We’re positioned well to explore the market.
— Tom Thibodeau on draft night after the Jimmy Butler trade
The Tom Thibodeau and the Minnesota Timberwolves have been widely praised for the trade that brought Jimmy Butler to the Twin Cities. Rob Mahoney of Sports Illustrated says the Wolves fleeced the Chicago Bulls. Danny Chau of The Ringer called Thibodeau a vengeful god who extorted his former employer. ESPN’s Zach Lowe says there isn’t much risk for Minnesota, beyond Butler’s free agency in 2019 and fit issues that the Wolves coaching staff will have to figure out. Longtime Wolves scribe Britt Robson wrote that Butler brings everything the Timberwolves need, and more.
That’s a lot of praise from basketball writers both locally and at major national outlets. Thibodeau, however, has remained rather stoic, at least publicly, about the deal. “We felt if we had the opportunity to get a player of Jimmy’s caliber, that we would do it,” Thibodeau deadpanned. “Of course we hated to part ways with Zach [LaVine] and Kris [Dunn]. To get a player like Jimmy you have to give good players up and we did. Not only are they good players, they’re good people.”
The hype is coming from the outside rather than from inside the organization, in short. For all we know, Thibodeau went nuts behind the scenes after the trade was consummated, but he’s also likely being realistic — he’s got work to do. There’s an argument to be made that the Wolves should have waited to go all-in. The Western Conference is tough, and the Golden State Warriors are a formidable opponent at the top and should be through Butler’s prime.
“When you look back it wasn’t that long ago where the Warriors won 23 games”
“There’s always been dominant teams in the league. The Warriors have done a great job, you have to give them credit and it was built up over time,” said Thibodeau before the draft. “When you look back it wasn’t that long ago where they won 23 games (in 2011-12). It was step by step and they got to the position they are in and of course that makes it attractive to other players.”
The Butler trade obviously helps in that regard. Minnesota has long been considered untenable to free agents due to the weather because it is a mid-sized city. This, of course, disregards the fact that the players go from a heated garage to a heated car to get to the arena or use the skyway. They also play 41 away games per year and often have second homes in the offseason.
It also doesn’t account for what Thibodeau is suggesting, which is that players just want to play with good players. Garnett’s contract handcuffed the team during his tenure, but Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins are under rookie contracts, so not only would free agents be able to play with a generational talent and a proven scorer, but the team can pay to keep all of them.
“The thing that I like about it for us is Jimmy’s age,” said Thibodeau. “We’re not getting a guy in his mid-30s, we’re getting a young guy that’s just approaching his prime, so I think everything aligns really well along those terms. So that’s why I thought it was a good fit. His age, where he is and where he is in his career and where our young guys are and obviously looking at what Karl and Wigg are doing at 21 and 22 years old is pretty special.”
The Wolves desperately need shooting, however, especially with the absence of LaVine. They also lost out on a potential shooter when they dealt the No. 7 pick in the draft, who Chicago used to pick Lauri Markkanen — a three-point threat at Arizona, but also a poor defender. Justin Patton, the player they took at No. 16, is a big man who could potentially play alongside Towns but doesn’t help in the shooting department. Nemanja Bjelica is expected to be back for the beginning of the year, and he can provide shooting off the bench, but the team is in need of a shooters who can be counted on for major minutes each night.
https://youtu.be/GdEpRO7IXXE
“J.J. Redick is probably the expensive pipe dream for the Wolves on the wing, but a better option may be someone like Kyle Korver, who, if he isn’t re-signed by the Cavs, could come at a much cheaper price and provide them with a deadly long-range shooter,” wrote Paolo Uggetti for The Ringer. “This budget option would also give the team the option to acquire another wing player. If the Wolves wanted to go two-for-one and target a serviceable guard or wing on both ends of the floor, Patty Mills and C.J. Miles (both shot 41.3 percent from 3 last year) represent viable options. Heck, could [Dion] Waiters Island move north to the Great Lakes?
“The Twin Cities just became warmer real estate for potential free agents,” Uggetti concluded. “That’s part of the ripple effect that can come out of a blockbuster trade like the one the Wolves just completed.”
There are a lot of options to consider, and LaVine’s shooting should be able to be replaced. In general, basketball trades work out for the team that gets the superstar player, even if it comes at a large cost. Wolves fans can to look no further than the deal that sent Kevin Garnett to the Boston Celtics for evidence of that. The issue is that the deal does not make Minnesota an instant contender like the Garnett deal did for the Celtics in 2007.
It may allow them to make the playoffs for the first time in 13 years next season, but the Wolves have to avoid the situation the Flip Saunders Wolves were in where they made the postseason from 1996-2004, only to make it past the first round one time. Teams like the Los Angeles Clippers and Utah Jazz are in a similar predicament where they have been good enough to make the playoffs recently, but struggle to break through in the crowded Western Conference.
Becoming a contender will mean that the Wolves have to build around the Towns-Wiggins-Butler core. It starts with shooters this year. In time they need to find out if Ricky Rubio is the answer at point guard, who will play beside Towns and how to fill out the bench. In order to make that happen, the Wolves have to make Minnesota a free agent destination.
“Let’s not kid ourselves, the most important thing will be the money, and after that, they look at the roster,” Thibodeau said in his press conference at the end of the year. “How do they fit in? How does that make the team? If they feel that this is the best opportunity to win big, I think we’re attractive to people.”
