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McHale makes debut when Timberwolves face Jazz

Dec 9, 2008 - 11:37 AM Utah (13-9) at Minnesota (4-15) 8:00 p.m. EST

MINNEAPOLIS (Ticker) -- Kevin McHale will get his chance to take what he created and turn it into a contender.

McHale will make his season coaching debut when the Minnesota Timberwolves host the Utah Jazz on Tuesday.

Off to an abysmal 4-15 start, the Timberwolves fired head coach Randy Wittman on Monday and replaced him with McHale, who was demoted from his long-time role as the team's vice president of basketball operations.

McHale, 50, had been Minnesota's chief basketball executive for the past 13 years and helped transform the Timberwolves from a perennial bottom-feeder into a postseason regular over his first decade with the team.

But the Timberwolves have regressed back to one of the NBA's worst teams in recent seasons, due largely in part to several questionable personnel decisions made by McHale.

Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor, evidently dissatisfied with Minnesota's slow start, put the onus on McHale in a statement released Monday morning.

"Kevin has assembled the players on this team and believes in their talent and skill level," Taylor said. "It is my expectation that Kevin will be able to get the most out of our team and our players in his new role as head coach."

"I truly believe that we have a talented group of players in our locker room who have a great amount of potential," McHale said. "I'm confident that we can get this turned around and get back to playing a brand of basketball that our fans can be proud of."

This is the second time McHale has come down from the front office to take over for a dismissed head coach. He posted a 19-12 record after taking over for Flip Saunders in 2005.

The Jazz will be countering with the longest-tenured coach in the NBA, Jerry Sloan, who will be celebrating 20 years on the bench. Sloan took over from Frank Layden 20 years ago Tuesday.

Utah is coming off a 106-104 loss at Phoenix but is close to getting forward Carlos Boozer back in the lineup. Boozer, who has been out since November 21 with a strained left quadriceps, is averaging 20.5 points and 11.7 rebounds this season.