With Phil Jackson speaking out against Carmelo Anthony publicly and Charles Oakley having to be escorted from his seat on Wednesday, it is safe to say that the state of the New York Knicks is not good right now. Along with that, there have been numerous rumors surrounding the future of Anthony. Melo still has two years left under his contract after this season, and can only be traded if he waives his no-trade clause, making it even harder for the Knicks to trade him even if they wanted to.

Apart from the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Los Angeles Clippers, there haven’t been any teams heavily linked with acquiring Anthony’s services. But that won’t stop Jimmy Butler from reaching out to the 13 year veteran. Speaking to Joe Cowley of the Chicago-Sun Times, Butler let it be known he called Anthony days ago, saying it was a “catch-up” call, but also obvious that he’d help the Bulls if acquired.

It was not long ago that Chicago was in the race for Anthony’s services. Two years ago when it came down to the Knicks and Bulls, Melo took the money [note: it was a lot of money -yfbb] and stuck with New York. That was another swing and miss in free agency for the Bulls front office, bringing up bad memories of missing out on LeBron James, Dwyane Wade (the first time), and Chris Bosh back in 2010. Considering what the Knicks are at the moment, it Anthony may feel some sort of regret.

But Butler also acknowledges that a trade would be hard:

“You can talk to [Anthony] and tell him all this, all that, but as far as a trade and all that stuff, that’s for the front office because there’s only so much say [players] can have in a deal like that,’’ Butler said. “There’s not too much I can do in that aspect.

Though the article speculates trade scenarios that would work logistically (and includes a first-round pick), trading for Anthony is still a pipe dream at the moment. But that apparently won’t stop Butler from reaching out, and remember Anthony would have to approve a move to the Bulls even after the teams reached an agreement.

Maybe, via a miracle, the Bulls acquire the scorer and create a new big “3” in Wade, Butler, and Anthony. It would be a fantastic trio offensively but one that would still struggle defensively. That still doesn’t mean it wouldn’t be fun to watch.