It's obvious that Tom Thibodeau is uneasy about trading away Jimmy Butler. It's even more obvious when his asking price is Ben Simmons. But according to Kevin O'Connor of The Ringer, the Timberwolves asked for Simmons in return for Butler. O'Connor appeared on The Bill Simmons Podcast, where he said:

“One of the things that I’ve heard from a handful of sources is that like, with the Sixers for example, with the initial offer that they made, the counteroffer was like, ‘We need Ben Simmons in a deal.' It’s counteroffers like that that make you wonder, is this actually for real?”

Asking for Simmons in return for a disgruntled superstar with one year left on his deal and a host of previous injuries is an aggressive move on Thibodeau's part. Not to mention, Butler is about to turn 30 while Simmons is only 22 years old. I guess if the Timberwolves are looking to get the best deal, they might as well ask for the moon.

O'Connor raises a valid point. Is this actually for real? Is Thibodeau actually committed to trading Butler? Or is he hoping that as time goes on, Butler eventually decides to come to camp and everyone becomes one big happy family? It's wishful thinking if that's where Thibodeau's head is at.

This situation looks like there is only one possible solution, and that's a trade. Of course, Thibs and the Wolves are going to try and recoup as much value as possible, but they know that they never had a chance at a player of Simmons' caliber.