More Rumors in this Storyline

2 years ago – via Twitter sam_amick

Sam Amick: As for the Kings, the prospect of them landing Dewayne Dedmon is very real. Also, sources tell @TheAthletic Sacramento is ONE OF the secured scenarios for Houston’s Clint Capela if Jimmy Butler decides to come Houston’s way (the Rockets have more than one; highest bidder wins).

2 years ago – via The Philadelphia Inquirer

An NBA source confirmed on Saturday that 76ers swingman Jimmy Butler is scheduled to meet on Sunday with the Miami Heat in Florida. Butler is then expected to meet with the Houston Rockets in Los Angeles sometime in the next few days. ESPN was first to report the news.

2 years ago – via The Philadelphia Inquirer

The Sixers are considering shipping the 29-year-old to the Rockets or Heat in a sign-and-trade.

2 years ago – via Twitter wojespn

Adrian Wojnarowski: Sources: Jimmy Butler expected to meet the Miami Heat in South Fla. Sunday. Butler/Rockets meeting likely early week in LA. Sixers haven’t ruled out working with Butler on sign-and-trades, which Miami and Houston need to acquire the All-Star guard.

2 years ago – via Twitter TheSteinLine

Marc Stein: The Rockets believe they have a trade partner for Clint Capela but do not intend to deal Capela unless they are sure they can acquire marquee Sixers free agent Jimmy Butler, according to a source briefed on Houston’s thinking

2 years ago – via The Athletic

As of Thursday, league sources told The Athletic the Rockets have been shopping Capela and Eric Gordon for a first-round pick that could then be used to entice Philadelphia to do a sign-and-trade for Jimmy Butler.

2 years ago – via The Athletic

Rockets confident about landing Jimmy Butler

The Rockets are extremely confident in landing Butler. Team sources not only believe the Rockets have a good shot to land the Texas native but also that they have a firm place in the lead for him. Should Butler give a clear indication that he wants to join forces with Paul and Harden, Morey would make the necessary moves to land him and present a four-year, $140.6 million contract.

2 years ago – via ESPN

The Houston Rockets are canvassing NBA teams with significant salary cap space to individually offer center Clint Capela, guard Eric Gordon and forward P.J. Tucker as a prelude to its pursuit of a sign-and-trade deal for Philadelphia All-Star Jimmy Butler, league sources told ESPN.

2 years ago – via ESPN

The Rockets want to present a package to the Sixers that would include the best available first-round pick acquired for any one of three players as part of a larger deal with Philadelphia for Butler, league sources said.

2 years ago – via Twitter wojespn

Capela, Gordon, Tucker on the trade block

Adrian Wojnarowski: Reporting w/ @ZachLowe: Houston’s offering Clint Capela, Eric Gordon and PJ Tucker individually to teams w/ space to absorb salary. Rockets trying for best available first-rounder for any of those three, hoping to redirect pick to Philly in pursuit of Jimmy Butler sign-and-trade.

2 years ago – via Twitter wojespn

Adrian Wojnarowski: Philadelphia has been privately expressing confidence around NBA that it can re-sign Butler and Tobias Harris, but Houston remains on case of selling Butler/76ers with a sign-and-trade scenario once free agency starts on Sunday.

2 years ago – via The Athletic

A source with knowledge of the Rockets’ plans said Danny Green, Jeremy Lamb, Al-Farouq Aminu, DeAndre Jordan, Brook Lopez and Kevon Looney are also possible targets. But Butler, make no mistake, is the dream addition.

2 years ago – via Twitter Rockets_Insider

Alykhan Bijani: There’s been buzz surrounding Jimmy Butler and the #Rockets since before his trade to Philadelphia. Houston feels confident in its pursuit of Butler and will meet with him in Philadelphia with the hope he joins Chris Paul and James Harden, league sources told @TheAthleticHOU.

2 years ago – via ESPN

Butler would be eligible to sign a four-year, $140 million contract on the way to the Rockets, but Houston would likely need to include center Clint Capela and guard Eric Gordon to make the financial deal work, sources said.

2 years ago – via The Ringer

Trading Paul would have positioned the Rockets to be a Clint Capela or Eric Gordon trade away from freeing up the cap space to sign Jimmy Butler, who league sources say they plan to pursue.

2 years ago – via Twitter

Rockets after Jimmy Butler?

Brian T. Smith: Rockets are expected to pursue Butler and be aggressive in their pursuit. Seen as an ideal fit on both ends of court, and in helping push Rockets to the top of the wide-open West.

2 years ago – via New York Times

I’m not hugely surprised that the Wolves resisted Houston’s trade offer last week of four future first-round picks for Butler, along with the contracts of Brandon Knight and Marquess Chriss. The stated reason was that the Rockets’ latest proposal features zero players who can help Minnesota immediately, but the biggest factor was presumably this: Minnesota’s owner, Glen Taylor, and Coach Tom Thibodeau are in strong agreement about not wanting to surrender Butler to the Rockets and set them up with a third elite player alongside James Harden and Chris Paul.

2 years ago – via The Woj Pod

Adrian Wojnarowski: “Houston, to me, is the one team in this entire process, the only team in this process, who can rightly believe, ‘If we trade for Jimmy Butler, we think he helps us win a championship this year.’ There’s not another team who can say that who’s really involved in this. The one team that has been on the periphery, and I still think could be heard from in this, is Philadelphia. Because I think they’re a little like Houston right now in that they’re evaluating themselves and they’re saying, ‘Not only are not sure we didn’t improve from last year, I’m not sure we’ll even be the same team.'”

2 years ago – via The Woj Pod

Adrian Wojnarowski: “I still think Philadelphia may be heard from again in this, and Miami, I don’t think they’ve given up on the idea of Jimmy Butler, but Houston is the one team who says, ‘OK, we want to win it, this is our window, it’s in the next couple of years, and right now we’re probably not good enough to do it.'”

2 years ago – via ESPN

Houston has offered four future first-round picks to Minnesota, but that package doesn’t include guard Eric Gordon, who’d be mandatory for Minnesota in any proposed deal, league sources said. Thibodeau wants a maximum return on players able to help Minnesota get back to the playoffs.

2 years ago – via Twitter ShamsCharania

Shams Charania: Minnesota is showing no inclination to move on Houston offer of two injured players and four first-rounders for Jimmy Butler, per sources. On @WatchStadium: pic.twitter.com/NnXkMwXd9N

---

Minnesota is showing no inclination to move on Houston offer of two injured players and four first-rounders for Jimmy Butler, per sources. On @WatchStadium: pic.twitter.com/NnXkMwXd9N

— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) October 26, 2018

2 years ago – via ESPN

The Rockets’ offer constitutes the maximum number of first-round picks allowable in a deal, factoring in league rules that necessitate no first-rounders can be conveyed in successive years, and no pick can be traded farther out than seven seasons. The lottery protections on picks in this proposed deal would be limited. Discussions on the players involved in the Minnesota-Houston talks remain fluid, league sources said.

2 years ago – via ESPN

So far, Minnesota has been unmoved on offers for Butler, who requested a trade in the preseason and has told the organization that he plans to leave in free agency this summer. The Rockets would be trading for Butler with a strong desire to re-sign him this summer to a long-term contract extension. Butler, 29, plans to become an unrestricted free agent.

2 years ago – via Twitter BobbyMarks42

Bobby Marks: 7-year rule allows a team to trade up to 4 picks between 2019 to 2025. The first has to alternate each year (19, 21, 23 and 25) and cannot have protection unless the pick does not rollover to the following season. Ex: Protected top 14 and doesn’t convey if HOU is in the lottery.

2 years ago – via Twitter ZachLowe_NBA

Zach Lowe: Note going into the story — Oct. 31 could be a key date here, league sources say. That’s the 2-month anniversary of the Chriss/Knight trade, meaning HOU would be free to aggregate them into larger trades.

2 years ago – via Twitter wojespn

Adrian Wojnarowski: Story posting soon: The Houston Rockets are making a renewed bid to acquire Minnesota All-Star Jimmy Butler, including four future first-round draft picks in their most recent trade offer, league sources tell ESPN.

2 years ago – via hwcdn.libsyn.com

Sam Amick: “And then on the other side of that, you’re just gonna have teams like Miami and Houston, who are gonna realize they need a little more. Houston’s getting off to a tough start, and now these suspensions, it’s even worse. So what does that look like down the line, if their record, if they’re scuffling? This is a team, in terms of expectations, they are the ones talking about, ‘We’re the No. 1 contenders for the crown.’ That’s how they’re talking. That’s a pretty high bar. So maybe it’s Houston putting more on the table than they had before. Maybe it’s Miami.”

2 years ago – via Twitter AlexKennedyNBA

Alex Kennedy: According to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst, in addition to the Miami Heat, the Houston Rockets, Los Angeles Clippers and Dallas Mavericks are interested in Jimmy Butler. In this snippet from our weekend podcast (audioboom.com/posts/7053994-…), Brian explains why a trade hasn’t happened yet: pic.twitter.com/2boyDTn5zP

2 years ago – via New York Times

Marc Stein: Although I still can’t believe that the Wolves didn’t jump on the Heat’s offer headlined by the promising Josh Richardson, Miami continues to be the most likely Butler destination. Yet I must note that rumbles persist about Houston maintaining serious interest in trying to concoct a workable deal structure that convinces the Timberwolves to surrender their All-Star swingman — even though you hear over and over that Minnesota wants to send him East if it sends Butler anywhere, to avoid helping the Rockets establish their own superteam.

2 years ago – via Twitter

Stefano Fusaro: Jimmy Butler update: According to a league source, The Wolves contacted the Rockets again Tuesday morning, after their failed deal with Miami this past weekend. Minnesota was still adamant on receiving Eric Gordon and PJ Tucker, but Houston will not put Tucker on the table.

2 years ago – via SB Nation

Multiple reports have the Rockets eliminated from contention, despite offering a package rumored to be as big as Eric Gordon, P.J. Tucker, and several draft picks. The reasoning for Houston being ruled out isn’t because of the deal, but because, reportedly, Minnesota doesn’t want the Rockets to become the kind of juggernaut the Western Conference already has in Golden State. “We already are at [that level],” Feritta says in a phone call. “We’re an improved team over last year based on who we’ve acquired this offseason. And last year, obviously, we’re a game away from the Finals. “We would love to see Jimmy come home to Houston. It’s not a financial decision, it’s an assets decision on our part. We’ve got a great basketball team. We think we’re as good as anybody in the league. We’re not going to give up unreasonable assets, to break up this team, to get Jimmy Butler. But we would love to have him.”

2 years ago – via The Athletic

While Houston continues to explore its options in the Jimmy Butler saga and has significant interest in landing the disgruntled Minnesota star, strong skepticism remains that the Timberwolves are seriously dedicated to finding a deal. So long as that remains the case, with so many executives convinced that president of basketball operations/coach Tom Thibodeau still wants Butler to stay despite the uncomfortable nature of it all, then these Rockets will have to prepare as if there is no more help on the way. Translation: The prospect of Anthony playing like a legitimate star again would be welcomed. He has plenty of personal incentive, too, as he’ll be a free agent again next summer after signing a one-year, $2.4 million deal with Houston (Anthony was traded by the Thunder to Atlanta in a three-team deal with Philadelphia, then bought out by the Hawks; he’s still slated to earn the $27.9 million he was owed for next season between the buyout and his Rockets deal).

2 years ago – via The Athletic

While Houston continues to explore its options in the Jimmy Butler saga and has significant interest in landing the disgruntled Minnesota star, strong skepticism remains that the Timberwolves are seriously dedicated to finding a deal. So long as that remains the case, with so many executives convinced that president of basketball operations/coach Tom Thibodeau still wants Butler to stay despite the uncomfortable nature of it all, then these Rockets will have to prepare as if there is no more help on the way.

2 years ago – via Twitter MarkBermanFox26

Rockets making push for Jimmy Butler

Mark Berman: NBA sources confirm the #Rockets are making a strong effort to land Jimmy Butler in a trade with Minnesota.

2 years ago – via Twitter wojespn

Adrian Wojnarowski: Sources: Miami has been the most engaged team with Minnesota on a Jimmy Butler trade. So far, no traction with Clippers and Nets. Houston’s tried to be creative in its pursuit. It’ll be a challenge — although not impossible — to get any Butler deal done without a third team.