#PettySzn is nearly upon us, and it's still outside a month before the NBA kicks off for real. Despite this, Jimmy Butler's Tuesday request to get out of Minnesota awakened the still-hibernating throng of NBA fans on Twitter. That appeared to include Nick Wiggins, best known as the big brother of Andrew Wiggins.
The common narrative is that Jimmy wants out of Minney because of clashes with Karl-Anthony Towns, but it was Wiggins' big bro who offered up a "hallelujah" on a since-deleted tweet after the news broke:
We don't think this was a reference to Leonard Cohen's classic, but we can't be sure. Perhaps the excited response about Butler's demands from a member of Wiggins' nuclear family shouldn't be so surprising after what sources told Sporting News earlier this summer. Similar to his issues with KAT, Butler wasn't sure about playing with Wiggins because of his apparent unwillingness to work as hard as Butler believed necessary to win, along with a lack of engagement on the defensive side of the ball. Wiggins wasn't so sure about Jimmy last season, either, but on the other end of the floor.
Alongside reports about acrimony with KAT, it has all the hallmarks of the big brother trope: Jimmy doesn't think his little brothers in Minnesota were pulling their weight during the season. Butler was brought in by his former Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau to show their blossoming stars what it takes to win. Instead, their youthful inconsistency convinced Butler he'd need to go elsewhere to really compete for a title.
However, if you thought Butler wasn't watching as Nick offered up his hosannas about Butler's imminent exit, you'd be wrong. Peep what he said during a workout video on IG:
"Keep that same energy," Butler says with "Hallelujah" adorning the screen. It's at this moment former player Stephen Jackson decided to chime in on the situation, saying that Wiggins should put a clamp on his big bro because Butler plays with heart, unlike Wiggins.
Andrew Wiggins first responded to Butler, and then offered up a more pointed criticism of Captain Jax:
Jackson—after a plume of smoke was blown out—had a bit more to say to Wiggins following his sassy rebuttal, culminating in the ominous, "Just keep that same energy, I'll catch you in traffic."
Stephen Jackson couldn't find anything better to do on a Wednesday night and ended up retaining his status as our our favorite former player on social media.
We can't wait until the Wolves play the Clippers, Nets, or Knicks.
