Report: Wolves Owner Wants Jimmy Butler Trade 'in Next Several Days'

The Timberwolves owner looks determined to ship Jimmy Butler.

While the Timberwolves' front office originally said they intended to keep Jimmy Butler on Friday, the team's owner, Glen Taylor, has taken another stance.

Taylor is hoping to trade Butler according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, instructing rival owners and general managers to, "contact Taylor himself if necessary." Wojnarowski also reports Taylor "has mandated that a deal needs to be negotiated to trade disgruntled All-Star forward in the next several days."

The Minnesota owner attended the NBA's Board of Governors meetings in New York. 

Story filed to ESPN: As Minnesota’s front office tells inquiring rivals that team has no plans to trade Jimmy Butler, owner Glen Taylor had a different message at NBA’s Board of Governors meetings: Butler is available and owners/GM’s should contact Taylor himself if necessary.

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) September 21, 2018

Taylor's message stands in contrast to the first message from Minnesota's front office. Wojnarowski reported earlier on Friday afternoon that teams inquiring about Butler were being "rebuffed" by the Timberwolves' brass. 

"The owner's trading [Butler]," a Board of Governors attendee told Wojnarowski on Friday. "That was made clear. It's just a matter of when."

Butler requested a trade from the Timberwolves on Tuesday during a meeting with Minnesota head coach and president of basketball operations Tom Thibodeau.

Trading Butler wouldn't mark the time Taylor dealt a superstar. He traded Kevin Garnett to the Celtics in 2007 and Kevin Love to the Cavaliers in 2014. 

Butler, a four-time All-Star, averaged 22.2 points per game last season. He will be a free agent after 2018-19, joining Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving.