The Boston Celtics missed out on acquiring a "difference maker" prior to the NBA trade deadline, but that doesn't mean the team's president of basketball operations Danny Ainge didn't try hard to make something happen. In addition to coming "very close" to landing a superstar player, believed to be Jahlil Okafor, Ainge also reportedly made a strong push towards a deal with the Chicago Bulls for Jimmy Butler.
Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald is reporting that Ainge offered at least one player to the Bulls, but the deal centered around the Celtics' willingness to part with two first-round picks (the Brooklyn Nets' 2016 unprotected pick and the Dallas Mavericks' 2016 pick which is protected from first through seventh). Intriguing as it may have been, the Bulls decided to hold onto Butler and rightfully so.
“This is not a case where Chicago was looking to trade Jimmy Butler,” said a source. “That would be crazy. But if Boston calls, you have to look at those picks and some of the players they have and at least hear them out. Most times when teams call about your star, you can just dismiss it right away, but you have to think about it with Ainge and the Celtics right now. There’s a lot to go over there with possibilities.”
Send all complaints, compliments, and tips to sportstips@complex.com
[via Boston Herald]
