To combat the seeming inevitability of another Golden State Warriors NBA championship (they've won three of the last four)), LeBron James ditched his hometown of Cleveland for the second time for the bright lights of Los Angeles. Kawhi Leonard was traded by the San Antonio Spurs to the Toronto Raptors, but he'd rather be in sunny California. Carmelo Anthony plays for the Houston Rockets now.
All of that is overshadowed by what's going on with the Minnesota Timberwolves. Coming off their first playoff appearance in at least a decade, it seemed as if the team had turned a corner. That corner has turned into a cliff. Jimmy Butler, the Wolves' leading scorer last season, has been making noises lately about wanting to play elsewhere.
Butler was brought to Minnesota by coach Tom Thibodeau from the Chicago Bulls, where they had both plied their trade. He was supposed to provide veteran help for a team with young stars like Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins, but for some reason never got along with either of them.
The Wolves have had plenty of experience in dealing with unhappy players who wanted to be anywhere than playing for a losing team in a cold city. Stephon Marbury wanted to be The Star instead of Kevin Garnett. Then he became one--in China. Latrell Sprewell turned down an offer because he wanted to feed his family. Then he went bankrupt.
Butler made his trade demands clear--his wish list extends to the New York Knicks, Brooklyn Nets and Los Angeles Clippers, none of whom are title contenders. He could have waited a year before his contract ran out and tested the free agent market, but the Wolves don't want to be left empty-handed. So owner Glen Taylor has been busily trying to make trades with anyone who will have Butler, and who are willing to give up decent talent and/or draft choices in return. So far, no luck.
Butler is still here, and it looks like he'll be on the floor for the Wolves when they open their season Wednesday at San Antonio. The Wolves are now in a position where they can't live with Butler, but they can't live without him. They have a winning record when he plays, and a losing one when he doesn't. The team's playoff hopes depends on how long Butler sticks around. We're guessing he and Thibodeau are both gone before the season ends, and the Wolves will miss the playoffs.
As for those NBA playoffs, the final will be between Golden State and the Boston Celtics.
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