McHale timeline with the Wolves

Kevin McHale joined the Timberwolves in 1993, first as "special assistant" before moving up to assistant GM in 1994 and then to vice president of basketball operations in 1995. A look at the good, the bad and the ugly of McHale's reign as head of the team's basketball decisionmaking group:

1995-97: Setting the stage

• In 1995, McHale hires Flip Saunders as GM. Saunders later replaces Bill Blair as coach and becomes the winningest coach in Wolves history.

• The Wolves draft Kevin Garnett in the first round. In 1996-97, the team earns its first playoff berth and appears set for the future.

• Further cementing the team's foundation, McHale signs Garnett to a record $125 million, six-year contract in 1997. It is a contract that starts the league wobbling toward a lockout, which happens at the start of the 1998-99 season.

• After the NBA lockout ends in January 1999, All-Star forward Tom Gugliotta accepts a lesser deal than the Wolves offer and flees to Phoenix. In response, the Wolves sign former No. 1 overall pick Joe Smith as a free agent. The deal includes a secret long-term agreement that violates league rules.

• McHale is fined and suspended (see 2000-01). And at the trading deadline, point guard Stephon Marbury forces his way out of Minnesota in a deal that nets the Wolves Terrell Brandon in a three-team trade. The following season, the Wolves win 50 games for the first time.

• In May 2000, Wolves guard Malik Sealy is killed when his vehicle is struck by a drunk driver going the wrong way on Hwy. 100 in St. Louis Park. In September 2000, the NBA receives a copy of the Wolves' secret agreement with Joe Smith and hands out harsh punishment, including the loss of five first-round picks (later reduced to three) and a $3.5 million fine. McHale and team owner Glen Taylor are both suspended for a full season.

• In the 2003 draft, McHale's selects high schooler Ndudi Ebi in the first round rather than Josh Howard, who becomes a star in Dallas. But there's no time for concern. Garnett is maturing into one of the league's elite players.

• McHale makes a big offseason move, landing veterans Latrell Sprewell and Sam Cassell, who join Garnett to push the team to its best record (58-24) and the Western Conference finals. The Wolves, without a hobbled Cassell, lose to the Lakers 4-2 and miss their bid for a title. Garnett is named league MVP.

• After the success of the previous season, Sprewell squawks about his contract and Cassell agitates for an extension. Both players underperform, leading to the firing of Flip Saunders in February 2005.

• McHale takes over as coach and finishes out the season. But a series of bad contracts pile up. Among the worst: Troy Hudson (six years, $37 million), Trenton Hassell (matched Portland's offer sheet, six years, $27 million), Marco Jaric (acquired in a trade with the Clippers for Cassell, six years, $40 million).

• McHale hires Dwane Casey to coach the team, but starting in 2005, Garnett joins a national chorus of league watchers and experts who beg the Wolves to deal their superstar. McHale first tries to find help, landing Ricky Davis, Mark Blount and Marcus Banks, among others. Things go from bad to worse, including the draft-day trade that sends Brandon Roy to Portland for Randy Foye, who struggles to lock down the team's point guard position.

• McHale fires Casey in early '07 and then bows to pressure and ends Kevin Garnett's tenure in Minnesota. KG, the team's first true superstar, is dealt to Boston for future star Al Jefferson, four of his Celtics teammates and two draft picks. It's a bold move that sends the Wolves spiraling to the depths, leaving new coach Randy Wittman to pick up the pieces.

• Jefferson puts up KG-like numbers, but the Wolves are young and rebuilding. McHale makes another draft-day trade (2008), sending O.J. Mayo to Memphis for veteran Mike Miller and rookie Kevin Love. The Wolves have assets to build toward the future (three first-round picks this year), but the present remains a work in progress.

• Glen Taylor announces Wittman is fired as coach and McHale is moved from the front office to the bench to coach the team for the rest of the season.

• Taylor conducts a lengthy search and hires David Kahn as the team's new president of basketball operations. On Wednesday, Kahn announces McHale will not return for the 2009-10 season, ending his 16-year stay with the Timberwolves.

MARK WOLLEMANN