NBA preseason is underway and, while there are two weeks of exhibition action before the actual campaign begins, story lines are already flying around the league. Perhaps the biggest domino is the status of Jimmy Butler, who submitted a trade request in mid-September but remains on the roster of the Minnesota Timberwolves as October arrives.
While it isn’t necessarily a shock that Butler hasn’t been dealt yet considering the timeline and logistics, it appears that some “wise” individuals might be assuming a deal gets done in the near future. The Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook recently updated its season win total lines and, in doing so, dropped Minnesota’s projection from a high of 45 wins in mid-September down to 41 wins.
New @SuperBookUSA numbers have Wolves dropping 3.5 wins for win total over/under to 41.
— Hardwood Paroxysm (@HPbasketball) October 1, 2018
It is important to note that at least part of this drop could be tied to public perception, as the Butler trade rumors have been very prominent in the NBA consciousness. Still, it is hard to ignore this kind of movement on the eve of the season and it is undeniable that the Wolves are (very) unlikely to improve in the short term (at least from a talent standpoint) if the organization elects to pull the trigger on a move to send one of the top 15 players in the NBA to another location.
In recent days, teams like the Miami Heat and Houston Rockets have been tied to Butler through media reports and, in addition, his original “list” includes big-market teams like the Knicks, Clippers and Nets. At the moment, nothing appears imminent but, as NBA fans would certainly recognize, things can change in an instant when it comes to the transactional nature of the league. With that as the backdrop, the most prominent sportsbook in the desert is making moves and that could act as interesting foreshadowing.
