In the absence of Jimmy Butler, the Minnesota Timberwolves simply aren’t the same team. Some of that, of course, has to do with missing an All-Star wing, but Butler has seemingly observed some troubling signs during his injury absence and he shared them on Tuesday.
Butler practiced in full on Tuesday, a strong step toward his potential return from knee surgery that has kept the swingman on the shelf since Feb. 23. After practice, though, he didn’t hold back in evaluating what he’s seen out of the team.
“We gotta get tougher,” Butler said, via the team’s official website. “We gotta play like some dogs, with a sense of urgency. Teams just do whatever they want against us. I don’t like it but there ain’t no coach in the world that can make somebody play hard, ain’t no coach in the world that can make anybody want it. Everybody’s playing in the fight of their life, we gotta realize that and as a whole go out there and be the tougher team every single night, every single possession.”
Minnesota sports a 44-34 overall record and, barring disaster, the Wolves will break a lengthy playoff drought thanks in part to Butler’s stellar individual work. Still, the Wolves are a very different team without him, struggling to a 10-12 mark. Additionally, Minnesota is 26th in the league in defensive efficiency this year, which is a concern the team has as it enters the postseason regardless of Butler’s status.
While his observations aren’t necessarily ground-breaking, it is definitely noteworthy to see the team’s veteran centerpiece spur toughness from his squad. It remains to be seen how the Wolves will look in a playoff setting and, for Butler individually, full-blown health cannot be assumed since he’s coming off of surgery. With that said, his comments certainly bring a ton of intrigue as he approaches a return to full-time action.
