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Los Angeles Lakers must avoid trading for Jimmy Butler

By Jason Reed

LOS ANGELES, CA - DECEMBER 25: Jimmy Butler #23 of the Minnesota Timberwolves looks to pass the ball during the first half of the game against the Los Angeles Lakers at the Staples Center on December 25, 2017 in Los Angeles, California. 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. (Photo by Josh Lefkowitz/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA - DECEMBER 25: Jimmy Butler #23 of the Minnesota Timberwolves looks to pass the ball during the first half of the game against the Los Angeles Lakers at the Staples Center on December 25, 2017 in Los Angeles, California. 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. (Photo by Josh Lefkowitz/Getty Images) /
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The Los Angeles Lakers will eventually add another superstar to play alongside LeBron James. While Jimmy Butler is an option, he shouldn’t be a trade option.

The Los Angeles Lakers are obviously not done with just LeBron James. As good as the young core is and while LeBron has the pedigree to put the entire city of Los Angeles on his back, he is going to need more help than is currently on the roster.

The NBA has developed into a superstar league and the NBA Title-contending teams usually have at least three, or sometimes even four (and now five) superstars.

Brandon Ingram could progress into an all-star. Perhaps Lonzo Ball and Kyle Kuzma could also be in 2-3 years. However, the Lakers currently do not have the firepower to defeat the Golden State Warriors.

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That is why Magic Johnson and Rob Pelinka have freed up cap space again next offseason to bring in LeBron’s running mate. The “big three” that have been connected to the Lakers as potential signings are Kawhi Leonard, Klay Thompson and Jimmy Butler.

All three men are elite players and would give the Los Angeles Lakers, who would have yet another year to develop the young core, a serious shot at winning the NBA Title.

However, the possibility of acquiring one of these superstars as early as this season has emerged.

Jimmy Butler and the Minnesota Timberwolves have a tense relationship that likely will not lead to Butler being in Minnesota after his contract expires this season. For the Timberwolves, this may be a case of Butler or Karl Anthony-Towns, who the team has groomed to be the face of the franchise.

This has gotten so serious that, per Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic,  Butler will meet with Minnesota executives to discuss his future with the team. Adrian Wojnarowski then reported that the Timberwolves would rather trade Butler than lose him from nothing this offseason (h/t Silver Screen and Roll).

We see this narrative play out with superstars all the time. The most recent example is Paul George, although he was traded in the offseason. The Indiana Pacers knew that they were going to lose George in free agency and opted to get something out of him in a trade.

Luckily for Indiana, the team struck gold with Victor Oladipo, who emerged as a true star this season.

However, unfortunately for the Los Angeles Lakers, this lead to George wanting to give it another go with the Oklahoma City Thunder and not leave unfinished business on the table. This led to the Lakers to shift the focus to next offseason opposed to adding another superstar this summer.

That same concern could be held with Jimmy Butler and the desire to succeed as early as possible could force the Lakers hand to try and work out a trade. However, trading for Butler would simply be a mistake and an unnecessary move to make.

If the Lakers did trade for Butler, he would almost certainly agree to a new contract this summer, so that is not the concern.

However, the Lakers would be giving up valuable assets for a piece the team can simply add in the offseason. Instead of needing to give up either Josh Hart, Brandon Ingram or a slew of picks (or two of the three) the Lakers can keep those assets while still adding the star.

Plus, the Lakers would not gain anything contractually in this deal. While it would work by trading Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, this deal would have been much more realistic if they could offload all of Luol Deng‘s contract to Minnesota (where Deng ended up signing).

And the concern of losing out on Butler if he falls in love with a new home is not a concern the Lakers should have. Los Angeles still has Thompson and Leonard to pursue, and if push comes to shove, could try and work out a deal for a possibly disgruntled star, such as Anthony Davis.

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Quite frankly, the Los Angeles Lakers need to just stay patient and let the talent come to them. The team has LeBron James and is arguably the best market to play in as an athlete.

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