The summer of Jimmy Butler and the Minnesota Timberwolves' dysfunction continues with another twist. The Athletic's Shams Charania reported Sunday that Butler is expected to play in the Timberwolves' season opener against the San Antonio Spurs on Sunday, and Tom Thibodeau confirmed this expectation.
Minnesota's Jimmy Butler practiced again Sunday and is expected to play in season opener in San Antonio on Wednesday. Heat/Timberwolves talks have been dead, for now, league sources said.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) October 14, 2018
“Yes.”
Thibs on if he expects @JimmyButler to play on Wednesday in San Antonio. pic.twitter.com/TFyiuk4c00
— Minnesota Timberwolves (@Timberwolves) October 14, 2018
This may come as a surprise for many as a lot of people expected Butler to be out of Minnesota before the season began, especially after the drama of the last couple of weeks.
Butler demanded a trade nearly a month ago because of his frustration with the organization, including issues with young players Karl Anthony-Towns and Andrew Wiggins. Butler initially listed the Los Angeles Clippers, New York Knicks and Brooklyn Nets as his preferred destinations, but then the Miami Heat moved to the top of his list. Minnesota and Miami reportedly came close to a deal, only for negotiations to fall apart.
Things exploded this past week when Butler returned to practice and berated the coaching staff, front office and teammates before walking out of the facility. He then went on ESPN and discussed the whole situation.
While it seems like the Butler situation is unfixable, Thibodeau isn't going to trade Butler just to trade him. Thibs is going to make sure he gets the right value out of a trade. There was a sense that Butler wouldn't miss any games if it actually got to this point, and it looks like he indeed will be playing for Minnesota this season … for now.
While trade talks may be dormant, expect discussions to continue at some point.
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