Lakers Rumors: Jimmy Butler Would Be Perfect Addition for LA's Rebuild
The Los Angeles Lakers need to find young, impact stars to pull themselves out of the throes of misery. They are looking at a top-five pick in the NBA draft, but free agency could also be eventful with Chicago Bulls star Jimmy Butler on the radar.
According to Shams Charania of RealGM, the Lakers are one of many teams expected to pursue Butler as he enters restricted free agency this summer:
"Outside of Chicago, teams are already preparing possible maximum-salary offer sheets for Butler in free agency, including the Los Angeles Lakers as one of several expected suitors, league sources told RealGM. Even Butler’s college area connection, the Milwaukee Bucks, will have cap space in July. Around the league, there’s a question: How will Chicago handle the inevitable max out of a star player not named Rose?
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Butler's free agency is going to be a fascinating story to follow this offseason. He has gone from being a solid role player in his first three years to a legitimate star this season, and at 25 years old there's no reason to think this trend will slow down.
The question is whether the Bulls believe Butler to be that important to their future, which may not be an easy thing to answer, given Derrick Rose's history of knee injuries. Charania did note in his report that Butler has made it clear he wants to stay in Chicago and the team "will assuredly match anything" that gets offered.
In the event that the Bulls happen to let Butler walk this summer, the Lakers are the one team that should pursue him as hard as anyone, if not more so.
Ignoring Butler's offensive contributions for a minute, he's a tremendous defensive asset. Per ESPN.com, the fourth-year standout ranked 17th among all shooting guards with a defensive real plus-minus rating of 0.69.
Here's what he did in the first half of Game 3 in the Bulls' series against Cleveland when matched up against LeBron James, per ESPN Stats & Info:
In 2014-15, per TeamRankings.com, the Lakers ranked 29th in defensive efficiency and scoring defense (105.3 points per game). Butler would immediately make them better and more athletic on that side of the ball, while also taking pressure off Kobe Bryant.
Moving to the offensive portion of Butler's game, he was erratic shooting in his first three seasons, with a field-goal percentage under 41 in both 2011-12 and 2013-14. The former Marquette star was solid as a bench player in 2012-13, with a 46.7 percent mark from the floor, and ended at 46.2 as a starter this season.
Using ESPN.com's offensive real plus-minus ratings, Butler ranked 14th overall at 3.97, ahead of stars like LaMarcus Aldridge and Blake Griffin.
For comparison, the highest-ranked Lakers player on the list was Jeremy Lin at No. 70, with a rating of 1.37. Bryant, who played in only 35 games, came in at No. 89.
Los Angeles' front office is dying for someone to take its money. It lost out on Carmelo Anthony last summer, which may not have been the worst thing, but after a 21-61 season, something has to change for this storied franchise.
As things currently stand, per HoopsHype, the Lakers have just under $36.2 million in salary commitments next season, with Bryant accounting for $25 million of that total.
Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress projects the salary cap to reach $67.1 million next season—in the final year before the NBA's new television contracts kick in and cap projections explode. That leaves nearly $31 million for Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak to spend.
Despite the lack of success over the past two seasons, the Lakers gave Kupchak a long-term extension in April 2014. He may not be on the hot seat, per se, but the increasing pressure to win in that market, especially with the Clippers taking over as the best franchise in the city, could force him to give money to anyone who will take it.
There figures to be an influx of talent for the Lakers, with two first-round picks and the return of last year's top pick Julius Randle. That's a nice starting nucleus to build around, but the team needs to add one proven star to the mix if it is going to make a playoff push.
Butler is the star Los Angeles needs, though it doesn't sound like Chicago will let him go without a fight. The NBA's Most Improved Player is going to get a lot of money from someone this summer, and a lot of teams could use his talents.
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