After the Minnesota Timberwolves made a flying start to life without Jimmy Butler, cracks are beginning to show once more.
Three straight wins after the disgruntled All-Star was traded to the Philadelphia 76ers fuelled newfound optimism in Minnesota, but subsequent back-to-back home losses have provided a reminder that Butler wasn't the franchise's only problem.
The new-look Wolves, armed with former 76ers Robert Covington and Dario Saric, head to the Barclays Center to take on the Brooklyn Nets on Friday in search of a first road win of the season, live on Sky Sports.
A resurgence appeared to be underway as Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins, who had both been embroiled in the Butler controversy, starred in victories over the Nets, New Orleans Pelicans and Portland Trail Blazers.
The young duo, whose lucrative 'max' contracts were reported to be a source of frustration for Butler, began the five-game home stand as if they were out to prove a point.
Towns bullied his way to 25 points and 21 rebounds against the Nets, before adding the same number of points and 16 more rebounds in an All-Star big-man matchup against Anthony Davis as the Wolves recorded an impressive victory over the Pelicans, in which Covington and Saric made their debuts.
Wingman Wiggins had a season-high 23 points against New Orleans and then repeated it in another confidence-boosting win over the high-flying Trail Blazers two days later as the Wolves' overall record improved to 7-9.
There was increased joy and unity in the Wolves' play, but perhaps more significantly, more assists. Without the option of Butler isolation plays, the ball was moving more, and with positive results.
Whether overconfidence crept in, the motivation seeded by Butler's departure faded, or adjusting to roster changes took its toll, losses against the Memphis Grizzlies and Denver Nuggets followed.
Most concerning for Timberwolves head coach and president of basketball operations, Tom Thibodeau, would have been the performances of Towns and Wiggins, who both failed to maintain the promise shown during the three-game winning streak.
"We were sluggish," Thibodeau said after the Grizzlies loss. "There was a physicality to the game that we probably didn't respond to as well as we could have or should have."
The 23-year-old Towns is showing signs that he is still not ready to be the centrepiece of an offensive system, with a combined 10 turnovers coming across the two defeats as he became distracted by the officiating.
"He can't allow that to happen," Thibodeau said of his center. "In this league you can't take any plays off. If you're side-tracked with things that aren't important then you're going to pay for it."
While Towns must be given some leeway to adjust to the dominant Butler's absence, the Wolves' strategy in the trade puts pressure on both Towns and Wiggins to be good, and be good now.
Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor confirmed earlier this week that the Wolves received other offers for Butler which would have guaranteed future assets.
"That's why when that possibility worked out that I thought that [this offer] was better than some of the other ones that might have included a [draft] pick or something like that," Taylor told the St. Paul Pioneer Press.
"Of course, we love picks, but I thought that we immediately probably better bring a group together, and these two guys seem to fit in."
The durable Covington is made for Thibodeau. His high-energy play will mostly fill the void left by Butler on the defensive end, while his reliable three-point shooting should improve spacing at the other end of the court.
However, Covington lacks Butler's ability to create his own shot, which leaves it to the likes of Towns, Wiggins, Jeff Teague and the resurgent Derrick Rose to step up.
Saric, the 12th pick in the 2014 draft, is a less typically Thibodeau-type player. The Croatian power forward relies more on skill than physicality and isn't it wholly dissimilar to fellow European Nemanja Bjelica, who Thibodeau refused to place his faith in last season.
Despite the Wolves crying out for shooting, Thibodeau gave Bjelica just 47 minutes of action in last season's play-off series against the Houston Rockets, before he moved to the Sacramento Kings during the offseason.
Playing increased minutes, Bjelica currently sits second in the three-point percentage charts, having made more than half his shots from beyond the arc for the Kings, whose 10-8 start has been one of the surprises of the season.
Whether the notoriously stubborn Thibodeau has learned from what could be perceived as a mishandling of Bjelica remains to be seen. With Saric having played just 25 minutes per game so far - five less than he was averaging in Philadelphia - the early signs suggest not.
Nor has it been lost on Minnesota's owner that the chaos that descended from Butler's time with the team rests largely on the shoulders of Thibodeau, who traded for the player he formerly coached in Chicago.
Taylor said earlier this week that too much of his time was spent "on things that were negative," during the saga that preceded Butler's exit and has admitted that he is monitoring his coach's performance.
"OK, you now have your team," Taylor said. "We made the trades. These are guys that you like, and let's see what we can do."
One of Thibodeau's biggest challenges is turning around the Wolves' away form. They have lost all eight of their games on the road, but trips to the Nets, and Cleveland Cavaliers on Monday, should provide the perfect opportunity to improve that record.
The other positive for Minnesota is the topsy-turvy start to the season in the Western Conference. Despite the fact their 7-11 start leaves them 14th in the standings, the Wolves are only two-and-a-half games back from a play-off position with many of their rivals also struggling.
A prime time win against the depleted Nets will put the Timberwolves back on track. A defeat, will confirm the cracks are widening.
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