Former Boston Celtics President of Basketball Operations Danny Ainge recently revealed a trade he did not pull the trigger on that could have significantly altered NBA history. Speaking on The Players Tribune’s “Knuckleheads” podcast, Ainge discussed a potential trade involving then- Chicago Bulls star forward Jimmy Butler, and the Celtics’ All-NBA wings Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown.
“Some of the best trades I ever made were the ones I wasn’t able to make,” said the current-day Utah Jazz team president. “I was trying to get Jimmy Butler from Chicago when I was in Boston, but they wanted a lot. So we didn’t do it because … it would’ve been Jaylen and Jayson, both those draft picks that we got Jaylen and Jayson with.”
In the end, the non-trade decision worked out well for the Celtics, with Tatum and Brown emerging to clash with Butler’s eventual landing spot, the Miami Heat, in recent years as both clubs rule the East.
It may be the dog days of August in the NBA’s 2023 offseason, but that doesn’t mean we don’t have plenty of Boston Celtics-related things to talk about. https://t.co/9D3kRmYsql
— The Celtics Wire (@TheCelticsWire) August 15, 2023
Meanwhile, it seems pretty likely that Bulls fans are kicking themselves for not scaling back that offer, given either of Boston’s star forwards would certainly improve the fate of their moribund franchise.
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