A wild, three-team trade scenario is emerging in the NBA rumor mill involving the Chicago Bulls' Jimmy Butler, New York Knicks' Carmelo Anthony, and Boston Celtics' Jae Crowder.

Trade rumors have begun swirling around the league as the February trade deadline draws near and one of the most mentioned names in the past weeks is the Bulls' main man Butler.

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There had been speculations that Bulls general manager Gar Forman would have liked to trade him earlier in the season, but Chicago's surprising start had prevented him from pushing through with his plans.

Now that the Bulls have dropped to eighth in the East with an even 18-18 record, reports have said that the club is much more open to trading the two-time NBA All-Star and former NBA Most Improved Player.

MassLive's Tom Westerholm indicated that Butler is "indeed gettable", specifically by the Celtics using their 2017 first-round pick coming from the Brooklyn Nets. The report mentioned that the package should also include Marcus Smart and Crowder for the deal to happen.

Westerholm said that "if the Bulls can't get a top-of-the-line offer, they have no real reason to move him".

Meanwhile, a wild, three-way scenario was reported by Inquisitr, suggesting a blockbuster deal that would send Butler and Taj Gibson to the Celtics, Anthony, Jaylen Brown, and a Boston 2018 first-round draft pick to the Bulls, and Crowder, Amir Johnson, and Brooklyn's 2017 first-round draft pick to the Knicks.

There were earlier reports about Phil Jackson's penchant for Boston small forward Crowder. The Knicks president reportedly told reporters that his "biggest mistake" as a Knicks executive was not trading for Crowder when he had the opportunity to do so back in 2014.

The trade is approved as per ESPN's Trade Machine, with the Celtics getting the upperhand in the deal according to the forecast. However, the Bulls may not agree with his hypothetical trade as the team could feel that they are giving up too much in starters Butler and Gibson to acquire Anthony, an unproven rookie, and a future draft pick.

TagsNBA Trade Rumors, NBA Trade Rumors 2017, Jimmy Butler, Chicago Bulls, carmelo anthony, new york knicks, jae crowder, Boston Celtics