The internet has plenty to say about the Minnesota Timberwolves organization and the Jimmy Butler saga in which they find themselves embroiled. Here’s a sampling.
The dirty laundry of the entire Minnesota Timberwolves organization has been aired, ladies and gentlemen.
If you hadn’t heard, things have been beyond dysfunctional at Mayo Clinic Square for quite some time. And while not everything can be blamed on any one person — some of the Jimmy Butler stuff sure seems to be all on Jimmy Butler — none of the trio of owner Glen Taylor, general manager Scott Layden, or head coach/president of basketball operations Tom Thibodeau will come out of this looking good.
Here was our recap of the past week, including the meeting, the trade request, the will-they or won’t-they listen to trade offers, and the will-he or won’t-he report for work on Monday.
As of Sunday afternoon, we had a list of more than a dozen teams around the league who have either inquired about Butler or are thought to have interest on some level.
Folks around the NBA now have the perfect opportunity to wax eloquent on the state of the Timberwolves and the mindset of Butler, which has made for a host of interesting content of late. Some take seem a bit more pro-Thibodeau, some pro-Butler, and still others pro-Taylor.
Again, nobody has clean hands here, and there is plenty of blame to go around. But there’s plenty of murky middle ground, too.
First, The Crossover’s Andrew Sharp had a multi-faceted take over at SI.com. While not everything was groundbreaking, he had some astute points, including expanding on the notion that, as it turns out, it sure seems like stars don’t want to play with LeBron James anymore.
Also, here he is on Thibodeau:
"Thibodeau deserves blame for most of what has gone wrong here, particularly the lack of progress from his young stars and the apparently toxic environment behind the scenes in Minnesota. He’s failed as both a coach and a manager. When Thibodeau first took over with the Wolves, a friend in the league predicted that he’d win a lot the first few years and that “it will get ugly at the end.” That second phase has come sooner than anyone could’ve guessed.Having said all of that, it seems a bit disingenuous to crush Thibs for the way the Butler trade has played out. The minute Minnesota acquired Butler, the risk of his departure was clear. He was an aging guard going to a small market and looking to contend in a loaded conference, two years away from free agency. There was some obvious risk there. Practically the entire basketball media loved the trade anyway—the Wolves were done with trips to the lottery, the logic went, and it was time to bet on the young guys they already had. On draft night, it absolutely looked like they swindled the Bulls."
Over at The Ringer, Chris Ryan takes a look at Glen Taylor as the Mad King Owner, focusing on his “20th century” ownership style essentially being old-fashioned in a different way than the coach that he reportedly is at odds with.
It’s a solid read that further breaks down the perspectives of both Taylor and Thibodeau that doesn’t break any news and steers mostly clear of hot takes, so make sure to check it out.
Also, Sam Vecenie of The Athletic defended Karl-Anthony Towns (subscription to The Athletic required), which is admittedly a strange thing to have to do with a 22-year-old superstar.
Monday is media day for the Timberwolves, and it will go on sans Butler. It will be interesting to see the approach of the Twin Cities media given just how crazy things have already been, and it will be equally as interesting to see how Thibodeau, Layden, and the players interact and respond to any pointed questions.
There remains a strong possibility that a Butler trade goes down on Monday, or perhaps early on Tuesday as training camp commences. Stay tuned.