The Minnesota Timberwolves have yet to deal Jimmy Butler and the clock is ticking before the season starts. The Miami Heat seem to be one of the favorites to land the enigmatic star, but the talks continue to sputter. Minnesota's asking price might be one reason for the slow progress per Barry Jackson of the Miami-Herald. Jackson reports that one source told him the Timberwolves are asking for:

“The first born of all our kids.”

So it's safe to say that Tom Thibodeau and the Timberwolves aren't ready to part ways with Butler until they are getting equal return. It's rare that teams ever get back equal value when they are trading away a star. Furthermore, it's risky to play hardball with other teams when it's common knowledge that your star is desperately trying to get out of town.

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The Timberwolves want to put themselves in the best position to succeed post-Butler, but there's speculation that Thibodeau might not want to get rid of Butler in the first place. It's even reached the point where Butler's camp is wondering if Minnesota is intentionally sabotaging possible trade deals.

This entire saga has been a trainwreck from the beginning. Minnesota looks like there is no cohesion between the front office and ownership. Jimmy Butler is quickly finding out that there aren't many teams jumping through hoops to acquire him. Not to mention, this ordeal has to start taking a toll on the players in the locker room.

What a strange situation.