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Well, that sort of came out of nowhere. Per Shams Charania and Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic, the Timberwolves and former President of Basketball Operations Gersson Rosas are parting ways.
Just in: The Minnesota Timberwolves are parting ways with president of basketball operations Gersson Rosas, sources tell me and @JonKrawczynski.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) September 22, 2021
So... there’s a lot to cover here over the next few days, but basically, it sounds like while this came out of nowhere to the public, things may have been brewing for a while behind the scenes.
For quite some time now there has been dissension in the Timberwolves front office and organization, sources say.
— Dane Moore (@DaneMooreNBA) September 22, 2021
Moving on from Gersson Rosas is not an out of the blue development. In a critical year, with new ownership, the Wolves decided to act now rather than delay.
I suppose it is fine to act now rather than delay the inevitable, but the timing is nothing short of shocking. Rosas literally just handled the draft, free agency, and multiple trades over the off-season. Acting now didn’t really change anything as it pertains to the 2021-22 Timberwolves, unless ownership feels as though someone else is better equipped to handle the Ben Simmons negotiations.
And that’s the real point that sticks out, to me at least. I find it quite a coincidence that this came shortly after Marc Lore and Alex Rodriguez have become more involved with the team. This is their opportunity to get their guy in, and a few names have already emerged.
In wake of Gersson Rosas' departure, word has circulated among league sources since Summer League that incoming Minnesota Timberwolves owners Marc Lore and Alex Rodriguez have communicated they are fond of Sixers general manager Elton Brand. A name to keep an eye on here.
— Jake Fischer (@JakeLFischer) September 22, 2021
Word has been out there for many months that Alex Rodriguez + Marc Lore want to hire a “top 5” executive to run basketball operations. The problem was availability.
— Dane Moore (@DaneMooreNBA) September 22, 2021
Around the NBA, Current Wolves executive Sachin Gupta is regarded as one of the most attractive available options https://t.co/xYzbVs3Fyd
My real high-level, instant reaction analysis here is that if these are the options, I would hope for Sachin Gupta to get the job. It’s nothing personal, but I think Elton Brand has shown that he is not a high-quality executive.
Lastly, and because it’s the Timberwolves, it seems they may have skipped one pretty important step in this process, such as keeping their franchise superstar in the loop.
wtf…
— Karl-Anthony Towns (@KarlTowns) September 22, 2021
We knew Marc Lore and A-Rod would make mistakes as they learn how the ropes. That was to be expected and they deserve some slack, but potentially alienating Karl-Anthony Towns just days before Media Day is certainly a choice.
Ultimately, if the Wolves get the right guy in place, all is forgiven and this will be nothing but a minor speed bump at the early stages of new ownership’s tenure. They just absolutely have to get it right.
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