Jimmy Butler Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Jimmy Butler To Pursue Short-Term Deal

June 16th, 2015 at 5:15pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Talented Bulls swingman Jimmy Butler intends to pursue shorter-term offer sheets this summer, resisting the Bulls’ initial plans to offer him a five-year, maximum contract, league sources have informed Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. The 25-year-old can become a restricted free agent this summer provided Chicago tenders him a qualifying offer worth $4,433,683, which it will almost assuredly do. With the NBA’s salary cap set to dramatically rise beginning with the 2016/17 campaign, Butler has become far less interested in locking himself into the five-year, $90MM-plus deal the Bulls are expected to present him on July 1st, Wojnarowski adds.

Despite the Bulls being able to match any offer sheet that Butler was to ink, Butler’s agents, Happy Walters and Steve McCaskill of Relativity Media, could seek a short-term offer sheet that includes a trade kicker that could potentially scare Chicago off, Wojnarowski adds. A shorter deal would also allow Butler to become an unrestricted free agent as early as the summer of 2017, the Yahoo! scribe notes. If the Bulls make Butler a five-year offer for the max with no option clauses, the shortest offer sheet another team could give him would be for three seasons, and none of those three seasons could be an option year. If the Bulls don’t make Butler a max offer like that, offer sheets from other teams can be as short as two years, though neither of those two years can be an option.

Butler has been spending time in Los Angeles this offseason, and according to league sources, the swingman’s interest in signing an offer sheet with the Lakers, if offered, has increased, Wojnarowski relays. The player has preliminary plans to pursue meetings with a number of teams once the free agent signing period begins in July, and several of these potential suitors have told Wojnarowski that they are under the impression that a short-term, max money offer is the best way to try and lure Butler this offseason. This includes the Bulls, who if they remain adamant about wanting to lock up Butler to a long-term contract, will risk the player signing an offer sheet with another franchise, the Yahoo! scribe notes.

The 25-year- old Butler is fresh off of his best NBA season, earning honors as the NBA’s Most Improved Player. Butler averaged 20.0 points, 5.8 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game in 38.7 minutes per night. His career averages are 11.7 points, 4.3 rebounds and two assists.

Leonard, Green, Allen Lead All-Defensive Teams

May 20th, 2015 at 1:17pm CST by Chuck Myron

Kawhi Leonard, Draymond Green, Tony Allen, DeAndre Jordan and Chris Paul comprise this year’s All-Defensive First Team, the NBA announced via press release. Anthony Davis, Jimmy Butler, Andrew Bogut, John Wall and Tim Duncan are on the second team. Bogut’s selection is perhaps most important, since he triggers a bonus worth 15% of his nearly $12.973MM salary for this season, giving him approximately $1.946MM in extra pay. It also means his cap hit for next season jumps to $13.8MM instead of $12MM, since the bonus will fall in the category of a likely bonus. Still, the extra $1.8MM wouldn’t count against the tax next season unless Bogut again plays in 65 games and makes an All-Defensive team.

Leonard was the leading vote-getter from the media members who cast the ballots, which is no surprise, since he also won the Defensive Player of the Year award. The latest honor is further ammunition for a max contract this summer from the Spurs, though it appears he and San Antonio were already set to quickly agree to terms on one come July. Green and Jordan are also soon-to-be free agents on the first team, while Butler and Duncan are heading to free agency from the second team.

Davis, who’s eligible for a rookie scale extension this summer, topped the voting among second-teamers. The balloting went by a points system in which two points were awarded for a first team vote and one point for a second. Rudy Gobert, who received five first team votes, garnered the most points among those who missed the cut for both teams. LeBron James, Russell Westbrook, Avery Bradley, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Klay Thompson, Marc Gasol and Mike Conley were others who garnered multiple first team votes but didn’t make it on either team. Click here to see how each media member voted.

And-Ones: Thibodeau, Bulls, Draft

May 17th, 2015 at 9:28pm CST by Will Joseph

If coach Tom Thibodeau is let go by the Bulls, the Magic would be willing to pay Thibodeau anywhere from $7MM to $9MM annually, reports The Journal Times’ Gery Woelfel, who cited two league sources. The Magic have not started formal interviews yet for their coaching vacancy. Woelfel reported earlier this month that the Magic’s top choice is seemingly Thibodeau. Thibodeau, 57, has led the Bulls to five straight playoff appearances. He has two years left on his contract with the team. Despite that, it’s nearly a foregone conclusion that Thibodeau will be coaching elsewhere because of a strained relationship with Chicago’s management. The Pelicans have been rumored as a favorite to land Thibodeau’s services, should he be let go by the Bulls.

Here’s more from around the basketball world:

Speaking of the Bulls, they are counting on the backcourt duo of Derrick Rose and Jimmy Butler to lead them toward another playoff run next season, K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune writes. This summer will mark Rose’s first offseason in which he’s not rehabilitating or preparing to return from a knee injury since 2011 and the star guard is under contract for two more seasons, as Johnson notes. The Bulls will offer Butler, who will be a restricted free agent, a maximum contract this offseason, Johnson adds.
One NBA general manager told The Journal Times’ Gery Woelfel that Wisconsin center Frank Kaminsky could go as high as six in the draft. Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress ranks Kaminsky No. 10, but he is the No. 14 overall player according to Chad Ford of ESPN.com (Insider subscription required).
NBA executives were left impressed with Boston College guard Olivier Hanlan following interviews with the draft prospect, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports tweets.
Kings coach George Karl is likely to add Nets assistant John Welch to his coaching staff, Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com tweets. Welch was on Karl’s staff with the Nuggets, and he specialized in player development.

Bulls Notes: Butler, Noah, Anderson

May 15th, 2015 at 2:01pm CST by Chuck Myron

Jimmy Butler is a “lock” to get the max this summer, Grantland’s Zach Lowe writes, while sources tell Marc Stein of ESPN.com that the Knicks and Lakers are the teams that draw most frequent mention as potential suitors. It jibes with earlier reports from David Haugh of the Chicago Tribune, who wrote in January that the Bulls planned to quickly entice Butler to commit to a max deal, and from Michael Scotto of SheridanHoops and Shams Charania of RealGM, who identified the Knicks and Lakers, respectively, as likely suitors. In any case, it seems like Butler will be back with Chicago, with the question centering on just how long of a contract he’ll sign, as Lowe examines.

We’re keeping up with all the Tom Thibodeau rumors here, but we’ll round up more from Chicago in this post, with a little opinion on Thibs sprinkled in, as the Bulls lick their wounds from Thursday’s playoff ouster:

Lowe, in the same piece, speculates that Taj Gibson is the most likely trade candidate on the Bulls and relays that executives around the league are curious about whether Joakim Noah, whose contract is up after next season, is indeed too banged up to ever return to peak form.
The Bulls have a workout scheduled with Virginia small forward Justin Anderson soon after this week’s draft combine, MassLive’s Jay King tweets. Anderson is also working out with the Celtics, as we passed along earlier.
Tom Thibodeau’s sub-.500 playoff record and resistance to hiring an offensive-minded assistant are among the reasons why the Bulls would be justified in letting him go, Teddy Greenstein of the Chicago Tribune opines.
Defense has defined Thibodeau’s teams, but Chicago’s most pressing need in the offseason is to find a way to force more turnovers next season, as Kevin Pelton of ESPN.com opines in an Insider-only piece.

Bulls Interested In Alvin Gentry

May 15th, 2015 at 12:17pm CST by Chuck Myron

12:17am: Some are skeptical the Bulls will land Hoiberg, Beck tweets, which jibes with what Kyler reported earlier.

WEDNESDAY, 11:54am: Hoiberg is Chicago’s top choice, Bleacher Report’s Howard Beck writes, though he hears from one source who considers Gentry the favorite to end up in the Bulls job (Twitter link).

TUESDAY, 10:02am: Warriors assistant coach Alvin Gentry would be among the front-runners for the Bulls head coaching job if the team were to part ways with Tom Thibodeau after the season, sources tell Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders, who writes in his NBA AM piece. Iowa State coach Fred Hoiberg has appeared to be Chicago’s top Thibodeau alternative, as multiple reports have indicated, but Kyler hears that Hoiberg may not be willing to jump to the NBA, given the condition of his heart. The 42-year-old underwent open heart surgery last month to replace his aortic valve, the school announced then.

Gentry is a contender for the Nuggets vacancy, as Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports reported last month, not long after a pair of reports identified him as a likely candidate. The Magic are considering Gentry, too, Kyler reported earlier. The former Heat, Pistons, Clippers and Suns bench boss is still working with the Warriors in the playoffs and has expressed affection for his place in Golden State even as he’s said he’d like to be a head coach again. He’s 335-370 over parts of 12 seasons as an NBA head coach, but he went 158-144 with Phoenix, his last stop.

Grantland’s Zach Lowe heard from people close to Tom Thibodeau who were convinced the Bulls would fire their coach at season’s end, as Lowe reported last month, but that scenario would be somewhat unrealistic given the two years left on the coach’s contract, Kyler writes. The sides could part ways as part of a de facto trade in which another team that wants to hire Thibodeau gives the Bulls compensation for letting him out of his contract, and the Magic would be willing to give up assets to Chicago in such an arrangement, sources tell Kyler. Indeed, the Magic job would be Thibodeau’s to turn down if he becomes available, as Gery Woelfel of The Journal Times reported earlier. Orlando would likely be willing to surrender a second-round pick or two, according to Kyler. Kyler had earlier questioned the Magic’s willingness to surrender too much for the chance to bring Thibs aboard. Thibodeau is expected to command an annual salary of $7-8MM, and the Magic would be willing to pay that, sources also tell Kyler.

It’s believed Thibodeau is the front-runner for the Nuggets job, too, according to Kyler, though there has been doubt about whether he’s a fit for Denver’s plan to return to a high-tempo approach. The Pelicans also regard Thibodeau highly as the future of Monty Williams remains unresolved, Kyler writes.

Jimmy Butler likes Thibodeau, but his decision in restricted free agency this summer wouldn’t be tied to the team’s coach, sources close to Butler tell Kyler. However, Derrick Rose is among a number of Bulls who would have a “significant problem” if the team pushed out Thibodeau, Kyler writes, echoing Wojnarowski’s recent report. Rose’s backing of Thibodeau wouldn’t prevent the coach’s departure, Wojnarowski wrote, and Rose is under contract through 2016/17.

Bulls Rumors: Butler, Free Agency, Thibodeau

May 10th, 2015 at 12:25pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Bulls’ Jimmy Butler, who was already expected to be one of the hottest names on this summer’s free agent market, is helping himself with his playoff performance, writes Sam Smith of Bulls.com. Smith argues that Butler has been the MVP of the Cleveland series through its first three games, averaging 19.3 points and five rebounds per game while playing stellar defense against LeBron James. “We’re trying to make LeBron work as hard as we can, which is what Jimmy is doing,” teammate Mike Dunleavy said after Friday’s Game 3. The Bulls are hoping to sign Butler to a long-term deal this summer, but are expected to have competition from the Lakers, among others.

There’s more from the Windy City:

Butler’s first choice is to stay in Chicago, reports Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today. The Bulls can match any offer that the restricted free agent receives — likely starting at $15MM per season — and that seems fine with the fourth-year guard. “This is a place for me. I love playing with the guys that we have,” Butler said. “They continue to bring in great, high character guys that fit the team role. I love it here. I’m happy to be here.”
Butler credits his improvement to intense summer workouts and advice from former teammate Luol Deng, according to Shams Charania of RealGM. Charania says Butler has evolved into a perfect backcourt partner for Derrick Rose and the Bulls would love to keep him. However, he noted that Butler went to Marquette University and the Bucks have enough cap room to be a dark-horse threat.
Tom Thibodeau, who could lose his job despite leading the Bulls to the NBA’s fourth-best record since 2010, is a victim of increased expectations across the NBA, according to Chris Herring of The Wall Street Journal. “I think there’s a heightened, unrealistic definition of success around the league: Championship or bust,” said former Portland assistant general manager Tom Penn. “And it’s caused a number of these coaches recently to become free agents too early.” Thibodeau’s fate will likely depend on the length of the Bulls’ playoff run.

Lakers Expected To Pursue Jimmy Butler

May 9th, 2015 at 5:51pm CST by ChrisCrouse

The Lakers are expected to be one of several teams preparing a maximum salary offer sheet for Bulls guard Jimmy Butler, Shams Charania of RealGM reports. Chicago reportedly intends to match any offer sheet that he signs, but Charania notes that teams around the league are questioning how Chicago will handle the inevitable max contract for another star player given their pricey commitment to Derrick Rose.

Los Angeles only has slightly under $35.1MM in guaranteed contracts on the books for the 2015/16 season, as our Salary Commitment page shows, against a projected salary cap of $67.1MM. That figure only includes contracts for four players and does not include the non-guaranteed contracts of Tarik Black, Robert Sacre and Jordan Clarkson, which together only total roughly $2.7MM. If the Lakers keep all three on the roster, which I speculate they will, the team could still have enough cap room to sign one player to a maximum contract and another player, perhaps Rajon Rondo, to a mid-sized contract.

Butler, who won this season’s Most Improved Player award, averaged 20.0 points, 5.8 rebounds in 38.7 minutes per game. The guard led his team in minutes per contest and no other Bulls player under the age of 29 played more than 30 minutes per game. Chicago has an aging roster and even with nearly $60.2MM in commitments for next season, the team should look to retain the 25-year-old regardless of cost.

Jimmy Butler Wins Most Improved Player Award

May 7th, 2015 at 10:51am CST by Eddie Scarito

THURSDAY, 10:51am: The league has formally announced Butler as the winner of the award, as shown on NBA.com. He took the honor by a wide margin over second-place finisher Draymond Green, who finished just ahead of Rudy Gobert. Butler took in 92 first-place votes while Green and Gobert had 11 and 12, respectively. The weighted voting system awarded five points for a first-place vote, three for a second-place vote and one for a third-place vote, giving Butler a total of 535 points, more than two and a half times as many as Green’s 200. Hassan Whiteside, Anthony Davis and Klay Thompson were the others to receive multiple first-place votes, while Giannis Antetokounmpo, DeMarre Carroll and Tyler Zeller garnered one each. Media members cast the ballots, and to see how each of them voted, click here.

WEDNESDAY, 7:00pm: Bulls swingman Jimmy Butler will be named as the NBA’s Most Improved Player, Marc Stein of ESPN.com reports (Twitter link). The 25-year-old certainly picked the correct season to become a breakout star since Butler can become a restricted free agent this summer if the Bulls tender him a qualifying offer worth $4,433,683. Chicago reportedly intends to match any offer sheet that Butler signs, and the franchise is expected to offer him a maximum salary contract this offseason.

Chicago already has nearly $60.2MM in commitments for seven players next season, not including a player option of almost $2.855MM for Kirk Hinrich. With the luxury tax line currently projected to come in around $81MM, it may be difficult to re-sign Butler without becoming a taxpayer. But with the Bulls’ roster aging quickly, locking down the budding young star should certainly be a priority for the team.

Butler appeared in 65 contests for Chicago this season and averaged 20.0 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 3.3 assists in 38.7 minutes per contest, all of which were career highs. His shooting line was .462/.378/.834. The 6’7″ swingman out of Marquette well outperformed his 2013/14 campaign numbers of 13.1 PPG, 4.9 RPG, and 2.6 APG.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Central Notes: Middleton, Love, Butler

May 2nd, 2015 at 10:59am CST by Eddie Scarito

Bucks‘ swingman Khris Middleton wishes to return to Milwaukee next season, Charles F. Gardner of The Journal Sentinel relays (Twitter links). “I hope to be back here,” Middleton said. “I feel we have a great young team, going in the right direction.” The 23-year-old can become a restricted free agent this offseason provided the Bucks tender him a qualifying offer worth $2,725,003. Middleton also noted that he wouldn’t want negotiations between he and Milwaukee to become drawn out, and referenced Eric Bledsoe and the Suns’ dealings from last summer, Gardner adds. “That’s a terrible situation,” said Middleton. “It worked out for him but it’s something I’d rather not be in.”

Here’s more out of the Central Division:

The dislocated shoulder that knocked Kevin Love out of action for four to six months also ruined his chance at redeeming what the forward termed a “so-so” first season with the Cavs, Chris Haynes of The Northeast Ohio Media Group writes.
Bulls‘ swingman Jimmy Butler‘s uncanny ability to accept criticism from his coaches without reacting emotionally is a major reason that the 25-year-old has matured into a star player in the NBA, Eric Weiss and Kevin O’Connor of DraftExpress write in their profile of player. Butler will become a restricted free agent this summer if Chicago tenders him a qualifying offer of $4,433,683.
The Cavs have already begun recruiting Love to remain in Cleveland with their statements about how much the big man will be missed now that he is out for the remainder of the playoffs, Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today writes. The scribe cites comments like ones made by guard Kyrie Irving, who said, “When one of your brothers goes down, there’s a piece of us that went with him.”

Central Notes: Pistons, Varejao, Butler

March 10th, 2015 at 9:55pm CST by Eddie Scarito

While the Pistons have had to adjust their playing style a number of times this season due to trades and injuries, the one constant has been the team’s focus on the defensive end, David Mayo of MLive.com writes. But it’s Detroit’s defense that has been letting the team down during its current six game losing streak, Mayo adds. The lack of stops, turnovers, and rebounds have led to a dearth of fast break chances, which is hampering the Pistons on the offensive end, Mayo notes.

Here’s more from the Central Division:

Jimmy Butler is one of the biggest breakout success stories of the NBA season, and it’s a testament to the swingman’s work ethic that he is in line for a big payday when he hits restricted free agency this summer, Ben Golliver of SI.com writes. The Bulls have indicated that they plan to match any offer sheets that Butler receives this offseason.
Cavs coach David Blatt confirmed that center Anderson Varejao is out for the remainder of the season and the playoffs, but he added that the team is very pleased with Varejao’s rehab progress, Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com tweets. Varejao tore his left Achilles tendon back in December.
Derrick Rose‘s quiet demeanor isn’t helping him with Bulls fans, who have grown wary of the star point guard due to his numerous injuries, David Haugh of The Chicago Tribune writes. Though Rose recently sounded optimistic about playing again this season, Chicago fans need a bolder statement regarding his return to action from the player instead of his seeming nonchalance about the matter, Haugh opines.