The Golden State Warriors are highly unlikely to trade Jimmy Butler in the wake of Monday's devastating season-ending knee injury, but there are two veteran stars they'd reportedly make an exception for.
According to NBA insider Jake Fischer of the Stein Line on Thursday, the Warriors would be willing to trade Butler in a superstar transaction for either Giannis Antetokounmpo or perhaps too LeBron James.
Warriors willing to trade Jimmy Butler for Giannis or LeBron
Golden State have long been linked to the superstar pair even before Butler's arrival last February, with Fischer putting a caveat on the fact it's unlikely the 6x All-Star gets moved in the next two weeks.
"If a player on a very short list of superstars became available and, in the wake of the Butler injury, specifically pinpointed the Warriors as a preferred landing spot. We're obviously talking about the likes of Giannis Antetokounmpo and maybe even LeBron James," Fischer wrote.
Antetokounmpo's future continues to garner plenty of speculation despite an insistence from the Milwaukee Bucks that they will be buyers before the deadline, potentially leading to another desperate move to try and convince the 2x MVP that his long-term future lies there.
That won't stop teams around the league from waiting on other deals just in case Antetokounmpo becomes available, particularly as the Bucks season goes from bad to worse after a 20-point loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday.
Milwaukee have now lost four of their past five games and remain stuck at 11th in the Eastern Conference, with Antetokounmpo's future sure to be a talking point again in the offseason if nothing is to materialize before next month's February 5 deadline.
Trading Butler and a boatload of picks for Antetokounmpo would be the kind of miracle outcome the Warriors have to hope for if they're any chance of surging into championship contention.
A Butler-James swap would be far less of a guarantee of anything for the Warriors, but it would also cost less in the way of draft capital and would pair the two greatest players of this generation together in what would become must-watch basketball on a nightly basis.
Even if James did want a trade to Golden State, it would seemingly have to be a three-team deal because there's no reason the Los Angeles Lakers would want Butler when they themselves are fifth in the Western Conference and competing for a playoff spot.
It still feels the futures of Antetokounmpo and James are questions for the offseason, but that shouldn't stop the Warriors from trying to explore something in the next fortnight to make the most of the remainder of this season.