There has been one word to describe the Minnesota Timberwolves this off-season: drama.
While some of the other elite talents from the 2015 NBA Draft class have agreed to extensions (Towns went No. 1), Towns turned down the Wolves max offer of five years, $158 million when it was first offered back in July.
We found out in the last few weeks that the reason that he had decided not to opt in any deal was because of his inability and unwillingness to coexist with fellow all-star Jimmy Butler.
Now that it appears Butler is headed out of dodge and likely before the season even begins, Towns has officially committed to Minnesota for the foreseeable future.
“5 More” pic.twitter.com/aBRVJJBvdh
— Karl-Anthony Towns (@KarlTowns) September 23, 2018
The five-year, $158 million extension also includes a trade kicker and could max out to as much as $190 million over five seasons if Towns makes another All-NBA team this season (he was 3rd team in 2017-18) or if he wins an MVP award.
While the fact that Towns couldn’t coexist with Butler reflects poorly on his character to an extent (unless the explosive rumors are true… infidelity… hint hint), the decision to ultimately cater to the needs of their 22-year-old All-NBA center over a 29-year-old guard with a lot of miles on his NBA odometer in Jimmy Butler is the right move.
It will be interesting to see what kind of haul and talent the Wolves can get in return for Butler and place around Towns and Wiggins going forward.
Towns has the potential to be an MVP-caliber player and a hall of fame player by the time he decides to hang them up which is hopefully a very long time from now.
