After a prolonged saga, the Minnesota Timberwolves finally pulled the trigger and traded Jimmy Butler to the Philadelphia 76ers along with Justin Patton last week. In return, the Timberwolves got Robert Covington, Dario Saric, Jerry Bayless, and a future second-round pick.

The Sixers, however, weren’t the only team interested in letting some assets go if it meant getting Butler. Among them were the Brooklyn Nets, who flirted with the idea of trading away point guard D’Angelo Russell and Swiss Army knife forward Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, according to Michael Scott of The Athletic.

The Nets view LeVert and Allen as core pieces long-term. Instead of using them as trade bait, the Nets kicked the tires briefly on talks involving D’Angelo Russell, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson and a salary filler for Butler that never got any traction, league sources told The Athletic.

It’s understandable why the Nets would have no problem cutting ties with Russell via a trade. After all, the former Ohio State Buckeyes star is set to become a free agent (restricted) at the end of the 2018-19 NBA season. In addition, the Nets seem interested in keeping Spencer Dinwiddie beyond this season and probably prefer signing him to a bigger deal over retaining Russell.

As for Hollis-Jefferson, the Arizona Wildcats product is also bound for free agency (restricted) next year.

Had the Nets won the Jimmy Butler sweepstakes, they would have become a dark horse to win the Eastern Conference. The team is making noises this season despite being in the middle of a rebuild as they are currently inside the playoff picture in the conference.

Brooklyn can still go after Butler in the offseason, though, when the Nets have over $80 million in cap space.