Bulls Trade Jimmy Butler To Timberwolves; Shrewd Move Or Dumb Deal?

CHICAGO, IL — The Chicago Bulls traded Jimmy Butler and the team's No. 16 pick to the Minnesota Timberwolves in arguably the biggest deal of Thursday night's NBA Draft, according to ESPN. In return, Chicago received guards Kris Dunn and Zach LaVine, as well as Minnesota's No. 7 pick, the report added. The Wolves had used that pick to draft Lauri Markkanen, a 7-foot power forward from the University of Arizona, while the Bulls chose Creighton center Justin Patton at No. 16.

Butler had long been the subject of trade rumors leading up to Thursday, and news of the deal leaked during the draft before it was finalized. Some league observers had speculated that the NBA All-Star would join LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers as another weapon to help that team recapture the title after losing it to the Golden State Warriors in the finals earlier this month. (Get Patch real-time email alerts for the latest news for Chicago — or your neighborhood. And iPhone users: Check out Patch's new app.)

Butler — in France to check out Paris fashion shows with now-former teammate Dwyane Wade and other pro players — was informed of the trade by his agent, the report stated. The NBA All-Star told ESPN he wasn't commenting on the move.

One of Butler's trainers, however, was more forthcoming when it came to talking about the trade. Travelle Gaines was critical not only of the the Bulls' decision but also of general manager Gar Forman, who he ranked below drug dealers.

"0-82.worst culture in the league," Travelle Gaines wrote on his Twitter feed Thursday after asking for advice about real estate agents in Minneapolis. "I met drug dealers with better morals then their GM. He is a liar and everyone knows."

The Bulls, though, were more grateful when it came to their Twitter comments about the deal, thanking Butler for his time with the team.

The trade reunites Butler with Tom Thibodeau, the former Bulls head coach who now leads the Wolves. Thibodeau, who the Bulls fired in 2015, had been trying to get Butler to Minnesota ever since the coach landed there last year.

Trading Butler — Chicago's best player and arguably one of the best in the NBA — for a trio of young lottery picks with potential means the Bulls are officially in the rebuilding phase. Here's a look at the talent the Bulls will acquire for Butler, who averaged 23.9 points, 6.2 rebounds and 5.5 assists last season:

• Dunn: He was Minnesota's No. 5 pick in 2016 out of Providence. He averaged only 3.8 points per game in just over 17 minutes last season.
• LaVine: The Wolves' No. 13 pick in 2014 averaged 18.9 points last season before being sideline with a torn ACL.
• Markkanen: The Bulls will land the first Finnish-born player to be drafted in the NBA lottery. He's also a big man with an outside shooter's touch. At Arizona last season, he made 69 3-pointers.

"What we've done tonight is set a direction," John Paxson, Chicago's vice president of basketball operations, said in a press conference Thursday after the trade was official. "We're going to do it with young players. We're going to be disciplined and patient. These are hard things to do. We traded a guy we really like. Tonight, we made a decision to change direction and define our path."

WATCH: Bulls execs Gar Forman and John Paxson talk about the Jimmy Butler trade at press conference Thursday.

But the sports betting community isn't confident that path will lead to the NBA Finals next year. Following the Butler deal, Minnesota's odds to win the 2017-18 NBA title improved from 100-1 to 60-1 at Westgate Las Vegas. The Bulls went from 100-1 to 200-1.

YOUR TURN: How does the Chicago Bulls' trade of Jimmy Butler rank among the team's other big draft deals? At the top of the scale is Olden Polynice for Scottie Pippen in 1987, and at the bottom is Tyrus Thomas and Viktor Khryapa for LaMarcus Aldridge in 2006. Or does it fall in the middle, like the 1988 trade of Charles Oakley for Bill Cartwright? Share your thoughts and opinions in the comments section.

More via ESPN.com

UPDATED (1:32 a.m. Friday, June 23)

Chicago Bulls All-Star Jimmy Butler during Game 4 of this year's NBA playoffs against the Boston Celtics. (Photo by Charles Rex Arbogast | Associated Press)

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