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Jimmy Butler has proven to be the ultimate cog in the Minnesota Timberwolves' playoff hopes, as the franchise reached the postseason for the first time in 14 years after a couple of his stellar performances late in the season. Because of it, owner Glen Taylor said on WCCO radio that the organization will “lean heavily” on him to recruit free agents to sign for less money and join the team, according to Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic.
The Timberwolves will be forced to do some free agent pleading this summer, as the sizable contracts of Andrew Wiggins and Butler will only pile up to Karl-Anthony Towns' impending rookie contract extension — one that could prove costly for the team.
Minnesota signed plenty of new faces, including point guard Jeff Teague, forward Taj Gibson, and sixth man Jamal Crawford — but their luxury tax will be likely in play if they hope to retain and/or bring in more talent in the offseason.
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Crawford will have a player-option in the offseason, and that could play a huge factor into who the Timberwolves pursue — but the biggest issue remains convincing free agents that there will be some playing time available, given Tom Thibodeau's tendency to give his starters heavy minutes.
Crawford convinced Shabazz Muhammad to re-sign with the team, despite the latter being convinced that his days as the team's sixth man were over after Crawford's arrival. Muhammad would later depart to the Milwaukee Bucks after agreeing to a buyout with the team, after getting a lot less minutes than he hoped for.
