The Los Angeles Lakers appear very much determined to add as many talents as they can this summer, as sources close to situation reported that general manager Mitch Kupchack is brewing a plan to snatch incoming free-agent Jimmy Butler from the Chicago Bulls.
The Lakers, who are also reportedly hot after Phoenix Suns point guard Goran Dragic, are also showing interest in signing Butler when the first-time All-Star hits the free-agency market in July.
According to Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders, the Lakers and the New York Knicks are expected to join the fray for the service of Butler, who has become one of the finest two-way players in the league right now.
"I think like the Lakers and the Knicks. Any team which has a ton of cap room can pursue the guard, so the Bulls are going to have some competition for Jimmy Butler," Kennedy stated in his latest trade deadline and free-agency report on Bleacher Report.
After turning down an extension worth $10M per year in the offseason, the 25-year old Butler has become a force to reckon with on both ends of the floor, averaging a career-high 20.4 points, 5.8 rebounds and 3.2 assists in 39 minutes per game (ESPN stats).
His growth as a more polished scorer this season has turned everybody's heads, allowing him to become the front-runner for the Most Improved Player of the Year award and secure his first career All-Star appearance as a reserve for the Eastern Conference team.
Butler's improvement has also given him leverage to negotiate for a lucrative contract when he becomes a restricted free-agent at the end of the season; however the Bulls are determined to match any contract offered for their budding swingman.
Still, Kennedy believes the Lakers and the Knicks could make things harder for the Bulls to retain Butler by offering a contract similar to the one offered by the Dallas Mavericks for Chandler Parsons last offseason.
"The interesting thing is a team is going to try to strategically structure an offer sheet for Butler, where they'll make a player-friendly deal. They are going to give him a player option, a trade-kicker, make it a short-term deal."
"Think of Chandler Parsons deal with the Dallas Mavericks last summer. That's the kind of deal a team that's going to give Butler, so that they can make the Bulls hesitant to match."
With the Lakers set to have an estimated cap room of at least $25M, they have the capacity to make a run for Butler and Dragic. But like Kennedy stressed, the competition for these coveted free-agents will be crowded than ever with several teams already mapping out their plans to snatch one of these game-changing stars.
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