DEERFIELD, Ill. -- In their search to find an upgrade at shooting guard, the Chicago Bulls met with free agent Caron Butler on Monday.
Butler, 31, has averaged almost 17 points a game throughout his career, but missed most of last season with the Dallas Mavericks after rupturing a tendon in his right knee on Jan. 1. The Mavs' starting small forward at the beginning of last season, Butler was emerging as their second-leading scorer while splitting time with Shawn Marion.
"That went great," Butler tweeted after his meeting with Bulls personnel. "Now headed to the west ..."
A large black stretch limousine was waiting in the Berto Center parking lot to whisk Butler off to his next destination. A source told ESPNDallas' Jeff Caplan that Butler will meet with at least four teams including the Los Angeles Clippers on Monday night, San Antonio Spurs on Tuesday, New Jersey Nets on Wednesday and possibly the Detroit Pistons on Thursday
The source said that those teams understand that Butler is not interested in a one-year contract, the length favored by the Mavs to bring back the nine-year veteran.
"There's no secret that he's a hell of a player," Bulls center Joakim Noah said on Monday. "I don't know how he is health-wise, but there's no question that he's definitely a great player."
Butler is a native of Racine, Wis., and has spent a portion of his summer working out in Chicago. The 10th overall pick of the 2002 draft, Butler shot a career-best 43.1 percent from three-point range last season.
