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Miami Heat president Pat Riley on Friday issued a statement challenging the report that talks with the Minnesota Timberwolves on Jimmy Butler's trade have reached a point of hostility.
"With respect to what has been reported in the last 24 hours, I have too much respect for Tom Thibodeau and all he has accomplished in this league. Our conversations were only cordial and I've never used this kind of language in the negotiations, but I confess to having told Danny Ainge to …, "said Riley in a statement by L & R. Through a spokesman for the team, recognizing the holding of trade negotiations with Minnesota.
The report that Riley refers to Jorge Sedano, former host of the Heat show, told ESPN radio in Los Angeles that Riley had profaned himself to address the coach of the Timberwolves, Tom Thibodeau, during the trade negotiations.
Sedano said, "This is what happens. There have been two or three different incarnations of this agreement. The first, the Heat, did not want to take over Gorgui Dieng. The next incarnation of the agreement was then: "OK, forget it, we'll do it right away, just for Jimmy on your side."
"So they finally gave in to Josh Richardson, they gave them Josh Richardson. Then Dion Waiters was going to be the filler of caps, then a protected first-round pick. The medical exams were exchanged, which means that in the NBA everything is in order. And then, Thibs called back and wanted more choice. And Pat Riley literally – we've been told – treated him with contempt and hung up. "
The final words of Riley's statement are related to a comment that he made to Danny Ainge, chief executive of the Boston Celtics, in March 2013.
"Danny Ainge has to fire up and manage his own team," Riley said in a statement released by a spokesman for Heat, when Ainge criticized club striker LeBron James. "He was the biggest whinper when he was playing and I know it because I trained against him."
The Heat does not encourage discussions with the Timberwolves on a Butler deal, as the Miami Herald reported on Thursday.
A heat source said Thursday that the organization is ready to move on if the Timberwolves have rejected his offer. But the source also declined to rule out the possibility of an agreement with Minnesota, stating that Miami would not be the one who would initiate trade negotiations.
The Timberwolves are believed to be claiming some of Heat's most valuable assets: Bam Adebayo, Goran Dragic, Kelly Olynyk, Josh Richardson, Justise Winslow and a first-round pick.
Butler's request to be exchanged for the Timberwolves was made public three weeks ago. Heat players, coaches and team officials have not been available to comment on the subject since then, but Friday's Riley statement ended the silence.
Butler is expected to win $ 20.4 million this season and has a player option worth $ 19.8 million in 2019-2020. He expects him to refuse the option and become a free agent, which will give him the power to demand an exchange with a team with which he would return next summer.
In the middle of the barring season, Butler could be allowed to sign a $ 190 million extension deal with the Timberwolves or any other team he traded with. He can sign a $ 141 million four-year contract with a new free agency team.
Although the Heat did not expect a cap before the 2020 off season, any team negotiating for Butler also acquires rights to the birds. The rights of the birds allow a team to exceed the salary cap to sign a player again.
Butler did not travel with the Timberwolves for their Friday show match against Milwaukee Bucks. Thibodeau told reporters that the quad All Star was staying in Minneapolis for conditioning himself.
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