The Wolves are reportedly divided on a Jimmy Butler trade, and it's turning into a mess
- Jimmy Butler requested a trade from the Minnesota Timberwolves last week.
- According to reports, Wolves coach and president Tom Thibodeau is still hoping to convince Butler to stay, while Butler is staying away from the team and maintaining that he won't play for the Wolves again.
- Rival teams have reportedly begun contacting Wolves owner Glen Taylor to discuss potential trades because they cannot get through to Thibodeau and GM Scott Layden.
- Butler even reportedly sought out Taylor to make sure the team was pursuing trades in good faith.
It's been nearly one week since Jimmy Butler requested a trade from the Minnesota Timberwolves, and the aftermath hasn't been smooth, according to reports.
Butler's request has put the Wolves in a tough spot. It came one week before training camp, and Butler also reportedly gave a list of three teams - the Los Angeles Clippers, New York Knicks, and Brooklyn Nets - that he would sign extensions with if he were traded.
With Butler likely to hit free agency at the end of the season, the Wolves have little leverage. Teams know Butler wants out, and they won't trade a haul for a player who could be a rental.
Internally, the Wolves seem divided on the situation. According to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, head coach and team president Tom Thibodeau is hopeful of convincing Butler to stay with the team and has been hesitant in committing to trading the star wing.
"He's a top-10 player in the league," Thibodeau told reporters on Monday. "We're not going to make a bad deal. If it's a good deal, then we're interested."
However, according to both Wojnarowski and The Athletic's Jon Krawczynski, Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor has gotten involved in trade discussions for Butler, even though GM Scott Layden and Thibodeau are the point men for potential deals.
According to reports, teams have begun reaching out to Taylor to discuss potential trades because they can't get through to Thibodeau and Layden. Krawczynski wrote that Thibodeau and Layden are "two of the most buttoned-up executives in the NBA."
Now, with training camp underway, Butler is sitting out, away from the team. Butler was not at the team's media day on Monday. The Wolves reportedly said it was to let him recover from offseason hand surgery, but according to Krawczynski, it was to buy the team time to look for potential trades.
According to Krawczynski, Butler met with Thibodeau a second time in recent days, and Thibodeau let Butler know that he may have to report to the team if a deal can't be found in the next week. Krawczynski reported that Butler left the meeting feeling suspicious of Thibodeau's intentions and then sought out Taylor to "receive assurances that good faith efforts were continuing."
According to Wojnarowski, rival teams are unclear about what kind of package the Wolves are seeking for Butler, though many believe they want to remain competitive this year, rather than blowing up the roster and rebuilding.
"Trust me, we have a process, and we're doing what we can to work through that process and see if we can help the team get better," Layden told reporters Monday.
It's unclear how long the situation may drag out, but at the moment, it doesn't seem as if the Wolves have a concrete plan going forward.