Jimmy Butler has reportedly postponed meetings with rival teams after receiving a max qualifying offer from the Chicago Bulls.
Butler had planned on meeting with the Los Angeles Lakers, Boston Celtics, Philadelphia 76ers and Dallas Mavericks.
Butler can sign a five-year deal worth more than $90 million.
Butler is attempting to determine how many years to sign a new deal with the Bulls for as reports earlier surfaced that he preferred a short-term deal.
The Chicago Bulls have given Jimmy Butler both a maximum qualifying offer and a regular qualifying offer.
The maximum qualifying offer covers five seasons at a full max.
If Butler wants to become an unrestricted free agent in 2016, he will have to take the regular qualifying offer and forgo a long-term deal. Butler can also sign an offer sheet with a rival team, but it has to be at least a three-year deal without any options.
Chicago Bulls guard Kirk Hinrich has exercised his player option worth $2.8 million to return next season, league sources told RealGM.
Hinrich, 34, has spent 10 of his 12 NBA seasons with the Bulls. He re-signed with the Bulls on a two-year contract last offseason.
In 66 games last season, Hinrich averaged 5.7 points, 2.2 assists and 1.8 rebounds while shooting 34.5 percent from three-point land. The Bulls have long valued Hinrich’s defense, ball handling and offensive structure.
Hinrich has averaged 11.4 points and five assists per game in his career.
After his release from the Milwaukee Bucks before July 1, Caron Butler has emerged as a candidate for the Chicago Bulls, Los Angeles Clippers and San Antonio Spurs, a league source told RealGM.
The Lakers and New York Knicks also expect to make an inquiry on Butler, a 13-year NBA veteran who has averaged 14.3 points and 5.1 rebounds for his career.
Each of the contending teams -- Bulls, Clippers and Spurs -- interested in Butler will have a wing need this offseason, and the 35-year-old has either played for or considered each in the past.
Butler scored 5.9 points while shooting 37.9 percent from three-point range in 78 games last season with the Detroit Pistons.
The Bucks plan to waive Butler and Shawne Williams before their guarantee dates on June 30, barring an unexpected deal, sources told RealGM.
Butler has played for eight different teams over his 13 seasons.
Taj Gibson underwent an arthroscopy and repair of his left ankle on Tuesday, June 16. The surgery was performed by foot specialist Dr. David Porter in Indianapolis. Gibson’s surgery went as expected and he has begun the rehabilitation process. His estimated time to return to full basketball activity is approximately four months.
The 29-year old Gibson recently completed his sixth season in the NBA, where he appeared in 62 games (17 starts) and posted 10.3 ppg on .502 shooting, 6.4 rpg, 1.21 bpg and 1.1 apg in 27.3 mpg. He also played in all 12 of Chicago’s playoff games (two starts) and averaged 7.4 ppg, 5.5 rpg, 1.0 apg and 1.00 bpg in 23.0 mpg.
In Friday's episode, Nate Duncan (@NateDuncanNBA) and Daniel Leroux of RealGM (@DannyLeroux) recap the day’s NBA news and preview the offseason ahead for the Warriors, Bulls and Grizzlies.
Jimmy Butler will be a restricted free agent this offseason and a report from Adrian Wojnarowski indicated he has interest in signing a short-term offer sheet with a rival team to become a free agent again in 2017.
If the Chicago Bulls tender Butler the normal qualifying offer, then an offer sheet must be for more than one season excluding options. Butler would be able to sign the three-year deal that includes a player option for the third season to become an unrestricted free agent in 2017 as reported.
But the Bulls can tender both the qualifying offer as well as the maximum qualifying offer, which means any offer sheet Butler signs with a rival team must be for more than two seasons excluding options. Butler could not become a free agent until 2018 at the earliest under that scenario.
The maximum qualifying offer covers five seasons at a full max.
If Butler does want to become an unrestricted free agent before 2018 and the Bulls give him the maximum qualifying offer, he would have to take the regular qualifying offer, giving up long-term security, then become an unrestricted free agent in 2016.
Jimmy Butler plans to pursue short-term offer sheets this summer in free agency and resist the Chicago Bulls' offer of a five-year maximum contract.
As the NBA’s salary cap is set to dramatically rise beginning with the 2016-17 season, Butler has become far less interested in locking himself into the five-year, $90 million-plus deal the Bulls are expected to present him on July 1.
Chicago could be faced with Butler’s agents at Relativity Media, Happy Walters and Steve McCaskill, loading up a short-term offer sheet that includes a trade kicker and the potential loss of Butler to unrestricted free agency in 2017.
Butler’s intrigue with signing an offer sheet with the Los Angeles Lakers has increased.
RealGM's Shams Charania reported in May that the Lakers and Milwaukee Bucks were two potential suitors.
Unless Bulls officials bring Butler a shorter-term deal that’s more favorable to his long-term earning power, they’ll likely be waiting to match an offer sheet.
Butler could sign a three-year offer sheet that guarantees him $50 million, but allows for a player option on the third year that could allow him to move into unrestricted free agency and re-sign for a five-year, maximum deal worth as much as $190 million.
Butler turned down a four-year, $44 million offer from the Bulls last October and sources say a four-year, $48 million offer would have gotten a deal done.
Butler could also play the 15-16 season under a $4.4 million qualifying offer to become an unrestricted free agent in 2016, though that's considered a long shot.
Adrian Griffin appears to be close to leaving the Chicago Bulls and joining the Orlando Magic's coaching staff
Griffin coached under Scott Skiles with the Milwaukee Bucks.
Griffin was a candidate for the Bulls' vacancy after serving as an assistant coach since 2010.
Jim Boylen has accepted a job to join the Chicago Bulls as associate head coach.
Boylen was the second assistant on coach Gregg Popovich’s staff with the San Antonio Spurs behind Ettore Messina. Boylen was recently appointed to an assistant coaching role on the Canadian national team.
Boylen joined Popovich’s staff in 2013 after spending two years on Frank Vogel’s staff with the Indiana Pacers. Boylen spent four years (2007-11) as the head coach at the University of Utah, where he led the team to a Mountain West Conference title and an NCAA tournament.
The Bulls hired Fred Hoiberg this offseason as head coach.
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