During 15 years in charge of the Minnesota Timberwolves, Kevin McHale forged two distinct reputations.

There was McHale the gifted teacher, beloved by players and staff for his relentlessly positive demeanor and an unending eagerness to share his wealth of basketball knowledge. Then there was McHale the mistake-prone executive, vilified by fans for a series of blunders and the failure to make his team into a consistent championship contender.

New president of basketball operations David Kahn dumped McHale as coach yesterday, praising him as a "great man" who deserves respect. But offered no specific reasons at a news conference for his decision, saying instead that "this is going to be a transition period. And with the changes that have occurred, and with the changes that are still going to come, it would have been difficult to put him in the middle of that again."

McHale, a northern Minnesota native and Hall of Fame player who won three NBA titles with the Boston Celtics in the 1980s, met several times with Kahn before the decision was reached.

"I was willing to come back, but they never offered me a contract," McHale said. "They told me last night they were going in a different direction. I said, 'I think you're making a mistake, but that's up to you guys.' "

Players lamented the loss of the teacher.

"I was more shocked, disappointed, hurt," said forward Al Jefferson, one of many players who urged Kahn to bring McHale back next season. "But at the same time I understand that this is a business."

Though he helped turn one of the most hapless franchises in professional sports into a playoff team by boldly drafting Kevin Garnett out of high school with the fifth pick in 1995, McHale received massive criticism from fans the last few years for a series of draft-day failures and other roster moves that never worked out.

After a stirring run to the Western Conference Finals in 2004, the Timberwolves have not made the playoffs since.

Former NBA referee Tim Donaghy arrived at Tampa, Fla., halfway house yesterday from a federal prison camp in the Florida Panhandle to serve the rest of his 15-month sentence in a gambling scandal, his spokesman said.

Prison officials put Donaghy on a bus that left Pensacola about midnight instead of the usual procedure of moving inmates between 6 a.m. and 9 a.m. to prevent him from having contact with the media, said Pat Zaranek of Executive Prison Consultants.

"They just don't want to deal with it," Zaranek said.

A New York judge sentenced Donaghy last year to 15 months after the referee said he took thousands of dollars from a professional gambler in exchange for inside tips on NBA games -- including games he worked. Donaghy said he was a gambling addict.

He pleaded guilty to conspiracy to engage in wire fraud and transmitting betting information through interstate commerce in the tips-for-payoffs scheme. Donaghy started serving his sentence in September and is scheduled for release in October.

Donaghy is a client of Zaranek's firm, which helps federal defendants -- mostly white-collar criminals -- prepare for prison and adjust back to society when they are freed. Zaranek said Donaghy will be required to look for a job while at the halfway house. He has a degree in sales and marketing from Villanova.