Jimmy Butler is a restricted free agent, meaning he can field offers from other teams but will have to remain with the Chicago Bulls if they match. Would he rather the Bulls just let him walk?
According to Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News, Butler is hoping the Bulls let him leave to sign a one-year deal with the Los Angeles Lakers. As a previous report indicated, Butler would rather sign a short-term deal this offseason and hope to play well enough to earn a max contract when the salary cap increases after the 2015-2016 season.
The Bulls are said to be high on Butler, and why wouldn’t they be? The 25-year-old took a huge step forward last season, averaging a career-high 20 points per game and carrying Chicago when Derrick Rose went down with another injury. And if the Bulls are determined to keep Butler despite how he feels, there’s a way they can make it happen.
As Mark Deeks of Hoops Hype explains, the Bulls can offer Butler what is known as a Maximum Qualifying Offer. Teams hardly ever use it with restricted free agents, as it essentially equates to a maximum five-year deal with every penny guaranteed. While Butler would not have to accept the Maximum Qualifying Offer, no other team would be able to offer less than three optionless years. That would eliminate the possibility of Butler signing a short-term deal with a team like the Lakers.
In all likelihood, it won’t come to that. The Bulls can simply match any offer sheet Butler receives, and he’d have to stay put. If the rumors about the relationship between Butler and Rose are true, he may only be willing to stick around for another season.
