The Minnesota Timberwolves’ front office is in a state of chaos, and it’s all centered on Jimmy Butler, who requested a trade from the organization earlier in the week. According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, team owner Glen Taylor is going around Tom Thibodeau’s back to field offers for the superstar. Thibodeau, the coach and president of basketball operations for the Timberwolves, is against dealing Butler.
Jimmy Butler trade saga exposes rift between Tom Thibodeau and Wolves ownership
Thibodeau doesn’t want to deal Butler. So Glen Taylor, the team’s owner, is telling teams to contact him, per report.
Photo by Abbie Parr/Getty Images
A Board of Governers attendee told Wojnarowski:
“The owner’s trading him. That was made clear. It’s just a matter of when.”
Another high-ranking official told Wojnarowski of Taylor:
”He basically said, ‘If you don’t get anywhere with [general manager Scott Layden], and you’ve got something good, bring it to me.”
As early as Friday morning it was reported that the Timberwolves were rejecting offers for the 29-year-old star. If he’s going to be canned at the end of the season, Thibodeau’s determined to do so by making the playoffs with Butler rather than rebuilding.
This all comes on the eve of the Timberwolves’ media day, which is slated for Monday. That could be the set of a true, real-time and public disaster for all parties involved.
How bad is this for the Wolves and their fans?
In Wojnarowski’s story, he mentions there’s league-wide speculation that a Taylor-Thibodeau showdown is in play. A spat between the owner and coach/general manager at any point in the year is bad, but it’s especially so when the team’s star player is requesting a trade.
The Timberwolves made a calculated move when they traded Kris Dunn, Zach LaVine and the pick which became Lauri Markkanen for Butler during the 2017 draft, knowing full well what could have happened. Even though the doomsday possibility has come to fruition, there is a chance Minnesota can come out on top should it deal Butler for the right pieces. But with Taylor and Thibodeau fighting internally, a sensible trade becomes all the more difficult.
This mess isn’t going anywhere, and there’s little time to put the pieces together before Monday’s media day appearance.
Buckle up.
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