The NBA rumor mill is reigniting an old flame: the possibility of a Jimmy Butler trade to the Boston Celtics.
According to K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune on Monday, some rival executives believe that the Celtics and the Chicago Bulls “will rekindle trade talks” centered around Butler before next month’s deadline.
Butler-to-Boston was a popular murmur around the time of the NBA Draft last June. But the Bulls have insisted recently that the three-time All-Star is off the market, which is understandable. Butler is a legitimate top-15 player in the league today and is easily Chicago’s best player on both sides of the ball. Plus, he’s only in Year 2 of a highly favorable five-year, $92 million deal.
Still, the timing of this rumor reoccurence is no coincidence as the 24-25 Bulls are dealing with some in-house drama at the moment, which has called into question Butler’s long-term fit with the team as well as his compatibility with head coach Fred Hoiberg. The Celtics have the biggest treasure trove of assets in the NBA, so it goes without saying that they’ll be linked to any potentially available star ahead of the deadline.
