Chicago Bulls: Jimmy Butler trade possibilities after NBA Draft Lottery
Boston Celtics
The NBA Draft Lottery took place on Tuesday night, with the Boston Celtics landing the first overall pick because of a trade they made with the Brooklyn Nets way back in 2013. Armed with an embarrassment of riches, the Celtics have long been rumored as a possible landing spot for Butler. Does Boston landing the first overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft make a Butler to the Celtics trade more likely?
I can certainly see why this trade would still make sense for both sides. The 2017 draft class is loaded with talent at the top but Washington point guard Markelle Fultz is the clear top prize. Fultz is a 6-foot-4 playmaker who dominates with the ball in his hands. He is a superstar in the making but it is easy to see why the Celtics could have trouble playing both Fultz and Isaiah Thomas on the court at the same time.
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Similar to Fultz, Thomas is a player who must consistently have the ball in his hands to make an impact. He is an incredible offensive playmaker and adding Fultz could limit his opportunities on the court.
The Celtics were the top seed in the Eastern Conference this season and are about to begin an Eastern Conference Finals matchup with the Cleveland Cavaliers. Unlike the Bulls, they are clearly in win-now mode. Every NBA team would love to add a player like Fultz to the mix but would a more established star like Jimmy Butler make more sense for their organization? I could certainly see how that argument could be made.
Bulls’ fans will argue that trading Butler straight up for the first overall pick (essentially trading him for only Fultz) would not be enough of a return. On the flip side, Celtics’ fans will argue that giving up a chance to select a possible generational talent like Fultz is too much for Butler. The honest answer is that a swap of Butler for Fultz is probably pretty fair.
The competing Celtics would add another impact piece to help put them over the top while the Bulls would have a young potential superstar to rebuild around. Both sides may stand firm enough by asking for more, which would obviously kill any sort of deal like this, but it is easy to see why this possible trade would make sense.