Dave Joerger, Timberwolves owner to discuss coaching vacancy, per report
Minnesota’s courting of the Grizzlies’ head coach continues with news that ownership is getting involved.
After interviewing with team president Flip Saunders on Thursday, a meeting with owner Glen Taylor could be the final hurdle between Dave Joerger and the Minnesota Timberwolves' head coaching vacancy, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports.
The Grizzlies would still need to sign off on the completed move, but will reportedly ask for just a second-round pick in exchange for letting Joerger out of his contract. The deal would be similar to last summer's trade of Doc Rivers to Los Angeles, which sent a 2015 first-round pick to Boston for the coach's services.
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In his first year as an NBA coach, Joerger led Memphis to 50 wins and the No. 8 seed in the Western Conference. In the first round of the playoffs, the Grizzlies took heavily-favored Oklahoma City to seven games, continuing a trend of strong play that began during the team’s dominant second half.
However, that didn’t stop Memphis from granting Joerger permission to interview once the Timberwolves came calling. According to Wojnarowski, Saunders “has been a long-time admirer of Joerger’s climb through the minor leagues to the NBA.”
Other teams haven't been so lucky, as Wojarowski adds that Memphis has "shown a reluctance to allow other teams to discuss their openings with Joerger." He also says that the Timberwolves have already interviewed Sam Mitchell, and Taylor has been an advocate of the former Raptors coach.
So Joerger will have to convince Taylor he’s right for the job, otherwise it’s likely he ends up back in Memphis next season. Given that both teams hang in the West’s middle tier, this may just come down to which team feels like a better fit.
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