Head coaches in the NBA often have a shelf life. There aren’t many examples like Erik Spoelstra with the Miami Heat and Gregg Popovich with the San Antonio Spurs.
Chris Finch joined the Minnesota Timberwolves midway through the 2020–21 season. Preparing for his sixth full year with the club, he is currently the fifth-most tenured head coach in the league.
With Minnesota taking a step back last season and the Timberwolves switching up their roster in hopes of becoming a more serious contender, there is some pressure on Finch to make it work.
Season of mass importance for Finch and the Wolves
By all measures, Finch is either the best or second-best head coach in franchise history, depending on whether you would rank him above Flip Saunders. Regardless, if the Wolves don’t have a better season in 2026–27, he could become a candidate to be let go.
The Timberwolves took the San Antonio Spurs to six games in the conference semifinals—the Western Conference team that reached the NBA Finals—but they lost the last two games of that series by a combined 59 points.
Tim Connelly doesn’t change up a roster that has won five playoff series in the last three years without believing it has the potential to take the team to its ultimate goal. It’s a change in play style when a team brings in LaMelo Ball while moving on from both Julius Randle and Naz Reid. They also filled an obvious need at power forward by signing Jonathan Kuminga to start.
Finch and Tom Thibodeau have a connection. Thibodeau is also a clear example of a head coach who can have a lot of success with a team but still be let go. Minnesota also saw how New York’s new head coach, Mike Brown, took the Knicks to the ultimate prize—a risky coaching change paid off.
Other teams certainly took notice of what happened with the Knicks. Sure, a team can be very good, but perhaps it needs that kick in the pants to get to the next level, and that could come from a new voice in the locker room.
It probably wouldn’t be fair if Finch were to be let go, but that’s the NBA business.
There were some fans who thought the team should move on from Finch after last season. The Timberwolves made win-now moves this offseason, and if it doesn’t work out, it’s usually the head coach who pays the price.
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