Subject :Minneapolis, MN (SportsNetwork. Jason Spezza Senators Jersey .com) - The Minnesota Timberwolves offi
Minneapolis, MN (SportsNetwork. Jason Spezza Senators Jersey .com) - The Minnesota Timberwolves officially named Flip Saunders as the franchises new head coach on Friday. Saunders served as the Timberwolves bench boss for parts of 10 seasons from 1995-2005 and oversaw the most successful era of the franchises history, highlighted by trip to the Western Conference finals following a franchise- best 58-24 regular-season record in 2003-04. "After an exhaustive process and several thorough discussions with Flip, we came to the conclusion that he was the stabilizing force needed to lead our team," Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor said in a statement. "Flip led us to our most successful seasons; he knows what it takes to win in the NBA as his track record speaks for itself." After struggling to a 25-26 record to start the 2004-05 season, the Timberwolves decided to dismiss Saunders, who returned to the organization in May 2013 as president of basketball operations. He also took a minority ownership stake in the team. "In talking to Glen, we came to the decision that this outcome would be the best for our franchise," said Saunders, who will continue to serve as the teams president of basketball operations. "I will work tirelessly to bring back the success our franchise experienced in the late 90s to early 2000s. To that end, I will assemble a diverse, experienced coaching staff that will bring out the best in our players." Saunders also spent time as head coach of the Detroit Pistons and Washington Wizards before his return to the Twin Cities. He has a record of 638-526 in parts of 16 seasons, including 411-326 with the Wolves. He replaces the retired Rick Adelman, who spent three seasons with the Wolves and 23 years as a head coach in the NBA. Adelman guided Minnesota to a record of 97-133, including 40-42 this past season. The Wolves missed the playoffs for the 10th straight year, but the 40 wins were the clubs most since a 44-38 mark in 2004-05. Craig Anderson Jersey . The club says its first-choice centre back "underwent medical tests on Wednesday morning" which confirmed he has injured his right hamstring. The injury was caused in the second minute of Tuesdays 4-1 league win over Real Sociedad in the Camp Nou when teammate Sergio Busquets accidentally struck Mascherano just above the knee with an outstretched boot. Colin White Jersey . Sharper briefly appeared in Los Angeles Superior Court, where his arraignment was postponed until Feb. 20 at the request of his lawyers. They issued a statement saying he would be exonerated. Prosecutors then filed a motion to increase Sharpers bail to $10 million and outlined details of investigations involving him in Las Vegas, Tempe, Ariz.AUBURN HILLS, Mich. -- The Detroit Pistons are building their franchise around a talented frontcourt. On Tuesday night, the Minnesota Timberwolves gave them some tips on how thats done. Kevin Love had 26 points and 16 rebounds, while Corey Brewer and Nikola Pekovic combined for 29 points as the Timberwolves routed the Pistons 121-94. The Timberwolves didnt dominate inside, matching Detroits 44 points in the paint, but the Pistons struggle to win games if they dont have a major advantage in the post. "We were trying to make them take outside shots," Timberwolves coach Rick Adelman said. "They made a lot in the first quarter, but our whole point is transition defence, getting back and trying not to give them anything near the basket." As it often does, forcing the Pistons to shoot jumpers turned their offence into chaos. Detroit hit just 38 per cent of its outside shots, and 29 per cent from 3-point range. In the meantime, the Timberwolves were shooting almost 50 per cent from 3-point range and took 33 free throws to Detroits 16. "They are such a hard team to defend, because they can score in so many ways," Pistons coach Maurice Cheeks said. "Once they get scoring, they almost never stop, so you have to keep scoring with them. We had a couple stretches where we either turned the ball over or missed a few shots in a row, and that let them get away from us." Love only played 30 minutes, sitting out the fourth quarter with the big lead. Detroit was unable to stop him inside, outside or on the break. Several of his seven assists came on his trademark 70-foot outlet passes off missed shots. "Hes a unique player, because he can sit down on the block and score against you, and then he can step out and hit 3-pointers," Cheeks said. "On the other end, hes grabbing rebounds and hitting those passes over the top on the break. He hit a few of those against us, and thats an easy basket." Love missed Minnesotas loss to Miami on Dec. 7 to attend the funeral of his grandmother. He had "RIP Grandma Carol" written on his shoes Tuesday, and said he was playing with a little extra incentive. "Shes supported me since I was a baby, so I wanted to make sure and do something special for her tonight," he said. Kevin Martin added 18 points for Minnesota, which finished with six players in double figures. "We did a great job of pushing thhe ball," Minnesota guard Ricky Rubio said. Custom Senators Jersey. "We had fun out there, and we were aggressive. That got us to the line, and then Kevin (Love) just does everything for us." Brandon Jennings had 20 points for Detroit, but Greg Monroe and Andre Drummond were held to a combined total of 18 points and 10 rebounds. "They had won four of their last five games, so we knew we had to jump on them early and not let up," Love said. "We had a big run and then kept the game in double digits. That really shows our leadership and maturity throughout our lineup." The Pistons have relied heavily on their frontcourt this season, but didnt have the advantage in that matchup against Minnesota. Love, Nikola and Brewer had 37 points in the first half, seven more than Detroits Drummond, Josh Smith and Monroe. The Timberwolves had a 28-26 edge on points in the paint, usually Detroits biggest strength, and made 17 free throws to just one for Detroit. "Im not going to complain about the free throws, because thats part of the game," Cheeks said. "They were more aggressive than we were, so they got to the line." That was good enough to give the Timberwolves a 64-51 halftime lead, even though both teams had shot just over 52 per cent from the field. Detroit trailed by as many as 17 points in the third, but going to a zone defence helped them cut the margin to 86-75 late in the quarter. Martin hit two 3-pointers to make it a 17-point lead, and Minnesota was up 96-77 going into the fourth quarter. With a fourth game in five nights coming Wednesday in New Orleans, Cheeks conceded early in the final quarter, emptying his bench as Detroit fell farther behind. "We have to forget this and get ready to play tomorrow," rookie Kentavious Caldwell-Pope said. "They just spread us on defence by hitting 3s, and then they threw the ball inside for easy baskets. Its tough to stop that." NOTES: Due to injuries, the game was Loves first at the Palace since the 2010-11 season. ... Chauncey Billups of the Pistons played for the first time since Nov. 12. He had missed 14 games with knee tendinitis. He played 17 minutes and despite obvious rust on his jumper, finished with seven points and five assists. ... Caldwell-Pope finished with a career-high 16 points, while fellow rookie Tony Mitchell hit the first 3-pointer of his career at the final horn. 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