The team's star tweeted a short, succinct message on Wednesday, three letters strung together to form an acronym that articulates the reaction to not only one decision but three decades of organizational dysfunction:
Can Karl-Anthony Towns, author of perfect Timberwolves tweet, take much more of this?
Like everyone else, the team's star was confused by a firing Wednesday that is certainly more about behind the scenes than basketball.
W. T. ... And you already know the last letter.
Perfectly stated, Karl-Anthony Towns. Your franchise provided another what-the moment with the firing of President of Basketball Operations Gersson Rosas a week before the start of training camp.
Did Rosas deserve to be fired? Unflattering details about his management style are starting to emerge, along with reports of an inappropriate relationship with a team employee.
Bigger-picture question: Will this sad-sack franchise ever appear competent or organized? Heck, the team even misspelled its own name in the news release announcing Rosas' dismissal, referring to themselves as the "Timberwovles."
Firing the top executive this close to the season means there is more to the story than simply basketball decisions. Clearly, something or many things have happened behind the scenes.
The timing makes no sense otherwise. Wolves owner Glen Taylor hired Rosas in May 2019. Two years isn't nearly enough time to know whether Rosas' philosophical blueprint can succeed.
The Wolves allowed Rosas to detonate the roster with a series of trades and signings that gave the team a distinctive before-after metamorphosis.
They let Rosas fire Ryan Saunders — who has a particularly close relationship with the owner — and hire his hand-picked coach in an awkward transition that subjected the organization to national criticism and scrutiny over the hiring process. And they allowed Rosas to engage in trade talks with Philadelphia for disgruntled All-Star Ben Simmons presumably right up until the moment Taylor informed him to pack his stuff.
Wolves officials nearly dislocated their arms patting themselves on the back when they hired Rosas and then allowed him to wield almost unlimited power in shaping the basketball operations in the manner he wanted.
So, no, this move isn't about his basketball acumen.
Now what? Another reboot at the top decision-making level. More change. More long-term uncertainty.
This season already set up to be an inflection point in the Rosas-Towns regime. Rosas won't be here for it, but that "prove it" pressure remains.
The Wolves need to make tangible progress with a roster built around Towns, Anthony Edwards and D'Angelo Russell. They need to show that this thing is leading to something meaningful — measurable improvement that inspires belief within the fan base and their own locker room.
This is not a "Playoffs or bust" referendum, but the focus the last six weeks of the season better not be limited to debating whether the Wolves should tank or not.
How much more nonsense can Towns endure before he decides he's had enough and requests a trade? His tweet right after the Rosas news broke wasn't exactly filled with positive vibes.
The revolving door of coaches and executives has created instability throughout Towns' career. Towns needs to take ownership of his own deficiencies that have prevented him from ascending to that next level of stardom, but being surrounded by constant chaos must feel like a two-ton anchor dragging him down, down, down.
The looming transition to new owners Marc Lore and Alex Rodriguez adds a layer of unknowns. Those two clearly had a voice in this franchise-altering decision and presumably will take an active role in picking the next basketball boss who might or might not want to keep coach Chris Finch. Will the new president bring a different philosophy on style of play that requires another round of roster construction?
The Timberwolves have conditioned their fans to expect weird and difficult developments, and the organization never fails to deliver. This is just another chapter in a book that never ends.
Taylor, who also owns the Lynx, told season ticket holders he would “miss being there to cheer on the team.”