NBA: Top 5 Landing Spots for Jimmy Butler

Let's be honest, no one truly knows what is going on regarding Minnesota Timberwolves' shooting guard Jimmy Butler. From the internal conflicts with players including Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins, to the issues with head coach Tom Thibodeau, if he is not traded before the trade deadline, it would be a shocker.

While Butler won't be a free-agent until 2020 he has a player option in 2019. At the same time, it's in the best interest of the Timberwolves to trade him rather than have him leave through free agency, as they traded quite a bit to the Chicago Bulls in 2017.

Butler was picked 30th overall in the 2011 NBA draft by the Chicago Bulls and played 6 seasons for them. He was traded out during a time where the Bulls were starting to rebuild their roster and coaching team, as well as getting rid of the tensions between some teammates.

In his first season with the Timberwolves, he played just 59 games as he suffered a meniscus injury and was out indefinitely. However, he did return before the start of the playoffs and played 5 games. He is a 4x NBA All-Star, 2x All-NBA Third Team, 4x NBA All-Defensive Second Team, and NBA's Most Improved Player in 2015.

Butler is considered one of the best players in the game, both offensively and defensively. It shouldn't be hard for him to find a team willing to trade for him and give him a contract he is looking for.

Here are the top 5 landing spots for Butler, in no specific order.

Los Angeles Clippers

The L.A. Clippers have seen multiple stars depart, which includes point guard Chris Paul to the Houston Rockets, power forward Blake Griffin to the Detroit Pistons, and DeAndre Jordan to the Dallas Mavericks. At this point, the Clippers are in need of a star player on their roster in order to compete in an already crowded Western Division.

With Butler on the Clippers, head coach Doc Rivers will have someone he can depend on during all games (provided he stays healthy moving forward). The Clippers also have cap space to give Butler the money he is looking for. While it may take a while for the Clippers to be a real threat in the league, they definitely have players that can be of great support to Butler.

Players like point guard Lou Williams and Patrick Beverly, who have been in the league for quite some time, could help pull Butler to the Clippers.

Los Angeles Lakers

We now live in a world where almost every star player is supposedly linked to the Lakers. So it's safe to assume that Butler wouldn't mind playing alongside LeBron James. While it may seem the Lakers have a perfect starting five, it is nowhere near what the Warriors have.

With LeBron, Butler, Ball, and Kuzma on the Lakers, this could potentially be a threat in the whole league. However, when the Lakers signed LeBron, it made Butler rethink his idea to join the Lakers. Which likely means that Butler wants to be a team leader and does not want to be under someone else's "shadow."

But another question arises, would the Lakers trade for Butler or wait to see what happens with Kawhi Leonard? The situation around him is confusing as well, will he commit to the Raptors or sign with a different team, no one knows.

Toronto Raptors

The Raptors are in the mix only if Kawhi Leonard and Toronto don't see eye to eye in a big contract, as well as if Leonard doesn't perform to expectations. If the front office sees Kawhi as part of the future and Kawhi gets the contract he has been looking for, the chances of Raptors being interested in Butler would be slim.

But if it were to fall through, Kawhi could be traded to the Timberwolves for Butler. As of now, the Raptors (and the Celtics) are the team to beat in the Eastern Conference. Butler would bring the competitiveness that is lacking in the Raptors, joining hands with point guard Kyle Lowry who saw DeMar DeRozan traded away for Kawhi.

The Raptors have the ability to give Butler a big contract and already gave Lowry a $90 million deal, so this could be a possible place for Butler.

New York Knicks

When news first broke about Butler wanting to be traded, it was said that the Knicks was one of many teams he wanted to go to. Why is that? For starters, earlier reports stated that the Knicks would target Boston Celtics point guard Kyrie Irving, but now it seems that will not happen as Irving told fans that he will sign long-term with the Celtics.

But if it were to happen, the Knicks could be considered top 5 in the east, with the starting five being Kyrie Irving, Jimmy Butler, Enes Kanter, Kristaps Porzingis, and Tim Hardaway Jr. The Knicks will be able to give out two max contracts if they get rid of Courtney Lee and Joakim Noah, which has been done (finally). Butler could be the leader that the Knicks have needed for a while, in order to show some in the league that they can be good.

Golden State Warriors

Let's be honest, everyone wants to go to the Warriors. We saw center DeMarcus Cousins sign a one-year deal with the team, which clearly showed Cousins signed simply to get a championship. Butler could do this as well if this is what he is looking for.

However, the Warriors do have some players whose contracts are coming to an end, including shooting guard and All-Star Klay Thompson. It's unclear what the Timberwolves want in exchange for Butler, but it is likely that they want starting caliber players, considering the amount that was traded off to the Bulls.

Warriors aren't known for making big trades, but trading for Butler could be an upgrade and could make them an even bigger threat in the whole league. If the Warriors are able to pull this off, they could go 82-0 and be an unstoppable force that has never been seen before.

Edited by Arvind Sriram