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On December 16th, ESPN's Marc Stein reported that the Sacramento Kings had 'pledged' to Caron Butler that they would trade him to a team that would give him a larger role, and that potential deal could come in the very near future.
From Stein's original December 16th report -
Sources told ESPN.com that the Kings plan to move Butler shortly after Christmas. Butler, 35, has found minutes hard to come by in the Kings' frontcourt.
The Milwaukee Bucks, Butler's hometown team, have quickly emerged as the likely destination for Butler, according to sources close to him. He is a native of Racine, Wisconsin.
This morning, Stein updated his report via twitter, revealing that the Milwaukee Bucks are leaning towards not pursuing Caron Butler at this time.
Some trade scuttle: Sacramento remains committed to trading Caron Butler, but word is Bucks, as of now, are leaning against a deal for vet F
— Marc Stein (@ESPNSteinLine) December 29, 2015
As @espn reported Dec. 16, SAC has promised CButler they'll try to find him new home via trade, but Bucks now on hold after strong interest
— Marc Stein (@ESPNSteinLine) December 29, 2015
I still question what sort of on-court role Butler was expecting to find in Sacramento this season, but the way his tenure with the Kings has turned out thus far can only be characterized as disappointing. I'd speculate that if the Kings could find an appropriate home for Butler, he would have been traded by now. With Milwaukee backing away from their interest, I'm not sure how this situation gets resolved.