The proverbial you-know-what is hitting the fan in Minnesota at the moment.
There seem to be separate factions developing in the locker room and front office and neither of their two All-Star players appear to be very happy with the current state of the team.
As has been previously reported, Jimmy Butler is meeting with Head Coach Tom Thibodeau and others to discuss his future with the team. What comes out of that discussion will not only affect Butler’s future with the team, but fellow All-NBA peformer Karl Anthony Towns.
From Shams Charania:
“There’s been a lot of uncertainty around Jimmy Butler all summer. He hasn’t been back to Minnesota. This is going to be a telltale week for him. Very much so, I’m told, this a last-ditch meeting for the Minnesota Timberwolves and Tom Thibodeau, and how they respond and how Jimmy responds to it will be interesting.
Karl-Anthony Towns, who’s one of the top talents in the league, has yet to sign to sign his rookie max extension, which should be a no-brainer. And I’m told there won’t be any decision on that until this Jimmy Butler situation resolves itself.”
If the town isn’t big enough for the both of them per se, the T’Wolves should waste no time putting Butler on the market and seeing what they could garner in return. After which they can work on convincing Anthony-Towns that this is his team and have him sign a long-term extension.
He is six years younger and just about to enter his prime while Butler has a lot of miles on him and may not maintain his elite level pay for many more seasons.
This week is about as important as a mid-September week could be for the Timberwolves or any NBA franchise.
