Chicago Bulls: The Jimmy Butler Dilemma

The Chicago Bulls have voiced their frustration with Jimmy Butler, but still know the value that his talent is worth.

Lately, it seems like nothing is simple when it comes to the Chicago Bulls and the same goes for deciding what to do with and/or about Jimmy Butler.

Gar Forman and John Paxson made it clear that nothing is “off the table” when it comes to trading players, but letting go of their star is proving to be more complicated than meets the eye. While there has certainly been love lost between Butler and Chicago as a whole, his talent cannot be overlooked. So although from an outside perspective, it might be apparent that the front office would love nothing more than to get rid of Butler, this is not so easily the case.

As an organization, the Bulls have certainly had their fair share of ups and downs. But that could be said about virtually any NBA franchise. Like anything else in life, teams must face hardships, just as they also get to celebrate victories. Recently, however, Chicago has been through it.

Not just on the court, either.

The drama first began after the front office decided that Tom Thibodeau was no longer a good fit for the organization. The way in which they fired Thibodeau did not sit right with not just the fans and media, but merely everyone around the league. Although head coach Fred Hoiberg was not to blame, the way Gar/Pax handled the entire situation left a sour taste in supporters’ mouths. While they were certainly willing to give Hoiberg a try, it was not the way to start a new season off.

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Then the bizarre happenings continued, as Hoiberg decided Joakim Noah would be more suitable coming off of the bench. This obviously frustrated Noah, but also left the public scratching their heads; if that was Hoiberg’s first so-called major coaching decision, what else would follow?

Well, nothing good anyways.

According to Butler, Hoiberg was not riding the team hard enough.

But whether that was true, whether the guys were just missing Thibodeau’s more intense style of coaching, or whether it a combination of both did not really end up being a topic of discussion. Instead, the league-wide conversation was centered around if Butler had any right to call Hoiberg out.

At that point, the trouble surrounding the Bulls became apparent. They were not only struggling to win games, but dealing with inner turmoil as well.

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And unfortunately, most of that involved Butler.

Now, Chicago badly needs to rebuild. Because after missing the postseason for the first time since 2008, while finishing the 2015-16 season with a 42-40 record, clearly some adjustments need to be made.

Over the past few weeks, there have been numerous trade rumors involving the 26-year-old. From ending up with the Los Angeles Lakers to the Boston Celtics, various potential deals have been speculated upon. But supposedly, the Bulls plan to ask for quite a lot in return.

Yes, the organization is fed up with Butler’s demeanor. And yes, they are absolutely looking into revamping the roster. But as the front office, his teammates and the media continue to speak not so highly of him, they all also realize how much worse off the team would be without him — and that the only way to become a better team is to replace his talent with someone as equally skilled; not just in terms of raw ability, but regarding the likes of confidence and leadership qualities, too.

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So continuing the year’s trend of being well, messy, Chicago is definitely still in limbo when it comes to Butler.