The Minneosta Timberwolves surprisingly parted ways with team president Gersson Rosas. Franchise star Karl-Anthony Towns was also surprised by the decision.
“Today, the Minnesota Timberwolves parted ways with President of Basketball Operations Gersson Rosas,” the team said in an official statement Wednesday. “As an organization, we remain committed to building a successful team that our fans and our city can be proud of.”
Rosas only came to Minneapolis from Houston in the summer of 2019. After he managed the entire offseason over the fate of the team, among other things, the Wolves were considered very interested in a Ben Simmons trade, the dismissal came as a surprise almost a week before the start of the training camp.
Like Ramona Shelburne and Zach Lowe from ESPN report that Rosas was still holding meetings on Wednesday morning. Even the players around franchise star Karl-Anthony Towns were shocked. KAT just tweeted shortly after announcing the decision: “wtf”.
According to Mike Max of the local TV station WCCO The reason for Rosa’s sacking is a “toxic work culture” within the franchise and “inappropriate relationships” with employees. According to Star Tribune there have been “differences and strained relationships” between Rosas and employees over the past few months.
Minnesota Timberwolves: Interim successor has been determined
Apparently, the team wanted to prevent internal tensions from spreading to the October 19 season. As The Athletic added, a vocal faction of employees have recently expressed concerns about how Rosas is running the organization. The front office is described as “dysfunctional” in the report.
It is also said to have cracked between Rosas and the previous Vice President of Basketball Operations, Sachin Gupta. The latter now takes over Rosa’s duties on an interim basis, while the Wolves start a search for a permanent successor.
Since arriving in Minnesota, Rosas has almost completely restructured the roster, rebuilding it around Franchise Center Towns, including a trade for his good pal D’Angelo Russell. However, there was no success, also due to numerous injury concerns. In the past two seasons, the Wolves have only won 42 and lost 94 (30.9 percent win rate). Minnesota has only made the playoffs once in the past 17 years.