The never-ending saga of Jimmy Butler continues. It appears that the Miami Heat have a steady lead over other possible trading partners. Other possible partners include the LA Clippers and Brooklyn Nets — considering Butler had both of these destinations as preferences early on in the process. This comes from ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, who is closely monitoring this dramatic saga.
Sources: Miami has been the most engaged team with Minnesota on a Jimmy Butler trade. So far, no traction with Clippers and Nets. Houston’s tried to be creative in its pursuit. It’ll be a challenge — although not impossible — to get any Butler deal done without a third team.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) September 26, 2018
While the Heat initially weren’t on Butler’s list of preferred designations, he reportedly has changed course and put them at the top of his new list. It’s no surprise the Houston Rockets are also trying to swing big, but that deal seems unlikely.
This truly has been one of the messiest breakups between a player and a franchise in recent memory, a high bar to clear. This is on the level of the Kawhi Leonard situation in San Antonio that transpired earlier this year. It’s not quite the same in terms of how surprising the revelation was, but it certainly rivals the Leonard situation in terms of palace intrigue.
The trio of Butler, Tom Thibodeau, and Glen Taylor are not in sync with one another. Butler is clear that he’s done with Minnesota and Glen Taylor seems to want to find a quick solution. But head coach and president Tom Thibodeau seems intent on trying to figure out a way to work things out.
It’s truly a bizarre power struggle between a superstar player, powerful head coach, and owner that gets more intriguing by the minute.
For now, it looks like the Heat are the favorite to land Butler, but until a trade is made, nothing is set in stone.
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