The first year of the Timberwolves Big 3 is hitting some speed bumps. First it was Karl-Anthony Town reportedly not enjoying the management. Then it was Andrew Wiggins being reportedly “unhappy” as the third option on the team. Now, its Jimmy Butler’s turn to be unhappy.
According to Sean Deveney of Sporting News, Butler is uncertain about playing with Wiggins and last season took issue with his work ethic and defensive mindset. Timberwolves head coach Tom Thibodeau also had problems with Wiggins’ effort in the past. Deveney notes that Thibodeau hoped adding Butler would help Wiggins defensively. It did not, and Wiggins was a bottom-tier small-forward in the league in defensive RPM. In fact, only four small forwards were worse. Offensively, he saw a similar drop off. He went from averaging 23.6 points per game down to 17.7 on less efficient shooting.
To make matters even more grim, Wiggins has his massive five-year contract kick in this upcoming season. Even if the Wolves decided that they wanted to move Wiggins in a trade, it would be very difficult to do. Jimmy Butler and Karl-Anthony Towns are due for extensions soon too, making this situation even more cumbersome.
