NBA Rumors: Hottest Gossip Ahead of 2017 Trade Deadline

Only two NBA teams seem content with their rosters at the moment: the Golden State Warriors and the San Antonio Spurs.

Otherwise, the 28 other NBA squads have all been connected to trade rumors this week, as fans have had to continually peruse Twitter to keep up with the current news.

Here's a look at some chatter involving one star and two role players who could provide significant boosts to playoff contenders.

Jimmy Butler

Pump the brakes on any talk regarding Chicago Bulls forward Jimmy Butler heading to Boston because K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune reported this news on Tuesday:

Johnson wrote more about the potential move on Monday:

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The Celtics own attractive assets for a team seeking a full rebuild. The Bulls have a superstar with experience guarding LeBron James in the postseason. And the teams engaged in serious talks in June that centered on Jimmy Butler.

The issue, at least as of Monday, is that the speculation is based more on assumed fit than reality.

Plenty can happen before Thursday's 2 p.m. trade deadline, but according to multiple sources, the Bulls and Celtics haven't held substantive talks about Butler since June, and Butler's camp is under the impression that the Bulls won't move the three-time All-Star this week.

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Butler would be a great fit on the Celtics—and on almost every team, for that matter—and he would instantly make Boston a stone-cold lock for a top-two seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs.

Michael Gallagher of Rotoworld posted some of Butler's impressive statistics on Tuesday:

As fantastic as Butler has been this year, one has to wonder whether mortgaging the future is worth it.

Boston would likely have to part ways with the 2017 first-round draft pick it received from the Brooklyn Nets in the Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce deal.

Since the Nets have the worst record in the NBA (they have nine wins, and the next-closest team has 18), that would give Boston a 25 percent chance to land the first pick.

In a draft that's loaded with talent this year, it's probably not a good move to give up that pick and two or three rotation players for Butler.

Wilson Chandler

Denver Nuggets forward Wilson Chandler's time in Colorado could be coming to a close, as he has frequently been connected to trade rumors of late.

The team that makes the most sense is the Houston Rockets.

Chris Haynes of ESPN.com noted that Houston was a team to keep an eye on in the pursuit of Chandler:

Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle also mentioned that the Rockets are looking to add a versatile player off the bench.

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According to multiple individuals with knowledge of trade discussions that ramped up around the league over the weekend, the Rockets had been heavily involved, as usual, in talks.

Though general manager Daryl Morey had said he would look for depth, even if only as insurance if there is an injury, the Rockets have sought a deal that could bring one more player to the rotation, and particularly would like someone versatile enough to play multiple positions to help reduce the playing time of several key players.

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Chandler is not mentioned by name in Feigen's article, but he would fit the bill Feigen described better than anyone else the Rockets can find on the trading block. Feigen also wrote that nothing has been "close," however.

Chandler would be a great fit in Houston, which could use another veteran off the bench to help shooting guard Eric Gordon provide more scoring for the second unit.

Furthermore, Chandler can play small forward if the team wants to give starter Trevor Ariza a breather, and he can play power forward if starter Ryan Anderson needs rest.

The move makes sense on paper. It's just a matter of whether Houston is willing to meet Denver's asking price, which seems steep, per Zach Lowe of ESPN.com:

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The Nuggets, for their part, are seeking a lottery-protected first-round pick and swap rights on another pick for Danilo Gallinari and Wilson Chandler, sources say. They want that No. 8 spot in the West, but they think they can get it even if they surrender one of those guys.

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The guess is that Chandler will end up in Houston before Thursday's 3 p.m. deadline.

Lou Williams

Los Angeles Lakers shooting guard Lou Williams, who won the Sixth Man of the Year award two seasons ago and who is averaging 18.6 points in 24.2 minutes per game (his scoring average per 36 minutes is 27.7, per Basketball-Reference.com), is bound to pack his bags and depart from a Lakers team looking to get younger and continue its rebuild.

The 30-year-old guard has been linked to a couple of playoff contenders in recent days.

Ian Begley of ESPN.com reported that the Utah Jazz could be interested in Williams:

Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical reported the Washington Wizards are after a scorer to help their bench, mentioning Williams and Nets wing Bojan Bogdanovic in particular (h/t Jake Whitacre of Bullets Forever):

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They got to improve their bench. They feel that if there's a wing player that they can get out in the trade market, Lou Williams with the Lakers they have interest in, Bojan Bogdanovic with the Nets. Washington has shown the inclination to give up a future draft pick, potentially even in this draft to get a veteran who may even turn out to be a rental for them.

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Lowe also provided some further commentary on the possibility of Washington landing Williams:

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Several reports have linked the Wiz to Lou Williams, and Washington has indeed explored trading a protected first-round pick for the king of the 2-for-1. That makes me a little queasy, despite Williams' monster season and an affordable $7 million contract that runs through 2017-18 -- big for a capped-out team with limited means to boost the roster in free agency.

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Williams would be a huge boost to Utah or Washington on the offensive end. Utah is struggling to get scoring from its bench, and Washington can't get consistently productive minutes from its reserves.

The problem is that Williams will be a minus on defense. He ranks 80th out of 100 shooting guards in defensive real plus/minus this season, per ESPN.com.

Teams have to gauge if the offensive plus of Williams' game will outweigh the minuses on the other end of the court. Statistically, they do, as Williams is second in offensive real plus/minus among 100 shooting guards.

Expect the Lakers to send Williams off to the highest bidder this week. Since Washington is most desperate for bench help, the Wizards are the favorites in the clubhouse.