Minnesota Timberwolves: Is the season already lost?

With an offseason smothered by drama surrounding Jimmy Butler’s trade request and subsequent fiery return to practice, many Twitter users have written on the upcoming year as a lost season, and perhaps a lost opportunity for the Timberwolves. However, with a talented team that may gel better without Butler’s presence, all hope isn’t lost just yet.

The drama started with rumors Jimmy Butler wasn’t happy with the work ethic of some of the Minnesota Timberwolves‘ biggest stars. It wasn’t until September we were met with solid evidence Butler had in fact requested a trade from the team, and provided a list of his preferred destinations to the front office.

Although it was reported the work ethic of Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins didn’t play a role in the decision, it seems Butler isn’t happy with his situation in Minnesota, and wants out.

Even now, after Butler’s belated return to the team for training, his presence in Minnesota seems to be doing the team more harm than good. Most reports coming out of his return to training seem to showcase a Butler that seems to believe he’s above the rest of the team, and cements his unhappiness with the current situation.

https://twitter.com/SLAMonline/status/1050159851773579264

Just hours after the Wolves’ practice, Butler was interviewed for ESPN, something supposedly planned out. I spent last season as a big Butler fan, but moves like these are obviously intended to be damaging to the team, and further Butler’s own motives.

Whether there’s drama he’s starting, or if he in fact has issues with teammates, there’s no need to air a teams’ dirty laundry to the entire sporting world.

As he does here in this clip:

Butler remains on the team’s roster after earlier trade talks reportedly fell apart, yet it seems almost impossible at this point that Butler, Wiggins, and Towns will be able to coexist on the roster come regular season. With Wiggins and Towns both owning 5-year max contract extensions, that leaves Butler the odd one out – and perhaps that’s how he wants it.

Trade talks have reportedly resumed with Miami, and Butler may be off our hands sooner rather than later, but what the Wolves will expect in return is still up in the air.

There’s no doubt Butler was a big contributor to the Timberwolves’ first playoff campaign in fourteen years last season. Through his 59 games, he was the Wolves’ leading scorer at 22.2 points a game, adding 2 steals and almost 5 assists per game.

His season was limited due to injury, and the Wolves suffered a slump during the period he was out, resulting in our season finale win-or-die game.

While missing Butler may have been a big deal for the Wolves last year, a season without him would offer a bigger opportunity for Towns and Wiggins to star. The Timberwolves roster already boasts plenty of talent, and a trade involving Butler would likely only bring back more in return.

Some trade ideas we’ve discussed here at Dunking With Wolves would bring big talent back to the Wolves. Whether or not these trades are feasible for the other teams is there decision, but Butler is still a prized commodity in the NBA world, and teams are likely to offer some big names in return, and may also allow us to get Gorgui Dieng’s bloated contract off the books.

Take a look at these two potential deals outlined by our own, Trey Flynn:

How likely either of these trades are, remains to be seen, although its been reported plenty of the trade talks with Miami have surrounded Josh Richardson.

Trades aside, the Timberwolves have struggled this preseason. Not that preseason matters, as has been shown time and time again, but it may be worth noting this will be the Wolves’ first losing preseason since 2015.

However, the Wolves still have an abundance of young talent, now more matured than the team we were fielding 4-5 years ago. Towns and Wiggins have grown as players, and Thibs has brought  a number of veterans on board, but it still doesn’t seem to be enough.

Without Butler, there’s no reason the Timberwolves won’t be able to compete and should still be considered a playoff contender. The Western Conference is tougher, but so are the Wolves. Losing Butler should only strengthen the bond within the team, and any new talent brought in could bolster the squad.

We’ll have to continue to wait for news on Butler’s departure, but there’s no reason for Wolves’ fans to worry about the season ahead.

Let’s just hope that a decent haul comes back to Minnesota for Butler’s talents.