NBA Rumors: Chicago Bulls plan on keeping Jimmy Butler

According to a report, the Chicago Bulls are informing teams of their intention to keep superstar forward Jimmy Butler.

When the Chicago Bulls hired Fred Hoiberg prior to last season, they thought they were getting a head coach that would lead the Bulls to a turnaround much like the one that Steve Kerr had with the Golden State Warriors.

Instead, it was a disaster of a season and the Bulls ended up missing the playoffs. Injuries really hurt the team, but it was having the wrong mix of players on the court that hurt the Bulls even worse under Hoiberg.

Just like any team that goes through a down year, the Bulls had to deal with the issue of trade rumors circulating around their best player, Jimmy Butler. With Butler signing a max contract before the season and one that’s a very palatable deal considering it was signed before the salary cap is set to explode, Butler might have the best valued max contract on the market.

And while the rumors continue to swim around Butler like sharks waiting to pounce on flesh, the Bulls don’t seem to be inclined to move him. According to A. Sherrod Barkley of CSNNE.com, the Bulls are letting teams know that they plan on keeping Butler and not trading him.

"A league source tells CSNNE.com that the Bulls, while still open to listening to offers for Butler, are telling teams that are inquiring about his availability that their plan for now is to keep him in the fold.And while there was some thought that a top-3 pick coupled with a few decent players might be enough to entice the Bulls to pull the trigger on a deal to trade Butler, CSNNE.com has been told such an offer would have to include at least one “legitimate, NBA starter” for the Bulls to even possibly consider trading him.“And that might be a stretch,” the source indicated.A league source tells CSNNE.com that the Bulls, while still open to listening to offers for Butler, are telling teams that are inquiring about his availability that their plan for now is to keep him in the fold.And while there was some thought that a top-3 pick coupled with a few decent players might be enough to entice the Bulls to pull the trigger on a deal to trade Butler, CSNNE.com has been told such an offer would have to include at least one “legitimate, NBA starter” for the Bulls to even possibly consider trading him.“And that might be a stretch,” the source indicated."

Considering the fact that not many believe this draft to be as strong as others, it would seem to be a little risky for the Bulls to try and trade Butler for a top pick along with other players that may or may not pan out.

At this point, the Bulls shouldn’t be entertaining the idea of trading Butler at all. They should instead be looking to the future and building around Butler and doing what it takes to make the Bulls great again.

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