In the days prior to the 2017 NBA Draft, the Boston Celtics had gauged the Chicago Bulls about their interest in acquiring All-Star forward Jimmy Butler in exchange for a package of young promising players and first-round draft picks. This talk had leaked over into the draft with Butler eventually being moved to the Minnesota Timberwolves.
However, this looming chatter over last year's draft had forward reportedly had Jayson Tatum worried that the Celtics would trade him to the Bulls in order to land Butler, according to Jeff Goodman of ESPN.
I remember Tatum family worried after he was drafted that he was gonna be moved to Chicago in a deal for Jimmy Butler. https://t.co/yyXPLWG1Ss
— Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanHoops) June 20, 2018
This was certainly a strong possibility given the amount of interest that the Celtics had shown in possibly landing Butler in that short period of time before the draft. It only made it reasonable for Tatum to be concerned that he could be moved away from such a promising situation with the Celtics coming off an Eastern Conference Finals appearance to being shipped to a team that was making it clear that it was a rebuilding effort.
What should be noted that Boston was extremely high on Tatum throughout the entire draft process that it made them comfortable with the idea of moving down a few spots in a trade with the Philadelphia 76ers to be able to still take him early in the first round. Given general manager Danny Ainge's preference to keep onto young talent, it likely put him out of the picture as a potential trade piece in any offer for Butler.
Tatum is now locked into a situation where he is a major piece of the puzzle after his strong showing in the playoffs as the leading offensive factor. He has a high ceiling of potential to quickly develop into an All-Star caliber talent along with being a primary contributor for a championship caliber team alongside All-Stars Kyrie Irving, Gordon Hayward, and Al Horford.
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