Timberwolves hire Rosas as team's new president of basketball operations

The Minnesota Timberwolves hired Gersson Rosas on Wednesday as their new president of basketball operations, ESPN reported. Rosas comes from a 16-year stint with the Houston Rockets where he served the last five years as vice president of basketball operations, although he did serve briefly as the Dallas Mavericks' general manager in 2013.

In January, the Timberwolves fired head coach and president Tom Thibodeau and aere moving toward separating the two positions. Rosas has been a major influence on the Rockets' current push toward analytics and the team's emphasis on 3-point shooting. He had also reportedly interviewed for positions in the Washington Wizards, Charlotte Hornets and New Orleans Pelicans organizations.

His first order of business in Minnesota is expected to be a decision at head coach. Ryan Saunders was named interim head coach after Thibodeau was fired and the team has not yet decided on a permanent replacement. Rosas was the Mavericks general manager for just three months in 2013, leaving because he reportedly wanted more control with player personnel decisions. The short stint did earn him the honor of becoming the first Latino general manager in NBA history.

Rosas is a native of Bogota, Colombia, but he did grow up and attend high school in the Houston area.