IFWT_Tom Thibodeau

Tom Thibodeau is reportedly finalizing a five-year deal in the range of $10 million annually, to become the president of basketball operations and head coach of the Minnesota Timberwolves.

According to The Vertical, San Antonio Spurs assistant general manager Scott Layden is working on a deal to join Thibodeau as GM of the Timberwolves.

Thibodeau emerged as the frontrunner for the coaching position as ESPN analyst and former Knicks coach Jeff Van Gundy and former Warriors coach Mark Jackson were announced as candidates.

Minnesota chose not to retain interim coach Sam Mitchell, who filled in this past season after the death of Flip Saunders in October.

Known as a defense-first coach, Thibodeau’s last position was as head coach of the Chicago Bulls.  They won 62 games and went to the Eastern Conference Finals in his first season, and went to the playoffs each season after but never made it to the NBA Finals.  Thibodeau was fired after issues with the front office and the Bulls did not make it to the playoffs this year.

With the Timberwolves, he’ll be coaching a promising young core of No. 1 draft picks Andrew Wiggins and Karl Anthony-Towns, as well as two-time slam dunk champion Zach LaVine.

Shay Marie: Twitter || Instagram