Jimmy Butler Rumored to Want Cavs Trade, Spoke to LeBron James, Kyrie Irving

Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times reported Tuesday that Chicago Bulls All-Star swingman Jimmy Butler is rumored to be in favor of a potential trade to the Cleveland Cavaliers.       

Sources told Cowley that Butler has spoken to LeBron James and Kyrie Irving and that indications are Butler may push the Bulls front office to send him to the defending Eastern Conference champs.

ESPN.com's Marc Stein first reported Monday that Cleveland was attempting to put together a deal to pry Butler away from Chicago.

Per Stein, the Cavs are prepared to offer forward Kevin Love as part of the deal but need to get a third team involved to sweeten the pot.

The 27-year-old Butler has been named an All-Star in each of the past three seasons, and he is coming off his best NBA campaign to date, as he averaged 23.9 points, 6.2 rebounds, 5.5 assists and 1.9 steals per game in 2016-17.

Butler also has two years remaining on his contract with a player option for 2019-20, according to Spotrac.

The Cavaliers aren't the only team with reported interest in Butler, as Vincent Goodwill of CSN Chicago mentioned the Boston Celtics and Phoenix Suns, while Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical reported that the Minnesota Timberwolves had contacted the Bulls.

Cleveland has reached the NBA Finals in each of the past three seasons, but it is 1-2 against the Golden State Warriors and was vanquished in five games this year.

With Love performing inconsistently during the Finals, a swap for Butler is a move that may go a long way toward closing the gap between the Cavs and Dubs.