With the Jimmy Butler trade saga still ongoing as the 2018-19 NBA season approaches, several teams remain in contention for the disgruntled Minnesota Timberwolves forward’s services. These include the Miami Heat, who were reportedly close to a deal before Minnesota proposed new “deal changes,” as recently tweeted by Marc Stein of the New York Times , as well as teams such as the Houston Rockets, Phoenix Suns, and Los Angeles Clippers. The Sacramento Kings have also been connected to some of the Butler trade rumors that have made the rounds so far, and with that in mind, Fansided blog Sir Charles in Charge proposed two hypothetical deals that could work for both the Kings and the Timberwolves.
According to Sir Charles in Charge ‘s Dan Knitzer, sending Jimmy Butler to the Sacramento Kings is an example of a “spite trade,” where a player’s current team would send him to a new team that doesn’t fit his needs. As ESPN ‘s Adrian Wojnarowski reported last month that Butler appears to be looking to join a team that wants to “win now,” Knitzer opined that Sacramento’s small market and “losing culture” is the opposite of what Butler wants in a new team.
Given Minnesota’s desire for “useful” veterans and young talents, Sir Charles in Charge proposed a trade where Jimmy Butler would go to the Sacramento Kings in return for young wingmen Buddy Hield and Bogdan Bogdanovic and journeyman center Kosta Koufos. While the Fansided site pointed out that neither Hield nor Bogdanovic can be considered game-changers at shooting guard or small forward, it was noted that both players could fulfill the Timberwolves’ need for outside shooting.
New post: Two weeks ago, Jimmy Butler requested a trade from the #twolves . The most logical deal to emerge is a three-team trade involving the Heat and Kings, and here’s what the preseason approaches of those two teams might tell us about a Butler deal: https://t.co/dQyhlAjxmA pic.twitter.com/6hAjjl1vtd
— RandBall (@RandBall) October 3, 2018
As the Timberwolves could also benefit from dumping backup big man Gorgui Dieng, who has three years and $49 million remaining on his existing contract, Sir Charles in Charge brought up a second potential trade, where Butler and Dieng could be traded to Sacramento for Hield, Koufos, Zach Randolph, and Iman Shumpert.
“So instead of two young, sweet-shooting wings, the Wolves would get one, and the younger and cheaper one at that. The three other incoming players are on expiring contracts that – quite frankly – could be the last of their careers if they don’t scrap and claw for everything this season,” Sir Charles in Charge predicted.
This isn’t the only time in recent days that the Sacramento Kings have been brought up as a potential trade partner for Jimmy Butler. On Wednesday, Michael Rand of the Minneapolis Star Tribune suggested that the Kings, Timberwolves, and Miami Heat could ideally take part in a three-way trade, this time with Butler and a Kings player on an expiring contract ending up on the Heat, Dieng and “draft assets” going to Sacramento, and Heat guard/forward Josh Richardson joining the Timberwolves.
