Timberwolves fire Thibodeau amid a tumultuous season

MINNEAPOLIS — The Minnesota Timberwolves fired coach Tom Thibodeau halfway into his third season with the team that began with the turmoil surrounding the eventual trade of All-Star Jimmy Butler.

Thibodeau was dismissed about an hour after the 108-86 victory over the LeBron James-less Los Angeles Lakers that left Minnesota with a 19-21 record.

Scott Layden will remain the general manager overseeing the basketball operations, and assistant coach Ryan Saunders will be the interim head coach for the remainder of the season.

“We would like to thank Tom for his efforts and wish him all the best,” Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor said in a statement. “These decisions are never easy to make, but we felt them necessary to move our organization forward.”

RAPTORS 121, PACERS 105

Norman Powell scored a season-high 23 points, Pascal Siakam had 12 points and 10 rebounds, and Toronto beat visiting Indiana, snapping their six-game winning streak.

Serge Ibaka scored 18 points, while Kyle Lowry had 12 points and eight assists after missing the previous six games because of a sore lower back. Lowry played 32 minutes and shot 4-of-10, going 2-of-6 from 3-point range.

WIZARDS 116, THUNDER 98

Bradley Beal scored 25 points and Otto Porter had 20 points, six rebounds and five assists to help host Washington beat Oklahoma City.

Russell Westbrook had 22 points, 15 rebounds and 13 assists for his 12th tripledouble of the season. Paul George added 17 for the Thunder, who had won their previous three games.

HAWKS 106, HEAT 82

Trae Young scored 19 points, John Collins had 13 points and 13 rebounds, and Atlanta snapped a three-game skid with a victory over visiting Miami.

Dwyane Wade hit his 500th career 3-pointer in the loss, joining Michael Jordan and LeBron James as the only players in NBA history with at least 20,000 points, 5,000 assists, 4,000 rebounds, 1,500 steals, 800 blocks and 500 3s.