Ryan Saunders

Ryan Philip Saunders (born April 28, 1986)[1] is an American basketball coach and former player who is the head coach for the Minnesota Timberwolves of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He is known for his work in player development while with the Washington Wizards staff.[2]

Ryan Saunders
Saunders in 2019
Minnesota Timberwolves
PositionHead coach
LeagueNBA
Personal information
Born (1986-04-28) April 28, 1986
Medina, Minnesota
NationalityAmerican
Listed height6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Career information
High schoolWayzata (Plymouth, Minnesota)
CollegeMinnesota (2004–2008)
Coaching career2009–present
Career history
As coach:
2009–2014Washington Wizards (assistant)
2014–2019Minnesota Timberwolves (assistant)
2019–presentMinnesota Timberwolves

Early life

Born in Medina, Minnesota, Saunders graduated from Wayzata High School in Plymouth, Minnesota in 2004.[3]

College playing career

A walk-on, Saunders played basketball at the University of Minnesota from 2004 to 2008 as a guard. He played only 20 games in his first two seasons in a backup role.[4] Saunders redshirted the 2006–07 season due to a wrist injury and did not play any games in the 2007–08 season.[4] Saunders graduated from Minnesota in 2008 with a bachelor's degree in sport management.[5]

Coaching career
Saunders in 2009 as the University of Minnesota graduate manager

After he achieved his bachelor's degree and finished playing college basketball, Saunders was a graduate manager under Tubby Smith in the 2008–09 season while pursuing a master's degree in applied kinesiology.[6][5]

In 2009, he began coaching in the NBA, becoming an assistant coach for the Washington Wizards. Then, starting in 2014, he was an assistant coach for the Minnesota Timberwolves. On January 6, 2019, Saunders was promoted to interim head coach of the Timberwolves after Tom Thibodeau was fired,[7] also becoming the youngest head coach in the NBA for the 2018–19 season.[8] On January 8, Saunders got his first win in his debut as head coach when the Timberwolves defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder,[9] and became the youngest head coach to win in his debut since 1978.[10] On May 20, the Timberwolves announced that Saunders signed to a multi-year deal to become the team's permanent head coach, removing his "interim" status.[11] At age 33, Saunders became the youngest head coach in the league, despite having over 10 years of NBA experience under his belt.[12]

Head coaching record
Legend
Regular season G Games coached W Games won L Games lost W–L % Win–loss %
Playoffs PG Playoff games PW Playoff wins PL Playoff losses PW–L % Playoff win–loss %
Team Year G W L W–L% Finish PG PW PL PW–L% Result
Minnesota 2018–19 421725.4055th in Northwest———— Missed playoffs
Minnesota 2019–20 641945.2975th in Northwest———— Missed playoffs
Career 1063670.340————

Personal life

When Saunders was born, his father Flip Saunders was an assistant coach at the University of Minnesota.[13] Ryan Saunders grew up in Wisconsin and South Dakota, as Flip later worked as head coach for CBA teams in those states (specifically, the Rapid City Thrillers (1988–1989), La Crosse Catbirds (1989–1994), and Sioux Falls Skyforce (1994–1995)). In 1995, the Saunders family returned to the Minneapolis–Saint Paul area when Flip Saunders became head coach of the Minnesota Timberwolves, a position he would maintain for the rest of Ryan's childhood.[14]

Saunders married his wife Hayley in 2017, and they had a son in 2019.[15]

Saunders has taken part in multiple basketball camps for the youth and charitable organizations in Minnesota.[16]

References
  1. "Ryan Saunders" (PDF). Minnesota Basketball 2007-08. University of Minnesota. p. 64.
  2. Jackson, Brian (August 2, 2013). "Ryan Saunders staying in Washington". CSN Washington. Archived from the original on August 4, 2013. Retrieved May 21, 2019.
  3. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on March 18, 2006. Retrieved March 18, 2006.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  4. https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/players/ryan-saunders-1.html
  5. "Ryan Saunders". NBA. 2012. Retrieved April 18, 2015.
  6. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on February 21, 2009. Retrieved February 21, 2009.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  7. "Timberwolves Relieve Tom Thibodeau of his Duties". NBA.com. January 6, 2019. Retrieved January 6, 2019.
  8. Ratke, Kyle (January 7, 2019). "Get To Know Timberwolves Interim Head Coach Ryan Saunders". NBA.com. Retrieved January 9, 2019.
  9. Ratke, Kyle (January 8, 2019). "Saunders Leads Wolves To Emotional Win In Debut". NBA.com. Retrieved January 9, 2019.
  10. Mathur, Ashish (January 8, 2019). "Ryan Saunders becomes youngest coach in NBA history to win his coaching debut since 1978". ClutchPoints. Retrieved January 9, 2019.
  11. "Minnesota Timberwolves Name Ryan Saunders Head Coach". NBA.com. May 20, 2019. Retrieved May 21, 2019.
  12. Blackburn, Pete (May 20, 2019). "Minnesota Timberwolves make Ryan Saunders, 33, the NBA's youngest head coach". CBSSports.com. Retrieved May 21, 2019.
  13. "Wizards Assistant Coaches". NBA.com. Retrieved May 3, 2014.
  14. http://www.nba.com/coachfile/flip_saunders/index.html
  15. FOX. "Timberwolves head coach Ryan Saunders, wife welcome baby boy". KMSP. Retrieved July 6, 2019.
  16. Wizards Assistant Coaches
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