After Boston got additional future first round picks out of Philadelphia, it looks as if they are primed to finally make a move for Jimmy Butler. But the Bulls have options now, and it will come down to which offer they feel returns the best potential value.
ESPN’s Marc Stein and The Vertical’s Adrian Wojnarowski have both reported that Minnesota and Cleveland have been engaged in trade talks with Chicago, and that a multi-team deal may be in the mix.
This is the second straight offseason that the Timberwolves have been linked to trade talks centered around Jimmy Butler, whom Tom Thibodeau worked well with in Chicago. Last summer, talks supposedly fell apart over the Wolves being hesitant to include both Wiggins and their draft pick in the trade. Will this summer be different? Or has the Bulls asking price changed?
Boston still has future 1st-round picks for days, and can certainly offer Chicago the most comprehensive package of draft picks and players. Danny Ainge has recently said that the player he will pick third is “quite possibly” the player they would have taken first anyway. This would seem to indicate that the Celtics intend to keep the #3 pick they got back from Philly, and only look to trade their stash of future assets.
Cleveland can match Butler’s salary with Iman Shumpert and Channing Frye, but would need way more assets to sweeten the deal. A multi-team trade could work well here, if the Cavs can find someone willing to give back a future 1st for Shump or Frye. Could it be possible the Rockets would want Frye to add to their group of 3-point snipers? There should also be over a couple of teams being interested in Shumpert. Worst case for the Cavs would be if they needed to include Kevin Love or Tristan Thompson to make the deal happen.
Cleveland has also been reported to be in trade talks with Indiana for Paul George. Could they possibly land both Butler and George? More likely it would be one or the other, and most likely it would come down to whether or not Shump/Frye and future draft picks are enough, or if Love will be needed to make a trade happen.
The Lakers have supposedly shut down trade talks for Paul George. Which is smart, because he has stated many times that he plans to sign with Los Angeles in free agency next year.
The debate for other teams will be whether or not a trade for a one year rental of Paul George is worth it. Or possibly, in Cleveland’s case, if they think they can convince George to re-sign there instead of L.A.
