Minnesota Timberwolves big man Karl-Anthony Towns says the delay in signing his contract extension had nothing to do with small forward Jimmy Butler.

Towns signed a five-year, $190 million super-max extension with the Timberwolves two days ago. There was speculation that Towns was waiting for the franchise to resolve the Butler situation before committing to Minnesota long-term.

Butler and Towns reportedly clashed multiple times last season. Butler supposedly got fed up with the nonchalant attitude of Towns and felt the All-Star center cared more about stats instead of winning games.

In a typical PR move, Towns denied on media day he and Butler had beef.

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The Timberwolves are trying to trade Butler as soon as possible. The four-time All-Star has requested a trade and prefers to play for the Los Angeles Clippers. The 6-foot-7 swingman also wouldn't mind a move to the Brooklyn Nets or New York Knicks.

Butler can become an unrestricted free agent in the summer of 2019 if he declines his player option for the 2019-20 season.

With a Butler trade on the horizon, Karl-Anthony Towns is now the franchise player in Minnesota. The former No. 1 overall pick averaged 21.3 points, 12.3 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game last season, shooting 54.5 percent from the field and 42.1 percent from 3. The challenge for Towns now will be to see if he can lead the Timberwolves to the playoffs as the main cog in the rugged Western Conference.

It's highly doubtful Towns is telling the truth about his relationship with Butler, but what do you expect him to say to the media? He can't just come out and state what everyone knows, that he and Butler weren't on the same page last season and can't coexist. Players are told what to say by their agents. Towns' camp knew their client was going to get plenty of Butler related questions today. In all likelihood, Towns probably had prepared statements for questions regarding Butler.