MINNEAPOLIS — The Minnesota Timberwolves have named Flip Saunders as the team’s new president of basketball operations.
The team announced the hire on Friday. Saunders is also getting a small piece of the ownership pie as part of the deal he signed to replace David Kahn.
It’s a welcome back for Saunders, who coached the Timberwolves from 1995-2005. He’s the only head coach to lead the Timberwolves to the playoffs since the franchise’s inception in 1989. The Wolves made eight straight playoff appearances under Saunders, including a run to the Western Conference finals in 2004.
Saunders was fired the following season, but remained in close contact with Wolves owner Glen Taylor even as he took head coaching jobs in Detroit and Washington. He spent this season as an analyst for ESPN.