The Jimmy Butler and Chicago Bulls drama hasn’t been kept quiet this season. There were all kinds of rumors during the trade deadline about Butler heading to elsewhere. As recently as two weeks ago, though, the Bulls star said he wanted to stay in Chicago and finish his career there. According to Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer, Jimmy Butler most likely won’t be a Bull next summer.
“One front-office source told me recently that Butler is ‘as good as gone.’”
The guard out of Marquette was being pursued hard by the Atlanta Hawks and Boston Celtics during the trade deadline. There would be no surprise if Butler was traded during the NBA Draft.
There is a reason teams are trying to snag Jimmy Butler from the Bulls. The 27-year-old is in his prime and is averaging career highs in just about every statistical category. In 36.9 minutes per game, he’s averaging 23.5 points, 6.2 rebounds, 5.5 assists, 1.9 steals, is shooting 44.8 percent from the field and 34.2 percent from three.
The Bulls are currently sitting in the ninth seed in the Eastern Conference playoff race. They’re currently 1.5 games back of the Miami Heat and Indiana Pacers. The Bulls have eight games left in the season, while the Heat and Pacers have seven games left apiece.
The most likely time for Jimmy Butler to get traded is the NBA Draft which is on June 22.
