The Herd with Colin Cowherd - #thisleague UNCUT: Chris Finch, Timberwolves head coach!

Episode Date: February 18, 2024

Western Conference All-Star coach Chris Finch joins Chris Haynes and Marc Stein for a wide-ranging discussion about the Timberwolves’ West-leading start and his unique path into NBA coaching in a live podcast appearance from the NBA Crossover Conversations stage at All-Star Weekend In Indianapolis.   #fsr #douggottliebshow #dpshow #herdSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed Human. Another podcast from some SNL, late-night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer, Streeter Seidel, help an a cappella band with their between songs banter.

Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and friends on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal, but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque.

Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the IHeart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Welcome to This League Uncutt.

In the world of 24-hour NBA news, this news you lose. Chris Haynes, it's go time. Mark Stein, it's showtime. Boonsacalaka. This league Uncut is underway and on fire. This should be a good one. everybody welcome in to a live edition of the This League Uncut podcast. I'm Mark Stein, on the end, of course, Turner Sports, Chris Haynes.

We host the This League Uncut podcast twice a week, but we don't get to do it like this too often. Live at All-Star weekend here in Indianapolis on the NBA crossover stage. and we have a guest of honor in about seven, eight hours. He'll be coaching the Western Conference All-Stars from the Minnesota Timberwolves Coach Chris Finch. Good morning, sir. Good morning. Thanks for having me on.

Oh, that's a standing ovation right there. Minnesota 39 and 16, number one seed in the West. You were an eighth seed last season. You're coaching the Western Conference All-Stars. I'm guessing this is just how you drew it up back in October when you guys were in training camp and planning this season out. Well, not exactly. We thought we'd be a lot better than last year. We figured we could really make a push to have a home court playoff spot. And, you know, at the end of the day, hopefully that's where it continues to shake out. But we had a really, really good start of the season. I think we jumped out 17 and 4.

Played pretty good basketball since then, too, to keep our nose in front. But the guys have been great. They've been locked in. Defense has been the key. They really enjoy playing with each other. We've got good depth, great flexibility. You know, we have been relatively healthy. You know, last year we were not.

So all the things point in the right direction. And then most importantly, you know, when you make the type of deal we made last year to bring in Rudy, like these things just take time. They just do. I mean, it's just set at time and again. You know, LeBron goes to Miami. takes them a year, you know, to figure it out. There's a lot of things that you've got to learn about each other.

A lot of roles have to adjust. And our guys have done that. And we've seen that kind of coming slowly. And then like anything else, it's kind of all comes together at one time. When and where in your career was the last time you coached an All-Star game? I, G-League. Coach the G-League All-Star team my first year.

I think that would have been 2010, maybe. It was in Dallas. Remember they had the snowstorm? By the way, the G-League All-Star game might be the best game here all weekend because they all play because they're all being scouted by the front offices who stopped by. And it might be the most competitive game of the entire weekend. And we only had one day of snow here in Indianapolis, but Dallas was nonstop snow and hard for people to get to.

Yeah, I kind of messed up the whole weekend. I coached in the game, but I don't think I left the hotel. bar the rest of the weekend. Now, we're having a good time here in Indianapolis. This is not quite the worst All-Star weekend for me was Toronto. 2000. What year was that, Stein? 2016.

What did the temperature get? I don't know what the number was, but it was way colder than this. Yeah, we didn't step outside, not once. Fitch, I have to hit you with the hard-hidden question right now. I was at that All-Star game, too, worked on behalf of the NBA with basketball down borders. And I can remember the lake freezing. You could see the lake freezing like in 100 yards segments almost in front of our eyes. Usually all-star weekend myself. I like to hit up all the shoe events, all the parties. And what else? You know, just all the brunches that's

going on didn't hit not one of them up that weekend. It was that serious. But Fitch, you're not getting it out of this question. All right. Hard hitting question right here. With LeBron James not showing up the practice yesterday, are you bringing him off the bench tonight? No, but I'm trying to keep my job. So, yeah. I was, we were talking a little bit before, before we start recording. Like, I would think for most coaches, like, once you get that NBA head coaching job, that, you know, on the bucket list is to, you know, coach an all-star game at one point because that means your team is having success and has the best record leading up to the all-star break. But I would imagine, like, after you get won, as you've seen with the commitments you've prepared.

you probably have. After you get one, you probably want your all-star break to yourself after that. Like, what's been the experience like for you? It's been a great experience. I mean, it's a lot of really kind of cool individual experiences come up

and just being able to bring, you know, friends, family, you know, close ones into the event. And they all get a special experience too. And then there's a lot of waiting in between, you know, the next things that happen. But it, I've enjoyed, the downtown. You know, I took a nap yesterday. I never do that. Slep in for a while today. I never do that. The mental break is from the grind of the season is just as important as the physical.

You know, a lot of people would like to get, get away, go to the beach, go wherever they go. You know, I think we get in trouble and these, if we take these things for granted, you know, and I think we get in trouble if we, you know, if we don't really try to enjoy them. So next year, we're assured that we can't be here regardless, but, you know, as long, The great thing about being here is it means your team's playing really, really well, and that's most important. You made a bit of a Twitter splash yesterday with your reaction to Anthony Edwards, lefty threes in practice.

They did not go well in the skills competition. What are the chances that you're going to let him hoist a lefty three tonight in this game? Can you stop him if he said he's shooting lefty all game? Yeah, we're going to have a conversation about that. I think in the spirit of heightening the competition around the game, which I know the league is really pushing everyone to do, we need to get him to shoot right-handed. But he is a left-handed play.

He likes to attack left-handed. He likes to finish left-handed. He might be, you know, even unbeknownst to him left-handed. He shoots it pretty well left-handed, and he's been pushing me to want to shoot one in a game, a real game. A real game. Yeah. And so I said, okay, if you make three hours,

of five, you know, you can do that. And he made four out of five. But you know, Anthony's got an incredible amount of confidence, thinks he can do whatever he puts his mind to. And most of the times you can. Well, when you think about Anthony Edwards, we were talking about him, potentially shoot left-handed jump shots.

Let's talk about the competition level of the All-Star game. Like, do you feel an obligation to get the guys to play harder? What has been the message for you with the team going into this game? Yeah, I do feel. feel an obligation that we put on the most competitive show we can. I know the league is really pushing the players and we had a meeting with the league a week or so ago where they went through some of the points of emphasis of the weekend and that was certainly won. It was like kind of bringing the competition back. I think one of the reasons they went back to East West is that hopefully

it would infuse some natural rivalry between the game within the game between the players. But at the end of the day, it's going to come down to the player's willingness to do it. Traditionally, when we were growing up, you know, these games would kind of grow into a competitive competition. Fourth quarters would probably be, you know, more like a regular NBA game. So, yeah, I think there's a little bit of anxiety about how this is going to go tonight. I think if people would be honest with themselves. But I'm hopeful that the guys, you know, bring it and compete.

What realistically as a coach can you say? to these guys in terms of defense, what kind of defensive messaging, will there be pregame or during a timeout? What do you think you can really tell them? I mean, you just, you're going to, you can tell them to try to play some defense. You know, it's, I mean, it's not going to be scheme-based. You know, we're not going to be out there with any kind of great philosophy. It just comes down to a level of individual competitiveness. You know, you don't want it to get to the point where it's, it's too cool to play defense, you know, where everything's too cool. You don't want to try people feel like it's, you know, it's not cool to try hard.

And I don't think that looks good or feels good for anybody. I'm sure in the beginning, there'll be a lot of like feeling it out tonight. And then somebody's going to have to set the tone. You know, so the players are going to have to go out and set the tone offensively and defensively, and that'll wake up the rest of the troops, I'm sure. defense has been such a big part of your success with the wolves this season. I'm sure you're thrilled to have two of your own players on the Western Conference All-Stars, but Rudy Gobert is not here.

I thought Rudy Gobert should have been an all-star. How hard do you think he's taking it that he did not get selected? Because you guys have the number 1D in the league, top-ranked defense, and he's obviously a huge part of that. Yeah, we thought he was deserving of an All-Star nomination for sure. he was disappointed. We were disappointed for him. But in true Rudy style, you know, he's used it as great motivation. He's played some of his best basketball ever in the last several weeks since being snubbed, so to speak. So for us, you know, we're kind of happy that he's, he's on a

beach somewhere just relaxing and seething somewhere. Seathing and relaxing, fueling up for what's going to be a heck of a stretch run. I know he's got his, you know, his sights set on bigger and better things for him and us. And that's what's most important. Coach, I've heard in other years prior, I don't know if this happened to you, but I'll ask. But there have been times where other coaches

where they have their players participate in the All-Star games, they'll actually contact the coach that's coaching that game and tell them, hey, don't play my guy too. To me, to me. Like, leave my low. Has any coaches contacted you about playing time?

That has not happened. Okay. But the players have been, pretty, you know, pretty open and about what they want to do. You know, we kind of checked in. You know, how are you feeling? You know, what's your body like? Where are you at?

You know, and so they've given us a gauge of where they think that they'd like to play. Who wants to play the most? Oh, no. These are private conversations. You'll know in a few hours. Yeah. You'll know in a few hours. What if he played LeBron like 40 minutes today?

How would Darvaham feel? I think LeBron's going to tell me what, how much he wants to play. Probably right there. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all,

embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hard radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what I'm saying.

Yep, that's me, Clifford Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined. And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show.

This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. One week, I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment, and the next we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music. The Clifford Show isn't just a podcast, it's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger. So, if you've ever supported me, or you're just chasing down a dream,

this is right where you need to be. Listen to the Cliverts Show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. I'd like to go back many, many years because I was fortunate to meet you.

I think it's almost 25 years ago now. You were coaching the Sheffield Sharks in England after playing for the Sheffield Sharks. Nick Nurse was coaching the Manchester Giants. I love to tell people that I discovered the both of you, but that's really kind of an exaggeration. Our mutual friend, Ian Whittle, a journalist in England at the time, he was really the only journalist in England, or pretty much the only journalist who was covering basketball, and he introduced me to both you guys.

Now, and I didn't ask too many questions because I was just getting to meet the both of you, but had I really put the full court press on you back in 1999, what would you have said was your vision for your career? What were you hoping to accomplish at that point? Well, I think, you know, I just thought I'd come back and be coaching in college, probably in small colleges. You know, that's always been my background. We grew up in a small college environment. I didn't have a big network, certainly in Division I, I didn't have any real network into the NBA.

At that point in time, I mean, I was just focused on. I was so young then, probably around, you know, around about 30, the beginning of my career, just trying to, you know, win. the British Basketball League every single season and then go from there. And that's really it. I did have a few kind of things happen in my career, like things that didn't happen. Actually, I had a high school job back in Reading, Pennsylvania that I didn't get. I was offered the job and then it kind of took it away from me for political reasons at the last moment before I was even allowed to start.

It's a long story, but it's not important. And then I had another really tiny. job offer finalists for a job a small school in upstate new york um and i would have to take a massive pay cut to do it but i just as an effort to get home i just wanted to get home and neither of those things happened for me and had they happened i wouldn't be sitting here you know i would be either high school coach teaching in pennsylvania or i'd be you know on some small college career path right now or whatever um but when those things didn't turn out for me i thought what am i doing. Like I'm, I'm on a good path here in Europe. I need to, like, maximize this opportunity.

So then I switch gears. I was like, okay, I want to get to, I want to get out to the bigger and better leagues. When I went to Germany, I want to eventually get to Spain. I want to get to these top-level countries. So that's what I set my sights on. And when I did that, everything changed for me. Went to Germany, but got fired that had to rebuild my career in Belgium. And that was actually kind of the blessing in disguise because the team there had a lot of money. We were able to play in the European leagues. We did well in the European leagues. And then it started snowball from there.

And what do you think got you on the NBA radar? Well, I know Sam Hinky got me on the NBA radar. When they launched their D-League initiative in Rio Grande, they were taking over basketball operations, basically implementing the baseball model. And they just wanted somebody that had a totally different profile. from what they were looking for. And unbeknownst to me at the time,

they wanted somebody who played fast and efficient basketball, which we were doing in Europe, not because we were more smart or ahead of the curve, just because these were the types of players I could afford. You know, guys who could shoot threes, underside centers that played fast. You know, I couldn't afford to compete in the European leagues against these big centers and there's more rugged teams

because we didn't have that type of money. So we built these fast teams that shot a lot of threes. and they started looking for somebody and my name kept coming up. And Sam Hinky has a philosophy that he hears something from more than one person. He investigates it. And whether it be a book, a movie, some sort of TED talk, whatever it might be, you know, he's like, okay, what's going on here? So he reached out to me after Summer League.

I was guest coach. Donnie Nelson was kind enough. It was one of the few contacts because he's so prevalent in Europe and his scouting had invited me to be a guest. coach with the Dallas Mavericks. And at Summer League that year, Sam reached out and explained what they were looking for and asked if I would be interested. And I said, sure. So that's kind of how it all happened. And so Sam, Darry, Gerson Roses, you know, those, that, that triumphant was really kind of the crew that brought me to the league. And now almost 20 years later, your coach in the

West All-Stars and you're a Tibbsian defense first coach. What happened to you? What happened? I've always liked defense. Just, you know, somehow along the way I got tabbed to being an offensive guy. That's what they wanted me to do in Houston. When I went there, they said, okay, we're going to go to the G League. We're going to tinker around with this stuff. And we're going to see what we can do and how far we can push the envelope offensively down there. And it was one of the things that kind of like gave me pause before I took the job because I thought it was like,

it's like going to be a circus act, you know, is what kind of, I want to play. I'm a basketball coach. I don't want to just do crazy things. So how crazy things are in. Yeah, crazy things. I mean, look how the game's revolutionized. And, you know, everybody kind of plays that way. But when we first made it to the league, probably only 8, 10 teams were playing with pace, you know,

valuing shot selection. And then, you know, once Golden State kind of hit their stride, everything just exploded from there. You've been around a bunch of head coaches. And I'm curious, your perspective on this. You know, you have coaches that are great at X's and O's. You've got coaches that are great at communicating. You've got coaches that aren't great at communicating. But when you're coaching the NBA level, what is the balance that you think that you have to have in order to be successful in, like, commanding the respect to the locker room, not losing guys and being efficient?

Like, what are the features you need to have? I would say for me it's 70-30. You have the 70-30 in the man management. You know, just the relationship with the players, controlling the environment, managing the staff, holding everybody accountable. You know, the X's and O's part is probably 30% for me. Staffs are so big now that we can have so many guys specialize in all the X's and O's. You know, we have offensive defensive guys, we have special teams guys,

we have player development guys. I have a staff broken down into transition coach, a pick and roll coach, almost like football model, right? And I like that because it gives those guys like overview, accountability, ownership over something, empowers them in that space. Then it's easy for me to hold them accountable. Hey, you're supposed to be in charge of this. We're not good enough at that. And then I just can kind of like check in with the players and make sure that the mood is right and, you know, manage the roster and deal with the front office and all that stuff. And then come meeting time, we sit down and we all lay it out on the table. And of course, it's my job to make the final decisions.

But I got a great staff, trust them implicitly. But yeah, if they're not really good at the X's and O's part, I can't be really good at all the other things. And these jobs right now are so big. They're way more about leadership than they are about basketball. Is that something you learn? One of my first encounters with Greg Popovich, when I was coaching one of his young kind of draft picks for the national team of Great Britain. Ryan Richards

out of the number. Yeah. And he had to watch a tournament in London. And you might have actually been there France was there in Spain. It was in 2011 the summer before the Olympics. And I had a tiny little interaction with him talking about Ryan and we were talking about

the jobs. And he said that to me. He said the job is way more about leadership than it's about basketball. And it always stuck with me. And then just being on you know being in it he's 100% right you know wow i'm glad you brought up the olympics because just what was that like obviously you were an american nick nurse was on your staff you guys are americans but you had been in england for so long to coach great britain in the olympics in london lu all dang just what are your thoughts when you just think back on

that whole experience well it's not too dissimilar to this weekend this experience you know I never in my wildest dreams thought it would happen. You know, with our history, Nick and I, our history of the England is a huge affinity for basketball there. And obviously, you know, our most formative years were there. We feel kind of almost like citizens, you know, with such a special place in our heart for the country and the people in the basketball game there. But it was one, again, surreal experience after another. I mean, met the prime minister, met the queen. Really?

Yeah. And how is that? What was meeting the queen like? It was incredible. And Nick and I, it was, so the Olympics opened on Friday night, the opening ceremony, Saturday morning. We were like in our apartment and they got a knock on the door. And guys said, hey, the queen's coming through to view her, you know, basically dormitory block where all the British athletes were living. And she wants to meet a half a dozen coaches and a half a dozen athletes.

And most of the people were out. Like, they're out training. They're out wherever. So Nick and I were able to. A little receiving line. She comes down, super gracious. You know, someone with her presence. Do you bow?

I don't even know. You don't bow, no. You just kind of put your hands behind your back and wait for her to talk to you. And there's all these protocols, you know. I tell a story a lot. So coaching LeBron is nothing. You've met the queen. Yeah, exactly, yeah.

You've got to bow LeBron, huh? Yeah, but she makes you, she made you feel incredibly at ease. which is quite, you know, quite a, quite the talent when you're, you know, dealing with somebody like the queen. But the best part was Prince, she said, oh, and what do you do? I said, I coach basketball. She said, oh, that makes sense. You're very tall. Yeah, you know, all the usual things that some grandmother would say to you. Yeah, she did. She stereotyped me. Well, Nick Nurse was there. And Prince Philip, her husband was right behind. And she said, oh, you must be the wrestling coach. At the time, the time Nick was carrying about 25 extra pounds than he is right now. So we always laugh about that.

But in my office, I have that picture of Nick and I both with the queen. And then just to get to the games and that, you know, growing up, like the Olympics were like this. I mean, we didn't miss them when we all growing up with just, they thought this incredible sporting event. And then as you get into professional sports, you become so cynical about everything, right? Like, and then when it all changed when I was able to be in the Olympics, this is incredibly pure sporting event. And we know it's not pure, but as athletes in the village, it was an incredible, incredible time. So, and then to be able to step out on the floor.

And what it meant to those players to hear the, you know, God save the queen before the games in the arenas, you know, playing basketball, which is not a marquee sport in England, but it had become a pretty big event, team event in the run-up to the Olympics. Yeah, especially because of the Olympic field. It's only 12 teams. It's so much smaller than the World Cup. So huge. Yeah.

So it's just, again, I can't, you know, I'm just lucky when I think about my career, just things that have happened to me. Coach, I want to get a question from the audience real quick. Sure. And I see a young lady right here, been raising her hand all night. Young lady, come here, please. What is your name? Charlotte.

Charlotte. What's your last name? Haynes. Oh, it's my wife, Coach. What's your question? Yes, well, Coach, I definitely am intrigued with your story. And I just feel like what you've gone through is inspirational and required a lot of endurance. And I want to know how you really use your life lessons to, you know, help your not only the players, but your staff, because it is about leadership.

and you've had doors open and doors closed. And, you know, with players, they're, you know, they can be traded. They can, you know, get hurt or staff, they're not getting opportunities that they think that they deserve or they would be next in line. How do you use your life lessons to, like, lead them and guide them? Great question. Thank you. A couple things. First of all, you know, I consider myself kind of an NBA outsider or just, you know, my, I think what my, I think what my,

Path is taught is a lot of humility. I loved everywhere I was at. I mean, I really did. And so, you know, it kind of bothers me if we go to a hotel and people complain about these five-star hotels that we stay in, you know. I just like, you know, kind of, it's a reality check. Hey, come on. Like, if you were kind of birthed right into the NBA opportunity,

you get spoiled quickly. And I think, like, having to kind of coach, you know, around the edges or take a different. keeps you grounded a little bit more. Sometimes I have to remind our staff of that. You know, hey, let's reduce our footprint. Let's be super grateful for the things that we're able to have here. And then the other thing is it's like you just got to put the work in and it takes time.

Like, you know, everybody wants it so fast. You know, whether it's players or coaches, everybody wants it so fast. And that comes from a good place. It really does. And but sometimes, you know, it just doesn't come. come. And if it doesn't come where you're at, this is what I've learned. You keep trying, you keep trying and keep trying, it's probably not going to come there. And then it's not until you leave that environment. You really realize maybe it was dysfunctional. Maybe it wasn't for me.

And you always land, like we work in a volatile environment. And getting fired or moving on is just part of it. But I've always landed in a better place. But I couldn't see it until I got there. and when you get there, you get the chance to kind of like reinvent yourself or go back to what you do best. And then a whole other people, whole other group of people can then appreciate working with you and you with them. So those are some of the things. I think a person that embodies it on my team is Nikiel Alexander Walker. I was with him as a young player. He just kept stubbing his toe, stubbing his toe, wanted it so bad, wanted so bad,

and just had to go through these processes. and now he's like one of our most important players, you know, and it's really been incredible to like watch him kind of develop that way. I'm glad you brought a back to the Timberwolves because our boss, Scott Shapiro, who I want to thank for helping us make this show happen. He is a Minnesota native, massive Timberwolves fan, and he's going to be playing this on loop in his car driving to work probably all week

until you guys play another game. Our producer Tim as well. Our producer Tim was working on this show, another Minneapolis. Well, we appreciate the sport. You know, one thing that's been great about our current success is we see a ton of Timberwolves fans in visiting arenas right now. And that's pretty cool. That's dope.

Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal, but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what you're saying. Yep, that's me, Cliver Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined. And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes, creators,

and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. One week, I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment, and the next we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music. The Clifford Show isn't just a podcast. It's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger. So if you've ever supported me or you're just chasing down a dream, this is right where you need to be. Listen to the Clifford show on the IHeart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.

And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. So you guys are 39 and 16, atop the West here at the break. If my math is right, I think this is the 35th season of Timberwolves basketball. But this is a franchise that is not won a playoff series for 20 years. run to the West Finals in 04. It's the only two playoff series that the franchise has ever won. So how much as a staff, your team, how much do you guys feel that weight of expectation? Because obviously, in the regular season, you're building up to this playoff run now.

Really? I've never heard that before. Like most things that, you know, have happened previously to us arriving in Minnesota, We don't pay a ton of attention to it. The history's there, but it doesn't really relate to us. We're trying to forge your own path. We believe what we're doing is real and repeatable. We've got some guys that I know are super hungry. They don't care about individual accolades right now.

They're focused on one thing, and that is pushing this team through the playoffs as far as they can go. Maybe you can answer this one, because you guys were in Dallas recently, and I had a chance to visit with Tim Conley, And I said, you know, you took so much, so much grief from all of us, media know-it-all's last season. Don't you want to throw it back in our face? How well the trade is working out now?

Of course, he was very humble and he wouldn't do it. But how good is he feeling right now after last season and all the heat you guys took? And like you said, a year later with, you know, time to get everybody acclimated and we see Rudy bouncing back with such a strong season. I mean, I think Tim feels extremely proud of this team and its efforts. I think it's the vision he always had. We always knew it to take time. We thought last season it would take at least 50 games to figure it out. We never really got that chance.

He's an incredible evaluator of talent and how that talent fits together. We have a continual dialogue about it all. I really love working with them. He's never going to be the type of guy who's going to throw it in anyone's face because he knows how quickly these things can change. And that's the league we work in. you got to stay humble through your success. You know, we all sat in that room when we made this the Rudy deal,

and we were committed to making it work. And even last year, we didn't feel like it didn't work. We probably went 25 games. We don't have Rudy. We're not in the playoffs last year if we don't have Rudy. And then, you know, being able to continually add to the roster, you know, Mike, the emergence of Nikiel, now Monti, Kyle Anderson as a signing.

I mean, there's been a lot of home. runs that Tim Connolly's hit. And it's not just the Rudy deal, but it's really the totality of it all. And size is back, right? I mean, you're not going to win in the NBA without size. In the West, you've got to get through Denver, and you can't do that without size. Yeah. And, you know, they're not going to take their best player off the floor to go small, you know,

and I think also at the height of small ball and the best team to ever do it was Golden State, and you're just not going to do it better than them. So I think one of the things coming into it all was like, Can we be different and can that be good enough? We had another somebody from audience when I asked a question. Go for it. Were you good? Go for it.

And then go for it. And then we're going to let coach switch go. Where are you from? Hey, I'm David Worshowski. Chris, as a fellow F&M alum, you had me by a couple of years. One not so serious question, when we used to play pickup ball, you used to make me look to fool by busting me with threes from the outside. Why'd you have to do that?

me. But the more serious question is you took an untraditional route and playing for a legendary coach like Coach Robinson and being from Franklin and Marshall. Were there positives for you compared to coaches who don't come through that kind of background that have made you the coach that you are today? Yeah, I appreciate that. We need to see some footage of those. I need some footage of you playing and hoisting threes. I appreciate it. People from Franklin and Marshall are known as Fummers. So it's a fellow fummer here. I was fortunate in my career to have great coaches at high school and college level in particular. Coach Robinson will be in the Hall of Fame one day, I'm sure there's one just shy of a thousand games. It's the only job he ever had. He held it for 50 years.

When I was there, we were ranked number one in the nation for three out of the four years. In my entire career, we lost 14 games in college, three of them to Princeton and the other four in the tournament. So we lost basically seven regular season games to division three opponents. What I learned from coach was situational basketball. It was outstanding at like, you know, how do you manage through end of games? In fact, I should have probably bring them in and have them talked to our team a little bit here as we have blown a lot of fourth quarter leads lately recently. But I also learned that it's simple. We had three plays. That's it. We had three plays. He never changed him. It was the same four, three plays for all four years.

probably the same three plays for 30 of his 50 years coaching there and it wasn't about the X's and O's it was just about how well you choose to do what you choose to do so you know when I look back sometimes I compare my career to my brother which who didn't have good coaching you know he didn't have the same experience with and he was five years ahead of me and the only reason I'm in basketball is because I followed him and he just didn't have this the enjoyment and the coaching that I was lucky to have. So there's a ton of things I take from Coach Robinson to this day, from the fluidity of the offense to the simplicity of things,

to managing the small pieces of the game, yeah. Well, look, without your star power, we would not have been granted this stage. So to do this on seriously, to come in here and join us on the day you've got to coach the All-Star game on the morning of the game. We are really appreciative. Congratulations to you on a tremendous first two-thirds of the season. Yes, sir. And wishing you and the Timberwolves, great luck here in the playoffs to come.

Everybody, thanks so much. Thank you. Thank you. For joining us. Thanks to Chris Finch, Coach of the Wolves. And please, as always, remember, keep listening to this league uncut. Please follow us, rate, review, subscribe to the podcast via Apple, Spotify, wherever you get your podcast.

and a lot of fun for Chris and I. We're not in the same room too often. So great to have a live episode of this League Uncut and so honored to have Chris Finch, the Timberwolves, here with us. Thanks again for being with us, everybody. Thank you, thank you. And that'll do it for us.

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