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Flip Saunders reached an agreement Wednesday to become the new coach of the Detroit Pistons, who wasted no time replacing Larry Brown.
[size=-2]Saunders[/size] The hiring of Saunders, the former coach of the Minnesota Timberwolves, was confirmed by an Eastern Conference official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the team planned to announce the deal at a news conference Thursday.
Following talks between Pistons team president Joe Dumars and Saunders' agent, the deal was finalized early Wednesday evening.
The Detroit News reported Saunders will receive a four-year contract worth between $4 million and $5 million per season.
Saunders' agent, Mark Termini, did not immediately return phone calls.
The appointment comes just one day after the Pistons finalized their severance agreement with Brown.
Team owner Bill Davidson provided some insight into the departure of the 64-year-old coach in an interview with WDIV-TV.
Brown, who had three years remaining on a five-year, $25 million contract, reportedly received $5 million in his severance package. He has already been contacted by New York Knicks president Isiah Thomas, who plans to meet with Brown in the coming days to gauge his interest in replacing interim coach Herb Williams.
Davidson was a key player in the departure of Brown, who spoke during the spring with the Cleveland Cavaliers about possibly becoming team president and also told the New York Post in the middle of last season that coaching the Knicks would be a "dream job."
Asked whether Brown's actions angered him, Davidson said: "I think a better word is peeved. You're certainly not happy when something like that happens."
Parting ways with Brown "was kind of easy," Davidson said. "There was too much Larry Brown and not enough Pistons. I wasn't happy with that. You've got to understand that whoever coaches the Pistons represents me. And I'm not going to give [the team and their fans] somebody that's not a good person."
Brown guided the Pistons to the NBA championship in 2004 and came one victory away from repeating this year. Throughout the season, Brown -- who underwent hip replacement surgery that led to a problem with his bladder -- insisted he would return to the Pistons if doctors deemed him healthy enough.
Saunders interviewed with several teams during the playoffs, nearly all of which filled their coaching vacancies with other candidates. Saunders was due to make more than $5 million in the upcoming season from the Timberwolves, who fired him in February after he had coached the franchise to a record of 411-326 over 9½ seasons.
"I'd certainly pay $7 million to win a championship," Davidson told WDIV.
Flip Saunders reached an agreement Wednesday to become the new coach of the Detroit Pistons, who wasted no time replacing Larry Brown.
[size=-2]Saunders[/size] The hiring of Saunders, the former coach of the Minnesota Timberwolves, was confirmed by an Eastern Conference official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the team planned to announce the deal at a news conference Thursday.
Following talks between Pistons team president Joe Dumars and Saunders' agent, the deal was finalized early Wednesday evening.
The Detroit News reported Saunders will receive a four-year contract worth between $4 million and $5 million per season.
Saunders' agent, Mark Termini, did not immediately return phone calls.
The appointment comes just one day after the Pistons finalized their severance agreement with Brown.
Team owner Bill Davidson provided some insight into the departure of the 64-year-old coach in an interview with WDIV-TV.
Brown, who had three years remaining on a five-year, $25 million contract, reportedly received $5 million in his severance package. He has already been contacted by New York Knicks president Isiah Thomas, who plans to meet with Brown in the coming days to gauge his interest in replacing interim coach Herb Williams.
Davidson was a key player in the departure of Brown, who spoke during the spring with the Cleveland Cavaliers about possibly becoming team president and also told the New York Post in the middle of last season that coaching the Knicks would be a "dream job."
Asked whether Brown's actions angered him, Davidson said: "I think a better word is peeved. You're certainly not happy when something like that happens."
Parting ways with Brown "was kind of easy," Davidson said. "There was too much Larry Brown and not enough Pistons. I wasn't happy with that. You've got to understand that whoever coaches the Pistons represents me. And I'm not going to give [the team and their fans] somebody that's not a good person."
Brown guided the Pistons to the NBA championship in 2004 and came one victory away from repeating this year. Throughout the season, Brown -- who underwent hip replacement surgery that led to a problem with his bladder -- insisted he would return to the Pistons if doctors deemed him healthy enough.
Saunders interviewed with several teams during the playoffs, nearly all of which filled their coaching vacancies with other candidates. Saunders was due to make more than $5 million in the upcoming season from the Timberwolves, who fired him in February after he had coached the franchise to a record of 411-326 over 9½ seasons.
"I'd certainly pay $7 million to win a championship," Davidson told WDIV.
