Jimmy Butler is not lacking for confidence as he enters an offseason where he can opt out of his contract for the 2019-20 campaign.
“Technically I think, knock on wood, I will get a max contract anywhere I choose to go,” Butler said, per Marc Narducci of The Inquirer. “So if you are talking a four-year, five-year, that is more than enough money anyway. I think I still have more than enough money now from my first deal.”
Narducci explained he would be eligible to sign a maximum contract of five years and $188 million if he returns to the Philadelphia 76ers but can make just $141 million in four years if he signs elsewhere.
With that ability to offer more money, Caesars sportsbook views the 76ers as the favorites to re-sign Butler at minus-150 (bet $150 to win $100)
Philadelphia invested plenty in Butler by trading away Dario Saric and Robert Covington to land him this season. It also traded for Tobias Harris—who is an unrestricted free agent this offseason—and appeared to go all-in around Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid.
Those efforts resulted in a heartbreaking seven-game loss to the Toronto Raptors in the second round that was punctuated with a Kawhi Leonard buzzer-beater.
The argument can be made the 76ers would be wise to re-sign Butler and Harris and give the core an entire offseason, training camp, preseason and regular season to play together after they were thrown into the fire during the 2018-19 campaign. That will allow time to adapt to each other’s games and adjust accordingly.
Plus, the Eastern Conference could be even more wide open next season if Leonard declines his player option with Toronto and Kyrie Irving does the same with the Boston Celtics.
However, Butler will be 30 years old throughout the 2018-19 campaign and has averaged 36.9 minutes per game since he became a full-time starter in 2013-14. For as much as Philadelphia fans appreciated his efforts as a veteran leader down the stretch, re-signing him to a max deal would be a risky endeavor.
In Butler’s eyes, he will be worth that risk wherever he chooses to go.
Courtesy: Bleacher Report
