On Saturday morning, Shams Charania of The Athletic reported that Jimmy Butler had been granted permission to avoid the Timberwolves media day, amidst the drama created by his trade demand:
All-Star Jimmy Butler has been granted permission to not participate in Minnesota Timberwolves‘ media day on Monday, league sources tell me and @JonKrawczynski.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) September 22, 2018
The decision comes as no shock, as no one fully expected the Timberwolves to execute a Jimmy Butler trade in 24 hours.
It will take a while for this situation to come to a conclusion, as Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor and Tom Thibodeau—already prepared to hold on to Butler following his trade demand—will surely look for the best trade offer that still gives them the ability to be playoff contenders.