Is Jimmy Butler Courting Carmelo Anthony To The Bulls?

Chicago Sun-Times troublemaker Joe Cowley is at it again. The Bulls reporter just released a column claiming that Bulls star Jimmy Butler is on board if the front office wants his help orchestrating a trade to land Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony.

Melo To Chicago, Part II

The quotes Cowley takes from his conversation with Butler earlier today seem to suggest Butler doesn't want to participate in those front office duties. Jimmy did admit to speaking with Carmelo a few days ago, but that's about it. Here's what Butler had to say about hypothetically making Melo feel welcome in Chicago:

"“That is half the battle, And I could still do that. I think everybody knows what Carmelo can bring to a team. The dude is a helluva player. But I think that we have some things that we’ve got to worry about here first in the next few weeks [leading into the trade deadline], before we go down that road.’’ - Jimmy Butler

Sounds like Jimmy is open to the idea of playing with Anthony, but not exactly going out of his way to recruit him to Chicago. He reaffirmed that the front office should be handling those decisions.

“You can talk to [Anthony] and tell him all this, all that, but as far as a trade and all that stuff goes, that’s for the front office because there’s only so much say [the players] can have in a deal like that. There’s not too much I can do in that aspect." - Jimmy Butler

Butler did praise Carmelo for his leadership with Team USA, an experience that meant a great deal to Jimmy last summer.

“But I will say I learned a lot about [Anthony] over the whole Olympic experience and we’ve kept in touch. I’m very grateful for the friendship we’ve built, and it will continue to grow.’’ - Jimmy Butler

Trouble In The Apple

There's plenty of smoke around the Melo situation in New York right now. The new-look Knicks are the definition of dysfunction. The additions of former Bulls Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah did not create the "superteam" that Rose suggested upon his arrival. Anthony and team president Phil Jackson are publicly feuding, and whispers have grown to shouts about Melo waiving his no-trade clause. There are reports that have Anthony heading to Cleveland to team up with his pal LeBron James, but it sounds like the Cavaliers aren't willing to part with Kevin Love. The Clippers are also involved in various Anthony trade rumors.

Near Miss

But it was the Bulls who almost successfully wooed Carmelo in the summer of 2014. Anthony even said after his decision to stay in New York that he thought his mind was made up in favor of Chicago.

“It came down to Chicago and New York. Chicago was the one from Day 1 [and] was something I was very impressed with. … There was one point in time I was like, ‘Oh, I’m going.’ " - Carmelo anthony

But that didn't happen. Instead, Anthony took the roughly $50 million extra to stay with the Knicks and the Bulls signed Pau Gasol as their latest free agency consolation prize.

Author's Reaction

Here we are, nearly three years later and the Bulls are still trying to assemble a puzzle with pieces that compliment each other. Anthony's isolation style of offense doesn't fit into Fred Hoiberg's scheme, and at first glance his marriage on the court with Butler makes little sense. They both need the ball and slow down the pace of the offense with their isolation possessions. Then again, GarPax signed two aging and declining veterans after vowing to get younger and more athletic. Bringing Anthony on board fits right in with that thread of logic.