In the turbulent 48 hours between the time he became the interim Timberwolves coach last Sunday and earning his first victory Tuesday, Ryan Saunders said he was trying to limit the amount of time and energy he devoted to his constantly buzzing phone.
In the interest of sanity, he tried only to respond to family, close friends and those within the Wolves organization.
One call he took was from one of his father Flip's good friends, Tom Izzo.
The Michigan State coach said he could sense the nerves in Saunders' voice.
"All he was talking about was getting the team ready, doing this, doing that," Izzo said. "But I think in general just the way he handles things is a lot like Flip. I call him a Mini-Me. He's a Mini-Flip."
And just like Flip, Izzo said, coaching is what Ryan Saunders was born to do. It was evident in his childhood when he would stay awake to watch film with Flip, through high school, his time as a walk-on with the Gophers, then becoming an assistant in the NBA.
Ryan, 32, is about the same age as his dad was when Flip first was hired to coach a pro team _ the Rapid City Thrillers of the old CBA. They even have some of the same sideline mannerisms, including a neck twitch noted by the Timberwolves this week.
Getting his first head coaching job after owner Glen Taylor fired Tom Thibodeau isn't ideal timing for Saunders, but his whole life has prepared him for this moment, even if he allowed a small amount of doubt to creep.
"I think anything in life, you never know if you're ready if you're in the situation," Saunders said.
But those who know him think he is more than ready.
"What's crazy is that how many people know for sure what they want to do when they're like 12, 13, 14 years old?" said former Gophers center and current analyst Spencer Tollackson. "And then to go actually make it happen at the pinnacle of their career at 32? To have the opportunity he has to be a coach at the highest level, pretty cool stuff."
