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Report: Sam Mitchell a 'serious candidate' for Timberwolves coaching job

Sam Mitchell played for Wolves president Flip Saunders, then head coach of the team, from 1995-2002. (Jesse D. Garrabrant/Getty Images)

Sam Mitchell played for Wolves president Flip Saunders, then head coach of the team, from 1995-2002. (Jesse D. Garrabrant/Getty Images)

Former Toronto Raptors head coach Sam Mitchell is a "serious candidate" for the head coaching job in Minnesota, reported Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports.

The 50-year-old coach, who was on the roster for the Wolves in their inaugural season as an expansion team in 1989, recently met with Minnesota's president, Flip Saunders, to discuss the position. The vacancy was left open after head coach Rick Adelman retired after the season.

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The Wolves also have to figure out what to do with franchise forward Kevin Love. The All-Star is set to make $15.7 million next season and said he will test the free agent market next summer, leaving the Wolves left to only trade him if they hope to receive anything in return. The Golden State Warriors and the Chicago Bulls are said to be among the top choices for Love, according to Marc Stein and Ramona Shelburne of ESPN, but Wojnarowski is reporting that the New York Knicks and the Los Angeles Lakers are preferred destinations.

Mitchell played for Saunders in his second stint with the Wolves from 1995-2002. During his tenure with the Raptors from 2004-2008, he reached the playoffs twice and was named Coach of the Year in 2007. His only other coaching experience came in 2010 as an assistant coach with the Nets, then in New Jersey. He has since worked as a TV analyst for various networks.

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