Well, isn't this interesting.
A league source close to the situation told the Sun-Times on Tuesday that Kyrie Irving and former Bulls All-Star Jimmy Butler are still trying to figure out a way to play together.
As you may recall, the Celtics have been linked to Butler before. But the Celts apparently cooled on Butler at the end of the 2016-17 season, unwilling to part with the assets they would have had to send Chicago in a trade and preferring to pursue Gordon Hayward in free agency. The Bulls traded Butler to the Timberwolves and the Celtics landed Hayward. And then the C's were able to acquire Irving as well.
It appears, however, that Butler isn't a Timberwolf for life. From the Sun-Times:
[A] league source said [Butler] also has no intentions of signing an extension with Minnesota, all but fed up with the nonchalant attitude of his younger teammates, specifically Karl-Anthony Towns.
So now what? Do the Celtics try and trade for Butler now? The addition of Butler -- depending on what they'd have to surrender -- could help the C's create their own super team that might, just might, be able to do legitimate battle with the DeMarcus Cousins-added Warriors.
Boston Celtics
Or do they wait until he hits free agency at the end of next season? That, however, could be risky . . .
[Irving and Butler may] simply wait a year, both opt out of their player options after the season, and join forces that way.
In any case, it looks like another element has been introduced into an already interesting Celtics offseason.
Stay tuned.
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