In one of the most embarrassing offseasons to date, Minnesota Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor must realize it’s his time to ride into the sunset.
The Minnesota Timberwolves have plenty of head-scratching drama in their history, but none might be as confusing as what we had to endure this offseason with the Jimmy Butler fiasco, which has now spilled into the regular season.
While many are calling for the end of the Tom Thibodeau era only two seasons into it, what really needs to happen for the Wolves to be successful again is the sale of the team.
It’s no secret that Glen Taylor has under-performed as an owner during his tenure of owning the franchise that dates back to 1994. However, he needs to have the foresight to know that he has overstayed his welcome and gracefully move on from a situation he has proven he cannot control.
Arguably the most powerful voice in the Timberwolves community, Kevin Garnett, laid into him during the pregame show on TNT on Tuesday, which was the NBA’s opening night.
Garnett stated during the live broadcast, “I totally understand . I totally get it. And he’s dealing with Glen, who doesn’t know (expletive) about basketball. He knows how to make money, but he don’t know anything about basketball. I wouldn’t say that he’s the best basketball mind.”
This type of honesty can only be expected from the always candid Garnett and has been long overdue. When this is the story going into a season that was supposed to be filled with promise, it sets the table for distractions and a path to another lost season in Timberwolves history.
Players requesting trades is a part of the business. However, not having your coach and general manager on the same page as the head of the entire organization, along with handing the keys to a coach to make roster decisions as the president of basketball operations and then speaking out against his decisions is not only counterproductive, but creates even more animosity within the organization.
Taylor and Co. also did Butler a disservice by keeping him on the roster for opening night when he had opportunities to have him move on and get something in return. Butler will be subjected to a rain of boos lack of trust in his commitment to the Timberwolves since he clearly wants to move on.
While this is a bed he made, Taylor made matters worse by being headstrong on trading him, yet coming up empty-handed in the end. There has been zero clarity during this whole ordeal and it has been a combination of Taylor speaking out and then disappearing into the shadows once again.
Although Taylor has not expressed any desire to sell the team of late, the time has come for the Taylor era to finally end, both for the player’s sake as well as the fans. He has gone from being a quiet owner to mismanaging an organization into a laughingstock while throwing away its potential.
The Timberwolves could use a lot of things, but it starts at the top and Taylor needs to have the pride to realize that.