Timberwolves name Sidney Lowe assistant coach
Timberwolves Name Sidney Lowe Assistant Coach
Minneapolis/St. Paul The Minnesota Timberwolves today announced Sidney Lowe as an assistant coach on head coach Flip Saunders staff. This will be Lowe's fourth time coaching alongside Saunders, previously serving as an assistant under him in Minnesota both from 1999-2000 and 2003-05, and in Detroit from 2005-06. Per team policy, terms of the deal were not announced.
"We are excited to add Sid Lowe to our coaching staff," said head coach Flip Saunders. "I have great respect for Sid. He has a great basketball mind and an extensive coaching background as a head and assistant coach in both the NBA and collegiate levels, which will be extremely valuable on our staff. Sid relates well with players and will play an important role in the development of talent on our roster."
Lowe's ties with Minnesota originally began in 1989-90 as a player with the organization in its inaugural season, appearing in a career-high 80 games and averaging 21.8 minutes per game. He retired after the season, remaining with the organization as the team's television color analyst for the 1990-91 season. He became an assistant coach the next season under then-head-coach Jimmy Rodgers, eventually being promoted to head coach midway through the 1992-93 season and remaining in the position through the 1993-94 season.
Prior to re-joining Saunders' staff, Lowe served three seasons (2011-14) as an assistant with the Utah Jazz on former Timberwolves teammate Tyrone Corbin's staff after previously serving as the head coach at North Carolina State University (2006-11). In his first season on the sidelines, he became just the third NC State coach to win 20 games and defeat the other three North Carolina institutions in the ACC (Duke, North Carolina and Wake Forest). He is one of only four NC State coaches to have coached in the ACC Championship game in his first year.
Following five seasons as an assistant with Cleveland (1994-99) and one season with Minnesota (1999-2000), Lowe was named head coach of the Vancouver Grizzlies in June of 2000, eventually moving with the team to Memphis before stepping down shortly into the 2002-03 campaign.
As a player, Lowe was originally selected by the Chicago Bulls with the first pick of the second round (25th overall) in the 1983 NBA Draft, whom immediately traded his rights to Indiana, where he spent the 1983-84 season. In 1984-85, Lowe spent time with both the Pistons and Atlanta Hawks. Over the next three years, Lowe was a point guard in the Continental Basketball Association, leading his teams to three consecutive CBA titles. He started the 1988-89 season with the Rapid City Thrillers before signing with the Charlotte Hornets. In 1990, Lowe joined the expansion Timberwolves.
The rest of Saunders' staff will be announced at a later date.
Contact information:
Aaron Seehusen, Minnesota Timberwolves, (612) 673-1602, seehusen@timberwolves.com
Dan Bell, Minnesota Timberwolves, (612) 673-1603, bell@timberwolves.com
Alex King, Minnesota Timberwolves, (612) 673-1632, king@timberwolves.com
