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Bulls' Butler will be restricted free agent

The Bulls and Jimmy Butler could have engaged in some mutual risk management, but they couldn't agree to terms on a contract extension as the deadline passed Friday night.

Butler will become a restricted free agent next summer, but the Bulls have the ability to match any offer sheet he receives from another team.

"I think you all know, the whole city, this is home for me," Butler said before Friday's game. "I love it here. This is where I want to be. I love my teammates, the fan base, the organization, everybody. Everybody knows that. This is the city I want to be in."

Butler did not play in Friday's game but said he is close to returning from a sprained left thumb suffered in an Oct. 19 preseason contest.

It's not clear what the Bulls offered or what it would have taken for Butler to sign. Considering swingmen such as Utah's Gordon Hayward and Dallas' Chandler Parsons received $15 million per year during the summer, the Bulls probably needed an offer of at least $12 million per season.

They figured there is no harm in waiting, since they can match any offer.

The Bulls let center Omer Asik walk away in 2012 after he received a hefty offer sheet from Houston. Butler's situation is different, since the Bulls have fewer luxury-tax concerns and there's not a starter already filling Butler's position. The chances he joins another team are slim.

Butler's offense has been inconsistent during his first three NBA seasons, but he plays heavy minutes and was named to the all-defensive second team after last season.

He also played very well in the preseason. Before he was injured, Butler averaged 18.6 points and shot 60 percent from the field in the first five games.

"I understand it's a business. I just have to be a great basketball player," Butler said. "I love my odds. I think this team is really good, championship caliber. I am a part of this team. I am going to produce. I'm going to guard. I will take care of myself."

New contracts for some:

Several extensions did get done before the deadline.

Golden State's Klay Thompson reportedly agreed to a maximum deal worth $70 million over four years. Minnesota extended point guard Ricky Rubio for a reported $55 million over four years, Charlotte signed guard Kemba Walker for $48 million over four years, while Utah guard Alec Burks signed a four-year deal that reportedly could get to $45 million with incentives.

One significant player from the 2011 draft class who did not sign an extension is San Antonio's Kawhi Leonard, although it's expected the Spurs will simply sign him to a max deal next summer.

LeBron plugs Bulls:

LeBron James supplied an optimistic prediction for the Bulls before Friday's game.

"You always feel like if D-Rose is healthy, they can compete for a title," James said. "When D-Rose wasn't healthy, they still competed. They just had a tough time scoring because they had an MVP out. But when he's healthy and he's in the lineup, you gotta be ready for him."

James stood by his preseason statement that the Bulls are a better team than the Cavaliers right now.

"We're not much better than we were (in the preseason), as far as chemistry, as far as their ability to have been together for so long," he said. "Yeah, they are a better team than us right now."

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