In Wake of Flip Saunders' Death, Timberwolves Vow 'To Keep Going for Him'
LOS ANGELES — On just his second night in Minneapolis, after the Minnesota Timberwolves selected him with the 13th overall pick in the 2014 NBA draft, Zach LaVine quickly realized how lucky he was to have Flip Saunders in his life. Surrounded by family, the sparkling shooting guard and his new head coach were sharing a Silver Butter Knife Steak at Murray's Steakhouse when Saunders removed a piece of paper from his pocket.
"It said my name on it," LaVine said. "He said, 'I was going with you all the way. You had a great workout for us, and I respect your work ethic and your confidence, and I feel you're going to be a home run. I see superstar potential in you. We're going to make you a great player.' It was really cool to see someone have that much confidence in me."
The memories from that night are endless. "He did a couple magic tricks," LaVine laughed. "He pulled a coin from behind my ear. I didn't know how it happened. I still have that coin, too. It's in my drawer right now. I'm going to have to go home and put that somewhere safe. It's a memento for me."
Days before his Minnesota Timberwolves traveled to Southern California for their regular-season opener against the Los Angeles Lakers, Saunders died of Hodgkin lymphoma. He served as Minnesota's coach, president and part-owner, an architect whose strategic mind for the game was second to none.
To honor Saunders, who coached over 1,300 NBA games for three teams over the past two decades, Minnesota's players will have a commemorative patch on their jerseys starting Nov. 2. They'll also wear a special warm-up shirt through November, with "Flip" stitched over the heart side.
Heading into the regular season, everyone associated with the team Saunders built is in a personal stage of the grieving process. "Everybody deals with pain their own way," Timberwolves head coach Sam Mitchell said. "But for right now we need to talk about basketball."
Everyone in the organization will have Saunders on his or her mind for a very long time. Some are focused on playing the game they love, hoping the court will serve as a refuge—an escape for them to get away from the tragedy and misfortune.
Several players, including Timberwolves starting point guard Ricky Rubio, are trying to harness the pain by leaving all they can on the floor in his honor.
"It's something that's on our minds, but once you're out there, you just play basketball," Rubio said. "I hope it doesn't affect [my game], but of course I'm going to miss him and I think he's going to give us the strength to keep pushing. ... It's been tough. I hope he gives us the strength to play through the whole season with a purpose."
At Wednesday's shootaround, players young and old reflected on their personal memories of Saunders, what type of man and coach he was to them on and off the court.
Tayshaun Prince—who played for Saunders from 2005 to 2008 as a member of the Detroit Pistons before the two reunited over the summer—remembers how open and honest he was, and how Saunders flipped the traditional coach-player paradigm.
"A lot of times, Coach would say, 'If there's anything you need, let me know. If there are things going on off the court, on the court, whatever the case may be, come into my office and we can talk.' Those words truly are a testament to what he's about," Prince said. "Anything you had to talk about—on the court, off the court—you felt like he was more than just a coach."
But even youngsters who never got to play a minute for Saunders already have an immense appreciation for who he was. Karl-Anthony Towns will forever be grateful to the man who made him a first overall pick.
"It meant a lot for him to have the confidence to take me at No. 1, and just to have that sense of belief that I could be something special," Towns said. "A lot of times in this world it's hard to find trust, and he found enough trust in me to take me with one of the biggest decisions the organization has ever made, and he always treated me with love and respect."
Towns still remembers the advice Saunders gave him during the draft process.
"[He told me] he wanted a player who could win and bring a passion to the game and this organization," the 19-year-old remembered. "Just, someone who was willing to go out there every day and not worry about their individual self but the team. I just carry that with myself, and I'm very blessed that he had the confidence and ability and belief in me to be that team player that we needed."
The Timberwolves are in an interesting place right now, attempting to balance the development of their young superheroes with success on the court. Veterans such as Andre Miller, Kevin Garnett, Prince and Kevin Martin are on this roster to win, but beside them are inexperienced first- or second-year talents such as Towns, Andrew Wiggins, Tyus Jones, Shabazz Muhammad, Adreian Payne and LaVine.
Minnesota has a somewhat unconventional look, but its future is promising. And it's an absolute shame that Saunders—basketball savant, magician, all-around wonderful human being—didn't get to watch it all come together.
"Everybody here is because of Flip," LaVine said. "He had his hands in everybody that came here. He saw a vision in each and every person. It's just, you've got to keep on that legacy, and what happened is so tragic, but we've got to keep going for him."
All quotes in this article were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted.
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