The NBA is up to its old tricks and made the Timberwolves’ home opener a fun one, for the fans especially, which is what it’s all about, baby!
The Wolves will open up at home on Sunday, Oct. 27 against the Miami Heat.
Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. CT and you can get tickets here.
Of course, what makes this matchup so intriguing is less about the Miami Heat and more about the fact former Timberwolves wing Jimmy Butler now plays for the Miami Heat. It will be Butler’s second game against the Wolves at Target Center since being traded.
The start of the 2018-19 season was a rocky one for the Wolves, and a chunk of that had to do with Butler.
The Wolves were able to flip Butler to the 76ers for Robert Covington, Dario Saric and Jerryd Bayless. This offseason, the Wolves traded Saric and the No. 11 pick for Jarrett Culver.
The fact that Butler didn’t re-sign with the 76ers and instead was traded in a sign-and-trade deal makes the Wolves’ trading Butler look all the much better. Getting Covington and Culver for a player who wasn’t going to sign long-term with the team regardless? Perfect.
We should also give the 76ers a high-five for acquiring assets for Butler as well when it was clear he was walking.
While the Wolves roster has plenty of new faces, this Miami team isn’t far behind.
In order to acquire Butler, the Heat had to deal two-way stud Josh Richardson. The team also dealt Hassan Whiteside to the Blazers in exchange for Meyers Leonard. The Heat added Tyler Herro, who looked very good in Summer League, and KZ Okpala in the 2019 NBA Draft. Herro should contribute right away, while Okpala will be more of a project.
Put together your top-10 games of the 2019-20 schedule here.
How much better do these moves make the Heat? I’m not sure. Maybe a peak of the middle of the Eastern Conference? But even with Butler’s and Minnesota’s bitter divorce, you can’t ignore his talent and that was on full display during last year’s playoffs.
It should be a fun challenge for Covington if he does indeed get the call to guard Butler.
The fans will be ready for this one, especially when they have the whole day to prepare for it.
Fun fact that is actually completely useless: This is the first time the Wolves have ever had a home opener on a Sunday! WILD TIMES!
The Wolves and Heat face off in Miami on Feb. 26 at 7:30 p.m. CT.
Check out the team’s full 2019-20 schedule here.