Earlier this week, the Memphis Grizzlies front office went through an upheaval when their CEO and assistant general manager abruptly left the team. There have been reports owner Robert Pera has been very hands-on with the team, including promising playing time to certain players earlier in the season. So it’s no surprise Grizzlies head coach Dave Joerger is looking elsewhere for a new job. He has made significant progress with the Minnesota Timberwolves this week.
According to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports, Joerger met with ‘Wolves general manager Flip Saunders on Thursday and is scheduled to speak with owner Glen Taylor next. Wojnarowski also added:
The Grizzlies are likely to ask for a second-round pick in exchange for letting Joerger out of his contract to coach the Timberwolves, league sources told Yahoo Sports.
After a Grizzlies front-office purge, owner Robert Pera gave Minnesota permission to discuss its coaching vacancy with Joerger. He has history with Saunders, who has been a long-time admirer of Joerger’s climb through the minor leagues to the NBA.
If Joerger leaves for Minnesota, the Grizzlies will have lost their last two head coaches in back-to-back seasons despite both of them winning 50 or more games and making it to the playoffs. That does not speak well for the team’s front office, and will not make Memphis an attractive destination for any head coach in the league.
For a good summary of what a mess it has been for the Grizzlies this week, take a listen to this radio interview conducted by Chris Vernon of ESPN with interim general manager Chris Wallace. Vernon tries repeatedly to get Wallace to admit the entire situation is a dumpster fire, while Wallace just backtracks. It’s hilarity, it’s madness, it’s what’s happening in Memphis right now.
What do you think?
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