NBA Trade Rumor: Minnesota Timberwolves Interested In Trading For Chicago Bulls Shooting Guard Jimmy Butler


The NBA season is coming close to an end. For the majority of the National Basketball Association teams, they are putting their focus on what they need to do for the off season this summer. With that being said, the trade rumors are about to start swirling around the league. According to Marc Stein and Chad Ford from ESPN, the Minnesota Timberwolves have made their fifth pick in this year’s NBA Draft available. They are hoping they can package the fifth pick and a couple of players to entice the Chicago Bulls to part ways with shooting guard Jimmy Butler.

The Minnesota Timberwolves are starting a new era. They recently hired former Chicago Bulls head coach Tom Thibodeau to become the new team president and head coach. With the Timberwolves hiring Tibodeau, rumors were started about the team being interested in acquiring Jimmy Butler from the Bulls. The former Marquette Golden Eagles star became one of the best two way players in the NBA under Thibodeau.

Minnesota Timberwolves coach Tom Thibodeau
Tom Thibodeau [Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images]
The Chicago Bulls selected Jimmy Butler with the 30th pick in the 2011 NBA Draft. The All Star spent his first two seasons coming off the bench. In his second season in the National Basketball Association, he showed flashes of being a good player. That same year, he averaged 40.8 minutes per game in the playoffs. Butler was put into the starting role in his third season. It wasn’t until his fourth season that he became an official star in the league. Butler was selected to two All Star games and won the Most Improved Player of the Year award in 2015.

As soon as the Chicago Bulls season ended this year, general manager Gar Forman said the team will explore all options for their roster this summer. Forman didn’t shoot down the rumors when asked if they were going to trade Jimmy Butler away. Some believe that management was trying to send Butler and the rest of the team a message that no one is safe. This would be a good way to evaluate Butlers’ trade value.

Minnesota Timberwolves forward Andrew Wiggins
Andrew Wiggins [Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images]
The Chicago Bulls signed Jimmy Butler to a five-year deal worth $95 million last summer. It’s a little strange for a team to trade away a superstar a year after they signed him to a big contract. It’s not because Butler isn’t a good player. Some people believed that the All Star has changed after his rise to stardom.

For the Chicago Bulls to pull the trigger to trade Jimmy Butler this summer, it would have to be something spectacular. The Bulls would demand at least one front court player and a top lottery pick in this year’s NBA Draft. The Minnesota Timberwolves have the fifth pick in this year’s draft and a bunch of young players on their roster.

Minnesota Timberwolves center Karl Anthony Towns
Karl Anthony Towns [Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images]
The Minnesota Timberwolves have one of the youngest rosters in the entire NBA. They have the potential to be one of the best teams in the National Basketball Association in the coming years. The Timberwolves have had the fortune to select first overall in the last two drafts. They were Andrew Wiggins and Karl Anthony Towns. Both of those players won the Rookie of Year Award the past two years. They also have Zach Lavine, who has shown he is a hidden gem for the team.

The Minnesota Timberwolves will attempt to make a trade with the Chicago Bulls for Jimmy Butler. The Timberwolves are making their fifth overall pick in this year’s NBA Draft available for trade. They will try to work up a sweet package to garner the interest of the Bulls.

[Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images]

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