Philip Daniel "Flip" Saunders (February 23, 1955 – October 25, 2015) was an American basketball player and coach. During his career, he coached the

La Crosse Catbirds The La Crosse Catbirds was an American basketball team based in La Crosse, Wisconsin and member of the Continental Basketball Association. The Catbirds were the 1990 and 1992 CBA champions. The team moved to La Crosse from Louisville in 1985, an ...

Minnesota Timberwolves The Minnesota Timberwolves are an American professional basketball team based in Minneapolis. The Timberwolves compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Northwest Division. Founded in 19 ...

Detroit Pistons The Detroit Pistons are an American professional basketball team based in Detroit. The Pistons compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division and play their home games at Li ...

, and

Washington Wizards The Washington Wizards are an American professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C. The Wizards compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern Conference Southeast D ...

High school and college player

Saunders was born in

Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

. He was an All-state basketball player at

Cuyahoga Heights High School Cuyahoga Heights High School is a public high school located in Cuyahoga Heights, Ohio, United States. It serves the villages of Cuyahoga Heights, Valley View, and Brooklyn Heights. It is a Blue Ribbon School of Excellence. Athletics Ohio Hi ...

in suburban Cleveland. In his senior season, 1973, he was named Ohio's Class A High School Basketball Player of the Year, leading the state in scoring average with 32.0 points per game. At the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Tw ...

, he started 101 of his 103 career contests and as a senior, teamed with Ray Williams,

Mychal Thompson Mychal George Thompson (born January 30, 1955) is a Bahamian-American former basketball player. The top overall pick in the 1978 NBA draft, Thompson played the center position for the University of Minnesota and center and forward for the Nati ...

, Kevin McHale, and Osborne Lockhart.

Coaching career

College

Saunders began his coaching career at

Golden Valley Lutheran College Golden Valley Lutheran College was founded as the Lutheran Bible Institute. The LBI was a two-year degree-granting Lutheranism, Lutheran educational institution established in 1919 in Saint Paul, Minnesota, St. Paul, Minnesota. It moved to Minneapol ...

where he compiled a 92–13 record, including a perfect 56–0 mark at home, in four seasons. In 1981, he became an assistant coach at his alma mater, Minnesota, and helped guide the Golden Gophers to the

Big Ten The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representati ...

championship that season. After five seasons at Minnesota, he became an assistant coach at the

University of Tulsa The University of Tulsa (TU) is a private research university in Tulsa, Oklahoma. It has a historic affiliation with the Presbyterian Church and the campus architectural style is predominantly Collegiate Gothic. The school traces its origin to ...

where he worked for two seasons before heading to the pro ranks.

Rapid City, La Crosse, and Sioux Falls (CBA)

Saunders became the coach of the

Rapid City Thrillers The Rapid City Thrillers were a semi-professional basketball team in Rapid City, South Dakota, that competed in the Continental Basketball Association beginning in the 1987 season. They were reincarnated in 1998 as an International Basketball Ass ...

of the

Continental Basketball Association The Continental Basketball Association (CBA) (originally known as the Eastern Pennsylvania Basketball League, and later as the Eastern Professional Basketball League and the Eastern Basketball Association) was a men's professional basketball m ...

(CBA) in the 1988–89 season, where future Kings and Warriors head coach

Eric Musselman Eric Musselman (born November 19, 1964) is an American college basketball coach who is the current head men's basketball coach at the University of Arkansas. He is the former head coach of the Sacramento Kings and Golden State Warriors of the N ...

served as the team's general manager. Musselman's father,

Bill Musselman William Clifford Musselman (August 13, 1940 – May 5, 2000) was an American basketball coach in the NCAA, the ABA, the WBA, the CBA, and the NBA. He was known for his trademark intensity, once being quoted as saying, "Defeat is worse than death ...

, had recruited Flip when Bill was head coach at the University of Minnesota. Saunders then later moved to the

for five seasons (1989–94), where he won two CBA Championships, before coaching in 1994–95 with the

Sioux Falls Skyforce The Sioux Falls Skyforce are an American professional basketball team of the NBA G League based in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and are affiliated with the Miami Heat. The team plays their home games in the Sanford Pentagon, a place they have call ...

. He also served as general manager (1991–93) and team president (1991–94) of the Catbirds. Saunders' impressive CBA tenure included seven consecutive seasons of 30 or more victories, two CBA championships (1990, 1992), two CBA Coach of the Year honors (1989, 1992) and 23 CBA-to-NBA player promotions. Saunders would leave after seven productive seasons as a head coach in the CBA, where he ranks second with 253 career victories.

Minnesota Timberwolves (NBA)

Saunders joined the

of the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United S ...

(NBA) on May 11, 1995, as

general manager A general manager (GM) is an executive who has overall responsibility for managing both the revenue and cost elements of a company's income statement, known as profit & loss (P&L) responsibility. A general manager usually oversees most or all of ...

, working under his former

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

teammate, Kevin McHale. On December 18, 1995, Saunders was named head coach of the Timberwolves, replacing Bill Blair. This happened shortly after McHale had taken over the basketball operations for the Timberwolves. He then added the coaching duties to his GM responsibilities after the team had gotten off to a 6–14 start. The Timberwolves went 20–42 the rest of the year, but the emergence of young

Kevin Garnett Kevin Maurice Garnett ( ; born May 19, 1976) is an American former professional basketball player who played for 21 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed KG by his initials, and the "Big Ticket" for his emphatic dunki ...

as a front-line NBA player was a huge plus over the second half of the season. He guided with difficulty the Timberwolves to their first-ever playoff berth in the 1996–97 season, his first full season as an NBA head coach. A year later, he led the Timberwolves to their first-ever winning season. They went on to a franchise-record 50 victories in 1999–2000 which was duplicated in 2001–2002. After the Timberwolves' success in the

2003–04 NBA season The 2003–04 NBA season was the 58th season of the National Basketball Association. The season ended with the Detroit Pistons defeating the Los Angeles Lakers 4–1 in the 2004 NBA Finals. Events This was the last season for the original two-div ...

, in which they won their first (and to date, only) division title and advanced to the Western Conference Finals, they struggled in the 2004–05 season. On February 12, 2005, McHale fired Saunders and named himself head coach for the rest of the season. McHale was unable to right the ship, and the Wolves finished one game out of the playoffs, the first time they had missed the playoffs in nine years. Many fans believed that Saunders' firing was unwarranted, citing instead the contract troubles of

Sam Cassell Samuel James Cassell Sr. (born November 18, 1969) is an American professional basketball coach and former point guard who serves as an assistant coach for the Philadelphia 76ers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Drafted 24th overall i ...

and

Latrell Sprewell Latrell Fontaine Sprewell (born September 8, 1970) is an American former professional basketball player who played for the Golden State Warriors, the New York Knicks, and the Minnesota Timberwolves in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Du ...

as the reasons for the team's failure. However, many also acknowledged that Saunders had coached ten years in Minnesota, and perhaps a new voice was needed.

Detroit Pistons (NBA)

Saunders replaced Larry Brown as coach of the

on July 21, 2005. Under Saunders, the team set a new franchise record for wins during the regular season, finishing with a 64–18 record. Saunders coached the Eastern Conference All-Stars in the

2006 NBA All-Star Game The 2006 NBA All-Star Game was played on Sunday, February 19, 2006 at the Toyota Center (Houston), Toyota Center in Houston, home of the Houston Rockets. The game was the 55th annual All-Star game. The theme song was by Houston native Chamilli ...

Houston, Texas Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

. Saunders led the Pistons to three consecutive Central Division titles and three consecutive appearances in the Eastern Conference Finals, part of a run of six consecutive Conference Finals appearances dating to 2002-03. Upon entering his third season as Pistons coach, Saunders became the longest-tenured Pistons coach since

Chuck Daly Charles Jerome Daly (July 20, 1930 – May 9, 2009) was an American basketball head coach. He led the Detroit Pistons to two consecutive National Basketball Association (NBA) championships in 1989 and 1990—during the team's "Bad Boys" era— ...

's nine-year tenure (1983–1992). Saunders was fired June 3, 2008 after the Pistons lost to the

Boston Celtics The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Atlantic Division. Founded in 1946 as one of t ...

in the 2008 Eastern Conference Finals. Pistons president of basketball operations

Joe Dumars Joe Dumars III ( ; born May 24, 1963) is an American professional basketball executive and former player who is the executive vice president and head of basketball operations of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He could play either shoo ...

said the team needed a "new voice". According to a post-mortem by

ESPN ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...

's Chris Sheridan, Saunders never really earned the respect of the Pistons locker room, and was unable to get them to raise their game at crucial moments.

Washington Wizards (NBA)

On April 14, 2009, Saunders reached an agreement to become the new coach of the

. The deal was reportedly worth $18 million over 4 years. On January 24, 2012, Saunders was fired as the coach of the Wizards. Replaced by former Minnesota Timberwolves head coach

Randy Wittman Randy Scott Wittman (born October 28, 1959) is an American former basketball player at the guard position and former coach of the NBA's Cleveland Cavaliers, Minnesota Timberwolves, and Washington Wizards. Playing career High school Wittman starr ...

, Saunders departed the Wizards with a record of 51–130.

Second stint with Minnesota Timberwolves

On June 6, 2014, Saunders was named the head coach of the Minnesota Timberwolves, returning to the franchise for a second stint. During his second stint with the Timberwolves, Saunders was diagnosed with

Hodgkin's lymphoma Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) is a type of lymphoma, in which cancer originates from a specific type of white blood cell called lymphocytes, where multinucleated Reed–Sternberg cells (RS cells) are present in the patient's lymph nodes. The condition wa ...

. During his recovery, he delegated his coaching position to assistant coach and former

NBA Coach of the Year The National Basketball Association's Coach of the Year is an annual National Basketball Association (NBA) award given since the 1962–63 NBA season. The winner receives the Red Auerbach Trophy, which is named in honor of the head coach who le ...

winner Sam Mitchell. His 427 wins during parts of ten seasons in two stints are the most in franchise history and, until the 2017–18 season, he was the only coach to lead the Timberwolves to a winning season or coach a playoff game.

Career as an executive

Boston Celtics (NBA)

On April 29, 2012, Saunders joined the Boston Celtics as an advisor.

Return to Timberwolves

On May 3, 2013, Saunders was named the Timberwolves' President of Basketball Operations. On June 5, 2014, Saunders was named head coach as well. During his recovery from Hodgkin's Lymphoma, he delegated his duties within the front office to the team's general manager

Milt Newton Milton M. Newton (born August 25, 1965) is an American professional basketball executive and former player. He is the assistant general manager of the Milwaukee Bucks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Newton, a 6'5" small forward, wa ...

Personal life

Saunders and his wife Debbie had four children. Their son,

Ryan Ryan may refer to: People and fictional characters *Ryan (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) *Ryan (surname), a surname (including a list of people with the name) Places Australia * Division of Ryan, an elector ...

, is a former guard for the University of Minnesota, Flip's alma mater, and later became an NBA assistant coach for the Wizards and Wolves, and the head coach of the Wolves. His daughter, Mindy also attended the University of Minnesota and was a member of the dance team. Flip's twin daughters, Kim and Rachel, also attended the University of Minnesota. Together, they danced on the University of Minnesota Dance Team for 4 years - winning 8 national championships and a World Championship. According to Saunders, he was about (60 feet) away from the

I-35W Mississippi River bridge The I-35W Mississippi River bridge (officially known as Bridge 9340) was an eight-lane, steel truss arch bridge that carried Interstate 35W across the Mississippi River one-half mile (875 m) downstream from the Saint Anthony Falls in Minneap ...

collapse on August 1, 2007 in Minneapolis.

Death

On August 11, 2015, Saunders announced he had been diagnosed with

, for which he was undergoing treatment. Saunders planned to remain the Timberwolves' head coach and president. However, after Saunders was hospitalized for more than a month following complications in September, team owner Glen Taylor announced that Saunders would miss the next season. Saunders died on October 25, 2015 at the age of 60. On February 15, 2018, the Timberwolves held a "Flip Saunders Night" during which a permanent banner was unveiled in the Target Center honoring Saunders. A little over three years after his death, Flip's son Ryan Saunders took over as the Timberwolves' head coach following the firing of

Tom Thibodeau Thomas Joseph Thibodeau Jr. ( ; born January 17, 1958) is an American basketball coach who is the head coach for the New York Knicks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He served as an assistant coach for the United States men's national ...

. On January 4, 2020, the south gymnasium at Cuyahoga Heights High School in Cuyahoga Heights, Ohio was renamed in Flip's honor.https://www.facebook.com/groups/476066742569388/?fref=nf The event was attended by Flip's wife Debbie Saunders, Flip's son and former Minnesota Timberwolves head coach Ryan Saunders, other members of the Saunders' family as well as by the entire 2020 Minnesota Timberwolves basketball team.

Head coaching record