Despite Tom Thibodeau’s best efforts, it appears the Minnesota Timberwolves are going to grant Jimmy Butler’s trade request, and do so soon.
Thibodeau has balked at the idea of trading the star guard, but owner Glen Taylor has reportedly stepped in and made it clear Butler is to be dealt and dealt soon. Taylor doesn’t want the drama to loom over everything the team does during training camp and his standpoint is understandable, but it will certainly make for some tension between he and Thibodeau — and bring Thibs’ future with the team into question.
In any case, a deal getting done seems to be just a matter of time, but things are slow-moving as of this moment. That doesn’t mean things can’t change, as trade talks can always escalate quickly into an actual framework of a deal being put together, but according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, talks haven’t yet become serious with any teams.
However, there are a number of teams making calls, with Woj listing eight in particular that have at least expressed some interest in trying to work out a deal, headlined by the Clippers, Sixers, Blazers, and Rockets.
So far, few franchises, if any, are engaged in serious conversations with the Timberwolves on Butler, sources said. But the list of organizations interested in talking further with Minnesota is significant, league sources said: Brooklyn, Detroit, Houston, the LA Clippers, Miami, Philadelphia, Portland and Sacramento are among the teams interested in probing for deals.
You can also add the Cleveland Cavaliers to that list of teams interested in a deal, as Wojnarowski reported Dan Gilbert and Taylor spoke at the NBA’s Board of Governors meeting and both were instrumental in the Wiggins-Love trade from 2014, so there is a working relationship there. Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today notes the Bucks and Wizards also could get into the mix.
My understanding is that there are other teams beyond those original three that Butler wants to play and perhaps sign a long-term deal with. @wojespn's latest has some of those teams. I'd add Washington and Milwaukee as outliers.
— Jeff Zillgitt (@JeffZillgitt) September 23, 2018
It’s an interesting mix of teams, and there’s likely a wide variance in actual interest from all of those squads. Some may simply be probing and seeing what the Wolves’ asking price is, while others may be more motivated to get a deal done. The group of established playoff squads listed are especially interesting, because they obviously could use Butler to advance their position in their respective conference playoff races.
The Nets and Clippers are the two teams involved right now that were on Butler’s shortlist of preferred options, and each has reason to be motivated to get a deal done to lock up a star player for the foreseeable future. Don’t be surprised if more teams are reported and some from this list fall out of reported talks, but it does show how there’s a bit of a feeding frenzy right now around Butler talks with nearly a third of the league involved.
