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Flip Saunders, despite track record, says he loves 3-pointers

Russ Isabella-USA TODAY Sports

Minnesota Timberwolves coach Flip Saunders, who's often perceived as carrying an old-school mentality, doesn't hate the 3-pointer after all.

Saunders, back on Twitter following more than a year away from the social media platform, shot back at the bloggers and media members Sunday who've pointed out his teams' lack of reliance on 3-point shooting over the last 15 years.

After reading a series of blog posts and tweets addressing that fact, Saunders wanted the world to know he isn't opposed to the long-range game.

The notion that Saunders doesn't appreciate the 3-point shot, in an era where teams are becoming increasingly dependent on it, likely comes from his teams rarely ranking high in attempts from that part of the floor. Since 2000, only two Saunders teams placed in the top 20 in 3-point attempts, with the Timberwolves finishing last in the NBA in 2014-15 at just 14.9 per game.

In his defense, the key cogs in his rotation are below-average 3-point shooters, with Andrew Wiggins (31 percent), Ricky Rubio (25.5 percent), and Zach LaVine (34.1 percent) all struggling in that department. Veteran guard Kevin Martin (39.3 percent) is the team's top marksman, although injuries have kept him on the sidelines more often than not. Rookie Karl-Anthony Towns isn't going to stretch the floor much, either.

One of the last times anyone had heard from the 60-year-old coach on Twitter was in February of last year, when Saunders was denying reports that former Timberwolves All-Star Kevin Love was going to opt out of his contract and demand a trade.

- With h/t to Pro Basketball Talk

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