Welcome to the opening week of the NBA regular season, when Jimmy Butler will suit up with the Timberwolves Wednesday night when they start the season on the road in San Antonio.
Minnesota’s home opener is Friday against the Cleveland Cavaliers, and Butler won’t have any problem if fans at Target Center boo him. In fact, he says bring it on.
“Sure. Go ahead, boo me,” Butler said after practicing Sunday. “It ain’t going to change the way I play. That’s going to make me smile more. So please, come on with it.”
All signs point to Butler being a member of the Timberwolves when they open Wednesday against the Spurs, and at this point it looks just as likely that he’ll still be with Minnesota for the home opener.
According to The Athletic’s Jon Krawczynski, Wolves owner Glen Taylor drove from Mankato to Minneapolis on Sunday and reached an understanding with Butler.
“Taylor will continue to work diligently to find a trade as soon as possible. Until that happens, Butler will be a good teammate and play as hard as he always does.”
Shams Charania of The Athletic adds that trade talks between the Wolves and Heat have stalled, but that could change at a moment’s notice.
Minnesota's Jimmy Butler practiced again Sunday and is expected to play in season opener in San Antonio on Wednesday. Heat/Timberwolves talks have been dead, for now, league sources said.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) October 14, 2018
For now, Butler is prepared to play hard for the Wolves just like he did last season when Minnesota went 27-10 against the Western Conference when he was healthy.
“My name is still attached to this thing. I’m still here. So we’d better win,” he said.
It’ll be interesting to see if the Wolves have any chemistry playing with Butler. He’s practiced just twice with the team and didn’t participate in any preseason games.
