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While many saw the Jimmy Butler trade request coming from a mile away, this simply was not the case for Minnesota Timberwolves forward Taj Gibson.
The Timberwolves veteran recently shared how he was caught off-guard by Butler's demands, given how Gibson thought there was harmony in Minnesota's camp.
“At the end of the day, you've got to look at it from a player's standpoint and a business standpoint,” Gibson told Nick Friedell of ESPN after Friday's practice. “He's trying to do what he got to do but everybody's calling him. It's more of a [situation where] I've got to go see him kind of thing. But I worked out with him all summer so when I said what I meant, it was like a right hook, I didn't see it coming. I didn't know. I thought — it looked like from everything things were going good.”
This was probably more of Gibson hoping against hope as against to being naive to the drama surrounding Butler's time in Minnesota. It was never a secret that Butler grew unhappy with the Wolves, and rumors of his imminent exit began circling months before his actual trade request.
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Gibson went on to say that Butler's desire to jump ship may have been motivated by reasons other than his differences with his teammates, as it has been portrayed by the media.
“But sometimes it's a money aspect and fans and different players got to understand that. I understand that with being in the league for so many years, but got to try to just see what we can do. … One thing about everybody who's here, from the coaching staff, players, everybody's familiar with each other, we've been through a lot together so we just got to keep trying.”
Being the vet that he is, Gibson is able to encapsulate the mindset the team ought to have coming out of this dilemma. The Timberwolves must remain strong amidst this storm, and emerge as a stronger, more united group once the dust finally settles
