Despite all the recent drama, Minnesota Timberwolves swingman Andrew Wiggins knows one thing—Jimmy Butler is a good player to have on your side when the games count in the standings.
“All I know is when we start playing the real games, Jimmy is someone you want on your team,” Wiggins said, per Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic.
If Butler is someone Wiggins actually wants on his team, Shams Charania of The Athletic provided good news when he reported the four-time All-Star is expected to take the court for Wednesday’s season opener against the San Antonio Spurs with trade talks between the Timberwolves and Miami Heat “dead, for now.”
This comes after Charania and Krawczynski reported Butler “reiterated his trade desire” last Monday.
Despite the trade request, Butler returned to the team for a practice that made headlines across the league. Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN described the scene in which the former Chicago Bulls playmaker took benchwarmers and defeated the regulars in scrimmages and yelled at general manager Scott Layden “You f–king need me, Scott. You can’t win without me.”
Wojnarowski said Butler was “vociferous and intense” and also targeted Wiggins, Karl-Anthony Towns and head coach Tom Thibodeau.
Still, he is talented enough to carry Minnesota into playoff contention as a four-time All-Defensive selection and two-time All-NBA selection who averaged 22.2 points, 5.3 rebounds and 4.9 assists per game last season.
The Timberwolves were contending for a top-four seed in the Western Conference last season before he missed time with a knee injury on his way to 59 games. Minnesota ultimately finished in the No. 8 seed and lost in first round of the playoffs to the Houston Rockets.
Courtesy: Bleacher Report
