Chris Finch has been labeled as one of the most creative basketball minds in the NBA. After three good seasons with the New Orleans Pelicans, he joined the Raptors as an assistant in December 2020. He worked as an assistant for several teams in the league, like the Nuggets and Rockets.
It was his first season with the Raptors when Minnesota showed interest in him. Although a coach doesn’t often leave the team for another franchise position, sides reached a deal, and Finch started his NBA head coaching chapter.
Chris Finch – Playing career
After graduating from college, it was time for a new challenge, and Finch decided to move to Europe and start his professional career in England. He signed a contract with Sheffield Sharks, one of the biggest teams in Great Britain. In his first season team was promoted to British Basketball League, the top competition in the country. In four years with the Sharks, his team was improving every year, and Finch was a big part of that. Slowly, he was showing more and more interest in coaching, and after the season 1996-1997 team decided to offer him the head coach position.
Chris Finch – International experience
His career started in England, where he coached Sharks for six seasons. Finch led them to become the best team in the country. Their offense was especially effective, making them one of the most exciting teams to watch.
In the 2003-04 season, Finch moved to Germany and started to coach Giessen 46ers. The team had many injured players, and results were far from expected, so his time in Bundesliga lasted only one year.
Belgium was the next step in his career, where he became a champion in 2005 with Euphony Bree. To this day, that is the only trophy in club history.
In 2007 Finch coached Belgium powerhouse Dexia Mons-Hainaut, and his team was playing in the finals of EuroChallenge, where they lost to BK Barons Riga from Latvia.
Finch was also coaching Great Britain’s National Team from 2006 to 2013, and he led the team in the 2012 Olympics games in London.
Chris Finch – NBA Coaching Career
Before joining Toronto in 2020, Finch had spent the past three years with New Orleans (2017-20), including last season as associate head coach.
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It’s worth noting that, at Toronto, Finch worked under Nick Nurse, and in the past, Nurse was Finch’s assistant with the Great Britain National team.
In the past, he was also working as an assistant coach with Denver Nuggets (2016-17) and Houston Rockets (2011-16).
From 2014, he was the associate head coach for the Rockets and their offensive coordinator.
Chris Finch – Rio Grande Valley Vipers
Finch was successfully working as head coach of Houston’s D League affiliate, the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, from 2009 to 2011. He led the team to two consecutive appearances in the D League Finals and a fantastic record of 67 wins and 33 losses.
The Vipers have won the 2010 D League Championship, and Finch got the Dennis Johnson Coach of the Year Award.
He was born and raised in Pennsylvania. He graduated in 1992 from Franklin & Marshall College and was inducted into the school Sports Hall of Fame in 2002.
Even though it was in mid-season and the Raptors were on a four-game win streak, the franchise did not stand in the way of someone in their organization getting a promotion. Sources told that Finch has been hired on a multi-year deal.
Chris Finch – Minnesota Timberwolves
Gerson Rosas, the ex-president of basketball operations, was the man who was pushing for Finch to be hired as a new head coach of the team.
Finch and Rosas have a history of working together.
Finch worked with the Rockets when Rosas was in the front office. Chris coached the team’s affiliate in what is now called the G League and then became a Rockets assistant.
Coaching changes are nothing new in Minnesota. Finch became the 10th Timberwolves coach in the past 15 years.
The Timberwolves had the worst record in the NBA when they decided to fire coach Ryan Saunders after losing in the last nine games in a row in the middle of the season.
Finch came to Minnesota with a long track record of maximizing offenses.
His fingerprints were all over the Toronto offense. Despite losing two bigs in Marc Gasol and Serge Ibaka, the team ranked in the top 10 in offensive efficiency.
Finch’s hiring was crucial for one of the league’s worst, a 28-ranked Timberwolves offense.
The front office stated that they have hired Coach Finch because he brings an extensive experience from the NBA, G-League, and international play. As one of the most creative minds in the NBA, he brings a lot for the young Minnesota team.
The Raptors have withstood previous coaching moves without skipping a beat because of the depth of talent throughout the organization. So this time, they were more than happy to promote one more coach from their organization.
Who is the owner of the Timberwolves?
The sale of the Minnesota Timberwolves to millionaire Marc Lore and ex-baseball star Alex Rodriguez has been officially approved by the NBA in 2021.
The deal, which included the WNBA franchise Minnesota Lynx, was first reached between current owner Glen Taylor and Lore and Rodriguez last spring, and it to begin with an initial transfer of a 20% stake in the club last year.
Lore and Rodriguez will have the right to purchase an additional 20% share in 2022 and an additional 40% share in 2023 when they would become the majority owners of the basketball teams.
What is the Timberwolves’ record?
After the first 23 games of the current season, the Timberwolves are ninth in the Western Conference with the record 11-12. Looks like they will have a chance to fight for the playoffs this season.
In the season 2020-2021, Finch coached the team for 41 games, and the team has won 16 games in that period. That was not enough to reach the Playoffs.
