In the midst of trade rumors and a never-ending wave of proposals for his All-Star forward Jimmy Butler, rumor has it that Minnesota Timberwolves president/head coach Tom Thibodeau is looking to get fired, according to Chris Sheridan of GetMoreSports.
A source close to Butler and trade rumblings told Sheridan that “Thibs actually wants to get fired.” While this doesn't provide the reason why, it could be tracked back to several happenings.
Thibodeau is coming off a string of bad decisions, having put all of his eggs in one basket after signing Jimmy Butler and then signing not one, but three additional ex-Chicago Bulls players to join him and help him set the culture — something he was only able to achieve based on his dual title.
Now that his main cog is utterly unhappy in Minnesota and has demanded a trade, his desire to keep him against his will has drastically backfired, putting him in even deeper waters with owner Glen Taylor, who scolded him and GM Scott Layden for refusing to engage other teams who sought out trade possibilities for Butler.
All that could be potentially guaranteed from a Butler trade is shipping Gorgui Dieng's bloated contract out of town, likely leaving Derrick Rose, Taj Gibson, and newly-signed Luol Deng to provide results and carry this roster to the playoffs and most importantly — put Tom Thibodeau at point-blank range of the firing line if the team fails to do so.
Thibodeau and Taylor are clearly not seeing eye-to-eye when it comes to the future of the franchise, which has now become a common trait for those assuming roles as a coach and front office executive, given all the control.
The 60-year-old defensive coach might be better off with a fresh start years down the line before he racks up even more Ls with a Butler-less roster construction — one that has fallen apart only a year after he took a draft night gamble that made it all go south in the Twin Cities.
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