Joakim Noah and Jimmy Butler were initially very close friends as Chicago Bulls' teammates, but it became tumultuous during the 15-16 season.

According to multiple sources, Noah and Butler engaged in several heated disagreements throughout that season.

"What happened?" Butler says. "I don't know. All I can say is, obviously he's been with me since I was a nobody in this league. And I went about things a lot differently. My voice wasn't heard. And he's been with me as I came to be an All-Star as well in this league. And my voice was heard then. And when my voice is heard, I'm going to let it be heard."

"We're just different people," Noah says. "We were always very close; me and Jimmy were always very close, but things change."

"It was hard because we all came in together," Taj Gibson says. "We were the core, and it's rough when your core starts breaking up."

Noah left the Bulls to sign with the New York Knicks in 2016.

The relationship between Tom Thibodeau and the Chicago Bulls' front office deteriorated over time. Thibodeau wanted to maintain the ability to run his program his way, while John Paxson and Gar Forman wanted more input, such as how many minutes star players were given.

Sources say Paxson and Forman were most irked by not receiving enough credit for how they assembled the roster for Thibodeau.

"There was definitely a disconnect between the coaches and management," Noah said recently. "It was a little bit of a mess. And to be a championship team, everybody has to be on the same page. It was definitely a missed opportunity."

There were also some players that expressed frustration of Thibodeau's authoritarian approach privately to Forman and Paxson.

The Minnesota Timberwolves have exercised the fourth-year options on Karl-Anthony Towns and Tyus Jones.

Towns, 21, averaged 25.1 points, 12.3 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game last season, starting all 82 games for the second consecutive year. The 7-0 forward/center set a franchise single-season scoring record with 2061 points while recording 1007 rebounds, becoming the youngest player in NBA history (15th overall and first since Tim Duncan in 2001-02) to collect 2000+ points and 1000+ rebounds in a season. In 2016-17 he ranked 12th in the NBA in scoring, 6th in rebounding, 12th in field goal accuracy (54.2%) and 19th in blocked shots (1.26 bpg). The Wolves selected Towns with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft.

Jones, 21, posted averages of 3.5 points and 2.6 assists in 12.9 minutes per contest in 60 games last season, his second in the NBA. The Wolves originally acquired the draft rights to the 6-2 guard from the Cleveland Cavaliers on June 25, 2015.

The Minnesota Timberwolves have waived Amile Jefferson, Melo Trimble and Shawne Williams.

Jefferson appeared in one preseason game for Minnesota totaling one rebound in four minutes of action. The Wolves originally signed Jefferson on September 18, 2017.

Trimble registered four points and one rebound in his lone appearance this preseason. Trimble was originally signed by the Wolves on September 18, 2017.

Williams was signed by Minnesota on October 13, 2017.

Andrew Wiggins and the Minnesota Timberwolves have agreed upon a five-year max deal worth $146.5 million.

Wiggins' contract does not contain a player option.

Wiggins’ previous agent, Bill Duffy, negotiated a maximum contract with the Timberwolves this summer before the sides parted ways.

The Minnesota Timberwolves shopped Cole Aldrich and a second round in trade talks in search of veteran help.

The Wolves have a surplus of bigs on their roster.

Aldrich signed a three-year, $22 million deal with the Wolves in the 2016 offseason.

Karl-Anthony Towns was voted the player general managers would choose to build a franchise around if they were starting from scratch. Towns received 29 percent of the vote.

Giannis Antetokounmpo ranked second at 21 percent, followed by LeBron James at 18 percent, Kawhi Leonard at 14 percent and Kevin Durant at 11 percent.

Towns received 48 percent of the vote last season.