The Chicago Bulls are coming into the offseason with Jimmy Butler as the main priority in free agency, as he is a restricted free agent and could get a max contract and this comes as the team could consider a trade with Taj Gibson after taking Bobby Portis in the NBA draft, as they will need cap space to chase free agents like Wesley Matthews or Monta Ellis this summer.
The Bulls already made a major move by firing Tom Thibodeau and bringing in Fred Hoiberg as head coach and now the main priority is keeping Butler in free agency. According to Yahoo Sports, the Bulls are likely going to offer Butler a max contract this summer, but Butler may "resist" that offer in favor of a short term deal. Adrian Wojnarowski writes that Butler may maximize his value by waiting for the salary cap to rise to sign a max deal and he may "pursue meetings with several teams" this summer.
Free agency officially starts on July 1 and Wojnarowski writes that Butler has "increased" is "intrigue" in signing an offer sheet with the Lakers. Butler meeting with teams could be a way to get the Bulls to meet his demands, he may want a lucrative short term deal for two or three years before signing a max contract when the salary cap goes up. Wojnarowski writes that Butler could potentially sign a deal for more than $100 million if he waits to sign for the max. Butler rejected a contract extension from the Bulls last year and that decision appears to have paid off.
Butler had a career season with the Bulls and he won the most improved player award after averaging 20 points and nearly six rebounds per game. The Bulls reportedly are willing to match "any offer" for Butler in free agency this summer. The Bulls have a tight cap situation moving forward with Butler getting a big raise, as Derrick Rose is making $20 million per season and Taj Gibson is set for more than $8 million in the next two.
According to the Chicago Tribune, Gibson could be shopped in trades this summer, as the Bulls saw the emergence of Nikola Mirotic and just drafted another power forward in Bobby Portis. Pau Gasol and Joakim Noah are the primary players for the Bulls in the front court and Gibson could be the odd man out. Gibson might be making too much money to justify his role and that is what happened with Carlos Boozer last year. According to Blog a Bull at SB Nation, the team likely needs to make a trade if they want to add any new free agents.
NBA.com reports that the Bulls front office felt "unanimous" about picking Portis in the first round and Gar Forman said "there was no discussion" when they went on the clock. The team reportedly liked Portis early on in workouts and they see him as a "quality" big man. Mike Dunleavy is a free agent and Kirk Hinrich has a player option, but the main priority for the Bulls is bringing back Butler. The team has now added Portis and according to the Oregonian, Wesley Matthews could be a potential free agent option. Matthews is looking for around $15 million per season and that could put him out of range for the Bulls, but if the team trades Gibson they could afford to spend a little more.
