way through, both Lore and Rodriguez have been steadfast in their position that they will have no issues completing the transaction.
But Taylor’s willingness to sign off on this big, expensive maneuver is the biggest reason yet why it looks like everything is on track for Lore and Rodriguez to eventually take over the team outright. Taylor has proven a willingness to invest in big moves in the past, including building a new practice facility right downtown, hiring Thibodeau to a big-money deal and giving Flip Saunders a small slice of ownership to come back as an executive.
But this time, Taylor gave Lore and Rodriguez the green light to go out and identify a full-time replacement for Rosas. Taylor was the one who asked permission from the Nuggets to interview Connelly. Taylor allowed Lore and Rodriguez to design an offer that would be very difficult for the historically frugal Nuggets to match, including the kicker for team equity.
Taylor enjoys working with Lore and Rodriguez. Their ambition and energy, he has said, remind of him of himself in his younger days. If he had any doubts about their ability to complete the transaction, Taylor either would have nixed the spending spree or played a more direct role in the identification and negotiation of the man they were hiring.
Instead, he greenlit a Lore/A-Rod production. He wants them to be comfortable with the people in place so the transition goes as smoothly as possible. After watching this process play out, that transaction seems more inevitable than ever.
(Photo: Garrett Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images)
