ded Russias return to Olympic relevance and coaches in Isr

MINNEAPOLIS -- The Minnesota Timberwolves best days came with Flip Saunders on the sideline. Now that the organization is shrouded in uncertainty surrounding the long-term future of star forward Kevin Love, Saunders is returning to the bench to try revive a franchise that hasnt made the playoffs in 10 years. With the teams coaching search complicated by Loves status, the Timberwolves decided the best course of action was to have Saunders, who was hired last season as president of basketball operations, step in for a second stint as coach until the situation stabilized, two people with knowledge of the situation told The Associated Press on Thursday. The people spoke on condition of anonymity because the team has not officially announced the move. A news conference was scheduled for Friday. Saunders previously coached the Timberwolves from 1995-2005. He won 411 games in 10 1/2 seasons in Minnesota and guided the Wolves to the only eight playoff appearances in franchise history, including the Western Conference finals in 2004. He has a career record of 638-526 in 16 seasons as an NBA head coach, a career that also includes stops in Detroit and Washington. Saunders is joining a short list in the NBA of coaches that also have final-say executive authority, one that includes newly hired Stan Van Gundy in Detroit, Doc Rivers with the Los Angeles Clippers and, to a certain extent, Gregg Popovich in San Antonio. Saunders will continue to work closely with GM Milt Newton in the front office while handling coaching duties. When Rick Adelman retired at the end of the regular season, he did so in part to try to help the Timberwolves move forward with a plan to show Love, a three-time All-Star who can opt out of his contract next summer, that there was a long-term plan in place for success. But Loves tenuous situation didnt help the search process, with trade rumours serving as a caution sign for several high-profile candidates. Saunders was in the market for a coach with extensive head coaching experience, either in the NBA or at a major college program, one that could command the respect of a young locker room and also handle the media scrutiny that comes with the questions surrounding Love. Names like Tom Izzo, Billy Donovan and Fred Hoiberg came and went without any traction. The Wolves hosted Memphis coach Dave Joerger for an interview two weekends ago, but Grizzlies owner Robert Pera sweetened his contract to keep him around. Sam Mitchell, Lionel Hollins, Scott Skiles and several others received consideration as well. Unable to find what they felt was the right fit for a delicate job, Saunders and owner Glen Taylor met this week to reassess the situation. Taylor said when he brought Saunders back as team president that he would not put him back on the bench. He fired Saunders as coach once before, in 2005 when Latrell Sprewell and Sam Cassell, unhappy with their contracts, submarined the follow-up to the teams stirring run to the Western Conference finals. Saunders was also hopeful that he could find someone other than himself to take over the team. But with Loves status preventing them from pursuing the coaches they felt would fit best, the two decided that Saunders should take over for at least this season if not longer. The Timberwolves have not given up on convincing Love to play out this season in Minnesota and re-sign next summer to a contract that can pay him and extra year and about $26.5 million more than any other team. It was not immediately clear what the appointment of Saunders would do for Loves desires to stay or go. Love has yet to make the playoffs in his six seasons in the league and is believed to be growing impatient with the Wolves, who finished 40-42 and in 10th place in the West this year. Love created a stir when he spent last weekend in Boston, where the Celtics are rumoured to be making a run at trading for the 25-year-old power forward before the June 26 draft. Just how long Saunders will coach remains to be seen. There is the possibility that Saunders will add assistants to his staff who could be groomed to eventually take over. The Wolves were expected to reach out to Mitchell, a former Timberwolves player and Raptors head coach, and David Blatt, who has spearheaded Russias return to Olympic relevance and coaches in Israel, to gauge their interest in joining his staff. Wholesale NFL Jerseys . Villa has already confirmed his short-term deal and the Daily Mirror reported early Tuesday that Lampard will join him as both build up match fitness ahead of moves to the new Major League Soccer franchise New York City. Supply Cheap NFL Jerseys . With the players association in the midst of meetings in Las Vegas, a vote will be held on Friday to decide the CFLPAs presidency and other executive positions. http://www.cheapnfljerseysbest.com/.FIFA said its appeals panel ruled the case not admissible.The former U.S. Attorney had objected to ethics judge Joachim Eckerts summary of the World Cup bid investigation, claiming numerous materially incomplete and erroneous representations of his work. Cheap NFL Shirts .In a statement released Friday, the Catalan club said the Brazil stars recovery would be monitored to determine when he can begin training again. Jerseys NFL Cheap .C. -- Only two Syracuse teams have won their first 20 games, and C.OTTAWA -- The Canadian Olympian who cycled around Canada to raise mental health awareness ended her ride on Tuesday with a triumphant Canada Day finish on Parliament Hill. Clara Hughes was greeted with cheers as she cycled onto the stage that was constructed in front of the Peace Tower for this years Canada Day festivities, still in her biking gear after almost four months on the road. Hughes, an Olympic cyclist and speed skater, has cycled more than 11,000 kilometres, passing through all 10 provinces and three territories since she kicked off her ride in March. Throughout the journey, she has discussed her own battles with depression. "Thank you Canada, for being so beautiful, for being so amazing," Hughes told the crowd of about 25,000 people, singling out the countrys aboriginal communities in particular for sharing with her their mental illness struggles. "This ride has been like no other in my lifetime, it has been the ride of a lifetime, because it has meant a connnection through struggle, not just joy.dddddddddddd" The 41-year-old Hughes has won six Olympic medals in both cycling and speed skating, tying her with speed skater Cindy Klassen as the Canadian with the biggest haul. Following her appearance on Parliament Hill, Hughes and her entourage were shuttled to 24 Sussex Drive for a visit with the prime minister. She then travelled to Rideau Hall, where she had lunch with Gov. Gen. David Johnston the day after he awarded her a meritorious service cross for her efforts to raise mental health awareness. "I am relieved and happy and proud all at once, and exhausted," she told a news conference on the grounds of Rideau Hall. She added she hopes her ride helps to remove the stigma attached to mental illness. "On this ride, as many times as I was inspired is as many times as my heart was broken into a million pieces because I met someone who has or is struggling in silence, I met someone who lost someone." ' ' '