Wild NBA trade rumors are currently circulating that a Jimmy Butler-Paul Millsap swap could happen and that the Atlanta Hawks are willing to part ways with two of their developing players and a future pick just to get the Chicago Bulls star.
Fansided reported that a package including three-time NBA All-Star Millsap, rookies Taurean Prince and DeAndre Bembry, and a 2017 first round draft pick could possibly get the nod of Bulls officials to trade their two-time NBA All-Star shooting guard and recent Olympic gold medal winner to the Hawks.
The report noted that while Atlanta's suggested package may be giving away too much of the Hawks' future, it also said that "there isn't a price too high to trade for a star like Butler" because his bargain salary of $18 million a year is a lock for whichever team he is playing with until the end of the 2019-2020 season.
When the Bulls traded away Derrick Rose to the New York Knicks and let of Pau Gasol and Joakim Noah in free-agency this summer, it was clear that they are trying to get younger.
The eventual signings of aging veterans Dwyane Wade and Rajon Rondo may not indicate head coach Fred Hoiberg's youth revolution, Chicago has a chance to inject that youthful blood in their roster by dealing with the Hawks.
Prince, who is selected 12th overall in last June's draft, is a 22-year-old forward from Baylor while Bembry is also 22 and was picked 21st overall also in the same draft. These two 2016 first-rounders has a lot of upside for the Bulls.
Meanwhile, the 31-year-old Millsap brings back the frontcourt stability that the Bulls need after losing their two veteran big men. The former Louisiana Tech standout is also a pass-first power forward that Coach Hoiberg can maximize in his system.
However, NBC Sports' Pro Basketball Talk indicated that the Hawks have told Millsap that they will not trade him this summer as the team is planning to partner him with new acquisition Dwight Howard in their frontline next season.
Millsap is said to be "assured that he is not going anywhere", according to the report, amidst the recent rumors linking him to the Bulls.