Perhaps Pat Riley and Jimmy Butler would make a harmonious union? The Heat president has been...vociferously negotiating with the Timberwolves to acquire their equal parts disgruntled and demanding star. Jimmy is down for the swap, and you know Pat Riley is excited at the prospect of landing the All-NBA wing. That's not quite the case for Wolves coach and president Tom Thibodeau. That divide is what led to a fun alleged exchange between Riles and Thibs, according to ESPN's Jorge Sedano account on his ESPN LA radio show Thursday (transcript via Deadspin):
"There’s been a couple of different incarnations of this deal. The first one, the Heat didn’t want to take back Gorgui Dieng. Then, the next incarnation of the deal was ‘OK forget it, let’s just do it straight up, just for Jimmy on your end.’ They finally relented on Josh Richardson, they were giving them Josh Richardson, then Dion Waiters was going to be the cap filler, and then a protected first-round pick. The medicals were exchanged, which generally in the NBA means this is a done deal. And then, Thibs called back and wanted more picks. And Pat Riley literally—I was told—called him a motherbleeper and hung up the phone."
This rings true if you know anything about Riley and Thibodeau's competitive temperaments. Riley knows Butler could make Miami a contender in a talent-deprived Eastern Conference, and Thibs knows that he has to get a haul for Jimmy if the Wolves want to have any shot in the loaded West. Plus, Thibs is practically begging to be fired by slow-rolling offers for Jimmy.
After he went nuclear at practice on Wednesday, Butler told Rachel Nichols that Thibodeau was probably laughing behind closed doors about the eruption. And we know Thibs is the reason Butler still hasn't been dealt. He's known Jimmy wants out since a few days after the season ended:
