Jimmy Butler, the All-Star guard who demanded to be traded by Minnesota and reportedly prefers to land with the Clippers, never was mentioned when the Clippers gathered for Monday’s media day at their practice facility to discuss the new season. But the topic of potential roster changes was unavoidable.
Adding Butler would be an enormous step toward the franchise’s goal of rebuilding a contender without a tear-down.
“Our expectation is to be in the playoffs,” forward Tobias Harris said. “I don’t think there’s any other way to really look at it.”
Others view the outcome differently.