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NBA Schedule 2017-18: When does Jimmy Butler play the Bulls?

By Aaron Fischman

BLOOMINGTON, MN - JUNE 29: Tom Thibobeau introduces Jimmy Butler of the Minnesota Timberwolves to the public during a press conference at the Mall of America on June 29, 2017 in Bloomington, Minnesota. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2017 NBAE (Photo by Gary Dineen/NBAE via Getty Images)
BLOOMINGTON, MN - JUNE 29: Tom Thibobeau introduces Jimmy Butler of the Minnesota Timberwolves to the public during a press conference at the Mall of America on June 29, 2017 in Bloomington, Minnesota. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2017 NBAE (Photo by Gary Dineen/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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Jimmy Butler was traded on draft night to the Minnesota Timberwolves, kicking off a rebuild for the Bulls and a big offseason for the Timberwolves. When will Butler play his old team for the first time?

Jimmy Butler, whom the Chicago Bulls traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves this offseason, will take on his former team twice this regular season. The first meeting will be a nationally televised (ESPN) Friday night game on Feb. 9 in Chicago, where Butler spent the first six seasons of his NBA career. Later that month, after the All-Star break, Minnesota will host the Bulls on Saturday, Feb. 24.

During the 2016-17 campaign, the 27-year-old three-time All-Star averaged 23.9 points, 6.2 rebounds and 5.5 assists, a career-high in each statistic. Butler, who turns 28 in September, will be reunited with second-year Timberwolves head coach Tom Thibodeau and former Bulls teammate Taj Gibson.

In the draft-night trade, along with Butler, the Timberwolves acquired the No. 16 pick of the draft, which they used to select Creighton center Justin Patton, in exchange for Kris Dunn, the No. 7 pick in the 2017 draft and Zach LaVine, who’s currently rehabbing a torn ACL injury incurred February 3. The Bulls used the seventh overall pick to draft Arizona big man Lauri Markkanen.

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Last season’s Bulls finished with 41 wins but were eliminated in the playoffs’ opening round despite taking a 2-0 lead against the Celtics. For their part, the Timberwolves didn’t qualify for the postseason, compiling a 31-51 record, but Minnesota is widely expected to show improvement after its busy offseason that, in addition to Butler, most notably brought in Jeff Teague, Taj Gibson and Jamal Crawford.

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