Timberwolves coach Chris Finch gets contract extension

In a little over a year, coach Chris Finch has helped take the Timberwolves from the lottery to the No. 7 seed in the Western Conference.

The franchise rewarded Finch with a multiyear contract extension for him and his staff, the team announced Monday morning.

"This is an easy decision," executive vice president Sachin Gupta said. "They're not always easy decisions in this business. But this one was a very easy one. Coach has been a terrific partner for me and the results on the floor are clear."

The deal covers four seasons, a source confirmed.

The Wolves can make their first playoff appearance in four seasons with a victory in a play-in game Tuesday against the Clippers or, should they lose Tuesday, against the winner of New Orleans and San Antonio on Friday.

"I'm excited. I'm honored. I'm happy they believe in the work that we're doing," Finch said. "The initial steps were good ones. Just hopefully laying the foundation for future success."

Finch came to the Wolves after spending several years as a head coach in Europe and an assistant in the NBA.

He was a finalist for the head coaching job when Gersson Rosas initially took over as President of Basketball Operations in 2019. Rosas opted to hire Ryan Saunders permanently at the time. After firing Saunders last February, Rosas hired Finch, who was an assistant with Toronto.

The move drew criticism for its seemingly truncated search process, which passed over a potential interim replacement in associate head coach David Vanterpool, who is Black.

Rosas defended his hiring, and under Finch, the Wolves started to improve late last season.

"I think he just earned our respect," center Karl-Anthony Towns said recently. "The organic and right way, through the work. Being a mastermind when it comes to offense and defense and also just the relationship."

Finch and Gupta have a good relationship dating to their days working for the Rockets organization and helped guide the Wolves after Rosas' firing in September. They have a history of collaboration from the coaching and front-office sides when they worked in the D League (now known as the G League) together.

"Personality-wise, there's just no ego between either of us," Gupta said. "We both view this as a partnership, and we trust in each other in that he's going to do a great job on the coaching side and I'm doing to do a great job putting the roster together.

"But we're also very open with each other, and he's a huge part of every decision that I make, and any time I have any thoughts or input, he's wide open on that as well."

The Wolves posted their second-highest win total (46-36) since 2004 this season and improved in metrics across the board. Their defensive efficiency jumped from 28th to 13th, while the offense went from 25th to seventh. They led the league in scoring (115.9 points per game) and in three-pointers.

Finch has earned praise from his players on how he has navigated this season, walking both the line of holding them accountable while building relationships with them.

"He built relationships with each one of us and has our respect," Towns said. "I think we all can call him a good friend of ours. I think that's what translates to what you see in the players, the way they respond to his words and also respond to big games, knowing we want to get it for him more than anything."

Added guard Anthony Edwards: "He's just a great coach, like a great person. Like not even on the floor, like off the floor. Just he's always communicating, making sure everybody's straight. That's what you love about him."

The Wolves ownership group has now locked in Finch but has not decided who will run its basketball operations on a permanent basis. Gupta was given day-to-day duties upon Rosas' firing, but has not been named the permanent head of basketball operations. It's still unclear whether they will give that distinction to Gupta or search for a new president.