Jeff Teague is quite the storyteller, and his latest pretty much puts him on par with Iman Shumpert’s narration of Kobe Bryant’s Garden game.
Speaking on the Club 520 Podcast this week, the former Minnesota Timberwolves guard narrated the story of what happened when Jimmy Butler cursed out Karl-Anthony Towns during a team practice session.
Teague spoke about the time that Butler was a no-show for the workouts that are slated to start in September. “So we were at practice one day. Jimmy ain’t come to no workouts. Workouts start in September, we don’t see Jimmy. Nobody’s talking to Jimmy. We ain’t seen, Jimmy. Jimmy’s my guy, that’s my dog,” said Teague.
The now-Miami Heat guard did show up three days later, and he was detached from the rest of the unit who were going through the practice motions.
“We all think Jimmy about to practice,” he continued. “Jimmy ain’t practicing. Jimmy laying over there getting stretched out, getting massaged while we running laps, diving for loose balls. Thibs says we’re going to scrimmage. Jimmy hops up. ‘I’m playing,'” Teague recalled. “[Thibs] like, starters: Jeff, Jimmy, Wig, Taj, KAT. Jimmy said, ‘I ain’t playing with them.'”
Those who have followed Butler over the years know that this behavior was trademark Butler. And what unfolded was history.
Teague noted that Thibodeau, who was the coach of Minnesota at the time, gave into Butler’s wish and made two squads. The latter teamed up with backups and G-League players, while the other team had Teague, Towns, Taj Gibson, Andrew Wiggins, and Derrick Rose.
“Jimmy said, ‘I’m playing with them.’ He picked the Bad News Bears. No offense, but everybody in there, they weren’t going to make the team,” Teague explained.
“Jump the ball. He’s like, ‘I got KAT.’ I was like, ooh s***. Jimmy and KAT ain’t like each other,” he added. That’s another part of the story I’ll get to one day. They ain’t like each other. That gets really funny when they don’t like each other. So they jump the ball. We throw it to KAT’s first play. Jimmy steals it. They go down and score. Like, ‘Come on KAT, post his little ass up, man! He can’t guard you.’
And while things heated up between Towns and Butler, Teague said he couldn’t stop laughing, knowing all the while that he shouldn’t be doing it.
“Jimmy’s like, ‘F*** outta here! He’s trash!’ Steal the ball again. They go down and score. Jimmy started talking to the GM, and everybody in the gym. ‘Y’all better motherf****** pay me! I’m like that!'”
[Starts 5: 30 onwards]
At one point, the point guard added that Butler was so exasperated that he cut out ‘Minnesota’ on the Wolves shirt and shorts. And to further prove his point, he beat the starting unit with the G-League side and let them know.
“He’s like, ‘I just beat them with the G-Leaguers. This is your starters?!’ So now I’m laughing, I’m still crying and laughing. But I’m like, he talking about me. I’m one of the starters, I’m like hold up. I’m mad now.”
Butler was traded to the Wolves after spending six seasons with the Chicago Bulls, and during his time in Minnesota, he was reportedly frustrated with some of the players’ attitudes. He was a vital part of the side, averaging 22.2 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 4.9 assists in his first season with the Wolves.
A Quick Look At Jimmy Butler’s Exit From The Chicago Bulls, Minnesota Timberwolves, And The Philadelphia 76ers
Butler was chosen by the Bulls as the 30th overall pick of the 2011 NBA Draft, and he fine-tuned his skills as a forward with the franchise, and just as he was coming into his own, the Bulls went on a downward slope.
With the Windy City looking to head into a rebuild, they finally traded Butler to the Wolves, only for him to spearhead their first season with brimming talent in Towns and Wiggins before he demanded a trade and was sent to the Philadelphia 76ers.
The arrival and the happiness were short-lived as he immediately butted heads with the coach, Brett Brown. His presence also meant taking the ball a lot instead of Joel Embiid, which the big man wasn’t keen about.
After Philly was sent packing in the second round of the playoffs, the Sixers traded Butler to the Heat in a sign-and-trade deal. And by the looks of it, he appears to have been at peace since his arrival in Miami. As for the results, they are out there to see, with the forward leading the side to the second round of the 2023 playoffs.
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