Minnesota Timberwolves: 5 recent offseason tragedies

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2. Trading for Jimmy Butler

During the 2017 NBA Draft, when it was announced that Minnesota had traded for Jimmy Butler, cheers rang through the streets of Minneapolis. Finally, there would be a player on this team who knew how to win, and who could guide the Wolves into the postseason, and maybe even deep into the postseason.

Then, just a year later, it all fell apart.

Butler was upset with his situation and the Wolves front office, and fans all wanted him gone. It seemed like the only obstacle was the price. The Wolves finally found an offer that they liked in Robert Covington and Dario Saric, and now, in true Minnesota fashion, one of those players is gone, and the other got hurt.

In order for the first trade to go through, the Timberwolves had to give up Zach LaVine and Kris Dunn, one of whom was a key rotation piece before his ACL tear and is now prospering in Chicago. The departure of the two guards — and eventually Butler — created more headaches for the Timberwolves at the 1 and 2 positions, and caused them to have a serious lack of depth for their guards.

The Wolves seem to have rebounded from the trade, after Tyus Jones began to flourish, Derrick Rose saw a resurgence, and they drafted Jarrett Culver, but for many, the scares still run a bit deep, and there’s still an anxious feeling whenever the offseason roles around.

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