Pro #3: Take Your Pick
Over the last two seasons, many teams have reportedly expressed interest in Butler. On draft night last year, the Bulls were in talks with the Boston Celtics and Minnesota Timberwolves regarding a Butler trade. Philadelphia and the L.A. Lakers have also been rumored to want Butler to lead their young cores. If GarPax want to pull the trigger and trade away their best player, they would likely get to hear lots of different offers and pick the one they like best.
Boston
Celtics boss Danny Ainge has been desperately trying to acquire a legitimate star to lead his young and talented team into the upper echelon of contenders in the East. He landed veteran big man Al Horford last summer, but he alone isn’t enough to knock off Cleveland. If Ainge were to offer some combination of Avery Bradley, rookie Jaylen Brown, Marcus Smart and a first round draft pick, the Bulls just might go for it. Remember, GarPax’s asking price for Butler last spring was a starter, a rotation player and two first round picks. Back then, Ainge thought that was too much. With Jimmy’s ascension to superstar status, might he rethink things this time around?
Minnesota
Tom Thibodeau would surely love to get his old defensive workhorse onto his young and defensively challenged Timberwolves team. During draft night talks last year, the Bulls wanted Zach LaVine but Thibs said the rising star was off limits. I’d be surprised if that has changed, since LaVine is rounding into an even deadlier scoring threat this season. Karl-Anthony Towns is obviously off limits. Would Thibs be willing to give up Andrew Wiggins, rookie Kris Dunn (whom the Bulls wanted badly) and a high pick for Butler? Maybe.
Philly
If GarPax want to finally give Hoiberg the roster he needs, it might serve them all well to negotiate with the 76ers. The Philadelphia frontcourt is an overcrowded mess. Head coach Brett Brown recently told the media he’s gotten a good look at the Joel Embiid-Jahlil Okafor duo, and will now experiment with Embiid paired with Nerlens Noel. The Bulls are high on Noel, and Okafor played his high school ball in Chicago. Embiid looks to be off limits, but Noel or Okafor could serve as the big man that Hoiberg pairs with 4 shooters on the floor, as was his system at Iowa State. If Philly adds power forward Dario Saric and a first round pick to the deal, that’s a nice haul for Butler.
All of these hypothetical options would mean fully committing to the rebuild, which might frustrate those fans with little patience. But they are exactly that: options. If you’re going to sell your best player in the prime of his career, you can expect to hear several offers and take your pick of the litter.
Now, what’s the downside of trading away Jimmy Butler? [USE ARROWS ABOVE TO CONTINUE READING]
