Any team hoping to swing a trade for disgruntled Minnesota Timberwolves star Jimmy Butler may have to take on a whack of bad money in order to do so.
The Wolves are aiming to include Gorgui Dieng - and the three years and nearly $49 million left on his contract - in any outgoing trade package, sources told ESPN's Zach Lowe.
Dieng is a serviceable backup big with nice touch and a solid mid-range stroke. However, he's coming off a down year and teams will be reluctant to absorb a bloated salary that would still be on their books two years after Butler can skip town in free agency. The Wolves will need to drum up some sort of bidding war if they're to unload him, but doing so would help release them from the cap hell they're set to enter if and when Karl-Anthony Towns signs his max contract extension.
Dieng, 28, started all 82 games and averaged 32.4 minutes a night in 2016-17, but was demoted to a reserve role and had his minutes halved last season following the arrival of Taj Gibson. He averaged 5.9 points and 4.6 rebounds in 79 games off the bench, posting his lowest true shooting percentage (54.3) since his rookie season in 2013-14.
