As the countdown begins to the February 23 NBA trade deadline, there are rumors swirling that the Chicago Bulls and Boston Celtics are to re-kindle their talks over Jimmy Butler.
That's according to the Chicago Tribune, which reports that rival executives expect a resumption of talks after discussions between the two sides in June last year centered on Providence point guard Kris Dunn as a draft target.
Back in 2015, Butler signed a five-year extension worth $92.3m with a player option for 2019-2020 and it may well be that the Bulls are ready to trade him to pick up another plum player.
Sources revealed to the Tribune that Butler is a favorite of Bulls president Michael Reinsdorf, but he has been in the headlines recently for some criticism of fellow teammates that didn't sit well with front office.
ESPN's Nick Friedell speculated on a Butler trade with the Celtics in The Lowe Post podcast, speculating that the Bulls would probably have traded him last year if the package had been right.
And his opinion is that the Bulls are still tempted to part with Butler in order to build a better line-up.
"There is a split in the Bulls' front office as to whether they want to build around Jimmy or not," he said. "The team that I continue to hear has the pieces that the Bulls want is Boston. ... I've never been more convinced that if they got the right pieces, let's say it's not Boston but it's another team, if they got the right pieces back, I think they'd move Jimmy today. I think they realize that this team just isn't good enough."
And as NESN note, Butler is an excellent player who may be a good swap for any number of the players on the Celtics' roster who are in a position to be moved out, like Jae Crowder and Avery Bradley.
It remains to be seen whether these rumors materialize into a real trade come Feb. 23.
