Jimmy Butler was met with a helping of boos in his first game at home since he requested a trade from the Minnesota Timberwolves. The only person met with a worse roar from his own fans was head coach Tom Thibodeau, who has reportedly been in dispute with the rest of the front office on whether or not to grant Butler’s trade desire.
Minnesota fans went from boo’ing Jimmy Butler to giving him MVP chants in 2 quarters
The Wolves home opener was a predictable mess.
Harrison Barden-USA TODAY Sports
It’s a mess in the Midwest that somehow turned into Butler receiving MVP chants by the second quarter? It’s confusing times.
Here’s what it sounded like at the Target Center for Butler:
Here it is a little bit louder for Thibodeau, though music and the PA announcer swiftly broke the noise up:
And here are the MVP chants?!?:
What’s going on?
Butler’s request for a trade to the Nets, Clippers or Knicks became public on Sept. 19, and chaos has ensued ever since. Nick Wiggins, Andrew’s brother, tweeted “Hallelujah” after Butler’s request became known, starting a beef on Twitter between the two. Andrew would later make a comment as well.
Then the Wolves front office reportedly fought internally on whether to deal Butler or not, with Thibodeau, who also serves as president of basketball operations unwilling to move him. Wolves owner Glen Taylor ultimately told other GMs to contact him directly about potential offers.
Talks heated up between the Heat and Timberwolves on a deal as recently as days before the start of the season, but ultimately the sides couldn’t come to an agreement. Butler came to the realization that he’d have to suit up for a team he wanted no part of. So he caused an absolute scene at a practice, dominating with third-stringers, screaming out that the team needed him to be successful, and then sitting down in an interview with Rachel Nichols.
A true mess.
What’s Butler said?
Butler knew what was coming in his first Target Center appearance since the request, actually encouraging fans to boo.
“Sure, boo me,” Butler said, according to the AP. “Ain’t going to change the way I play. Probably going to make me smile more. Please, come with it.”
Did the fans calm down with the booing?
Not from the beginning. He heard boos every time he touched the ball in the opening minutes of the first quarter.
And fans weren’t ready to put old beefs aside either. Kevin Love, who wanted out of Minnesota in 2014, heard it from the fans too.
There’s a lot happening in Minneapolis, and that won’t stop until Butler’s gone.
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