Flip Saunders passes away (pg 5)

fraanciiscoo · Post #201 » by **fraanciiscoo** » Mon Oct 26, 2015 11:49 am

Thoughts and prayers to his family.

Nirv · Post #202 » by **Nirv** » Mon Oct 26, 2015 12:06 pm

I'm a recent Timberwolves fan, have been since Rubio came to the NBA, but I still feel the pain of the loss of such a great man as Flip is. Rest in peace coach.

packforfreedom · Post #203 » by **packforfreedom** » Mon Oct 26, 2015 1:18 pm

what a shock! still can't believe it. he was a great coach, a great gm and certainly a great guy. I think he was one of the few people who actually deserved the term 'basketball mind'.

ExplosionsInDaSky · Post #204 » by **ExplosionsInDaSky** » Mon Oct 26, 2015 1:35 pm

F*** cancer,
I'm a die hard NBA fan and Flip Saunders is synonymous with Minnesota basketball, and while I am a 76ers fan, Flip Saunders to me was always a face and name in the NBA you always recognized and more importantly never forgot. I'll never forget the 1997 playoff series against Houston. Minnesota was so young playing a veteran Houston team and it was game three, and they were pretty much beaten at that point. During a timeout towards the end of the game I remember TNT talking about an exchange of words between Flip and KG that had the whole team laughing despite knowing they were going to lose the series. I remember thinking how awesome it was that Saunders as a coach could raise spirits of those young players even in the face of defeat. He was definitely an awesome leader of men and he will be missed.

Otis · Post #205 » by **Otis** » Mon Oct 26, 2015 2:05 pm

Sorry to see Flip go. I remember watching him, McHale and Thompson back in the barn doing Musselman's crazy pregame show. God bless him and his family!

Post #206 » by **Worm Guts** » Mon Oct 26, 2015 2:40 pm

I never expected this was a real possibility. We're 2 days away from the start of the season and basketball feels so unimportant.

Los5782 · Post #207 » by **Los5782** » Mon Oct 26, 2015 3:50 pm

Wow, Flip is synonymous in my mind with Basketball... he was one of the main names that stuck in my mind as a kid playing the NBA video games... this made me extra emotional for some reason... R.I.P.

kmgarnett21 · Post #208 » by **kmgarnett21** » Mon Oct 26, 2015 4:06 pm

I was literally in shock when I saw the first tweet by Wolfson. I read it several times before it sunk in. I honestly couldn't believe it. They just said a couple days ago it was treatable, and now he's gone.

I've been a Wolves fan since KG's rookie year, and therefore Flip has been the coach of my favorite team for most of my life (I'm 28). Even when he went to Detroit & Washington, I still pulled for him and was a huge fan of his. I was ecstatic when he came back. I only met him once, a couple years ago when the Wolves visited Dallas, and he was very kind. Even though I don't know him personally, it feels like I do because of how it feels like I grew up with him leading the way for my favorite team for so many years.

This is truly a devastating loss for the Wolves and the NBA, and obviously prayers to his family. I teared up when I saw KG's post on Facebook. I can't imagine how tore up KG is. KG's fans know how small of a circle he has and Flip was probably one of the top 5 closest people in KG's life (I'm guessing).

I really hope the Wolves and the rest of the NBA find a great way to honor Flip. Obviously us Wolves fans wanted to see this team do well, but now there's even more to play for. #WinforFlip

PharmD · Post #209 » by **PharmD** » Mon Oct 26, 2015 5:06 pm

I liked this from Brit Robson: "His voice was always thick with pride telling those CBA stories, because the subtext was the willpower of the gritty underdog. As a player, Flip was an undersized point guard who went on to lead the University of Minnesota to a couple of its finest seasons ever. As a coach, he had to start from scratch — four seasons at Golden Valley Lutheran, seven as an assistant coach at his alma mater and the University of Tulsa, and then his time driving through the winter with the Rapid City Thrillers, the La Crosse Catbirds and the Sioux Falls Skyforce. His 253 wins are the second-most in CBA history, and yet he still he needed a connection from his college buddy McHale to crack the NBA.

Yet when he died, he was president of Basketball Operations, head coach and part owner of the Minnesota Timberwolves, an array of power without peer among his colleagues."

And cheers to Flip for becoming GM the hard way. Most GMs are either guys who look good in a suit, have a good handshake, and are adept at talking in banal platitudes. Or they're former star players and owners somehow think that qualifies them as talent evaluators and strategists. Flip looked bad in a suit and was not anyone's idea of a smooth talker. Knowing basketball got him to the top.

kmgarnett21 · Post #210 » by **kmgarnett21** » Mon Oct 26, 2015 5:44 pm

kmgarnett21 · Post #211 » by **kmgarnett21** » Mon Oct 26, 2015 5:46 pm

DirtybirdGA · Post #212 » by **DirtybirdGA** » Mon Oct 26, 2015 7:22 pm

Condolences to the Saunders & T-Wolves families.

DirtybirdGA · Post #213 » by **DirtybirdGA** » Mon Oct 26, 2015 7:22 pm

double post.

Magoose · Post #214 » by **Magoose** » Mon Oct 26, 2015 9:51 pm

kmgarnett21 wrote:Even though I don't know him personally, it feels like I do because of how it feels like I grew up with him leading the way for my favorite team for so many years.

This pretty much sums up how I feel about Flip. He was there when I started rooting for the Wolves (along with KG and Marbury) and he was there when he started to turn the ship around by drafting well and solving the Love situation. I even liked him better as a GM than as a coach.

Usually I'm like "i don't know them personally so I don't take it personally". This, for the reasons described above, feels different. When I read the comment from Starbury and saw the picture of KG I had tears in my eyes.

The fact that he seemed like a very likeable guy and someone who really cared about his players and treated them like he was a father to them is what makes it even harder for me.

Still in grief and disbelief.

trevor0333 · Post #215 » by **trevor0333** » Tue Oct 27, 2015 12:19 am

Flip was beloved by MN because of all the stories your hearing about him, being such a truly genuine person in a in-genuine world he stuck out like a sore thumb. I didn't know him personally except for a few times meeting in passing in the skyways. I've never been so sad about someone I didn't know personally and will miss not seeing him on the Wolves court. Flip will be missed in basketball community and the great family he built. I hope the outpouring of love and generous stories of Flip helps the family grieve.

I can't wait for Target Center to start the "Flip" chants when the team he built needs energy during a game.

"Flip, Flip, Flip, Flip, Flip..."

Sothron · Post #216 » by **Sothron** » Tue Oct 27, 2015 2:30 am

I have not been this excited for a TWolves season in so long and now it feels like that Megadeth song "Ashes in your mouth". All of my excitement and joy has been just completely destroyed. This season was supposed to be the one where NBA suits and media would nod in approval at all the changes Flip has made to the team. They will still do so but now only in memory of his vision.

#ForFlip

NikolaPekovic · Post #217 » by **NikolaPekovic** » Tue Oct 27, 2015 2:36 am

I haven't cried this much since a good friend of mine passed away.

Post #218 » by **Calinks** » Tue Oct 27, 2015 2:37 am

Sothron wrote:I have not been this excited for a TWolves season in so long and now it feels like that Megadeth song "Ashes in your mouth". All of my excitement and joy has been just completely destroyed. This season was supposed to be the one where NBA suits and media would nod in approval at all the changes Flip has made to the team. They will still do so but now only in memory of his vision.

#ForFlip

That's how I feel, like the season is crap now. I was pumped as can be two days ago but now? I don't even feel like watching.The architect behind all that happiness and hope is gone.

Mattya · Post #219 » by **Mattya** » Tue Oct 27, 2015 3:22 am

Hope is still there. The best way to honor Flip would be to support the team and for the team to put it all on the court. Flip put his heart into this team. He loved basketball, Minnesota, and this team. I think he would want the fans to be at the games and be loud, and for the team to play hard even if the wins don't come.

Murphs56 · Post #220 » by **Murphs56** » Tue Oct 27, 2015 4:09 am

Sothron wrote:I have not been this excited for a TWolves season in so long and now it feels like that Megadeth song "Ashes in your mouth". All of my excitement and joy has been just completely destroyed. This season was supposed to be the one where NBA suits and media would nod in approval at all the changes Flip has made to the team. They will still do so but now only in memory of his vision.

#ForFlip

He'll always get the credit for building this Nucleus. It was all him