In his second season with the Minnesota Timberwolves, Jimmy Butler was traded to the Philadelphia 76ers after he had requested a trade in the off-season. Butler was reportedly not fond of Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins because of their work ethic. There was also the infamous practice where he challenged Towns, Wiggins, and head coach Tom Thibodeau. He also found success against the first unit while only playing with third-stringers.
After being traded from Philadelphia, Butler finally found a home with the Miami Heat. In his first season with Miami, he led the team to the NBA Finals, where they lost to the Los Angeles Lakers in six games. The Timberwolves, on the other hand, have not been as successful. They have missed the playoffs since Butler’s departure. While the talent is there, there hasn’t been much leadership shown from Towns.
So far, he has proven Butler right with the Timberwolves losing seasons. The matchups between the Heat and Timberwolves are always highly anticipated because of the Towns and Butler rivalry. There’s usually a lot of pettiness and trash-talking going on. Butler doesn’t believe Towns has the same hunger as he does to win. They recently had a back-and-forth trash talk during a Heat-Timberwolves game back in May.
Giving Jimmy His Flowers
A year ago, Towns lost his mother to COVID-19. It’s clearly had an impact on his life. It’s taught him how to be more grateful about things on and off the court. In a recent twitch stream, the Timberwolves star took the time to appreciate his former teammates. A surprising name that was mentioned was Butler. Despite their differences, Towns says he appreciated Butler for his time in Minnesota.
KAT gives Jimmy Butler his flowers
— NBA Central (@TheNBACentral) January 3, 2022
“Thank you Jimmy, appreciate you. No matter that we didn’t see eye to eye…We got the job done on the court.”
(h/t @AhnFireDigital ) pic.twitter.com/XhcUHJNxEM
Towns hasn’t played in a game since December 21st due to health and safety protocols. He was just released from protocols on Monday and shared his excitement on Twitter. In 30 games this season, Towns is averaging 24.5 points and 9.1 rebounds per game while shooting 42.6 percent from downtown. The Timberwolves are looking to change their losing ways with their first postseason appearance since Butler left.
Playoff Bound?
They could change that, as they are currently in position to make the play-in tournament as the No. 9 seed in the Western Conference at 16-20. However, Butler and the Heat have bigger goals in mind. After a disappointing first-round exit last season, Miami is looking to get back into title contention.
They currently sit fourth in the Eastern Conference standings. In 23 games, Butler is averaging 23.2 points, 5.9 rebounds, and 5.4 assists per game. He’s also shooting 50% from the field. So far, injuries have kept Butler out of 15 games this season. He picked up another injury in Monday’s loss to the Golden State Warriors when he rolled his right ankle. As of Tuesday morning, it’s unknown how long he will be out. But if healthy, Butler and the Heat have about a good of a shot as any team in the Eastern Conference.
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