Los Angeles Acquired a Veteran Shooter With a Conditional Pick
On August 11, 2009, the Clippers acquired Rasual Butler from the New Orleans Hornets along with cash considerations. The payment going the other direction was a conditional second-round selection in 2016. Butler had started regularly for New Orleans in the preceding season and was known for shooting from the perimeter. Los Angeles needed an experienced wing who could fill substantial minutes during a difficult roster transition. New Orleans, by contrast, was managing its player contracts and future flexibility. The incoming pick was protected rather than guaranteed, an important detail for what eventually happened.
Butler Played and Started Throughout His First Clippers Season
Butler appeared in all 82 Los Angeles regular-season games during 2009-10, starting 64. He averaged 11.9 points in 33.0 minutes and served as one of the Clippers' principal outside shooters. This was not a deep-bench contract or a short preseason audition; the club acquired a regular starter capable of playing heavy wing minutes. His previous Hornets production cannot be counted as part of Los Angeles's return, but the full season that followed the August trade supplies ample evidence that the new team received immediate value. The Clippers obtained a known player rather than waiting for an uncertain prospect.
The Clippers Kept Another Forty-One Games of Production
Butler returned for 2010-11, when his Clippers role declined to 41 appearances, two starts and 744 minutes, averaging 5.0 points. He later finished that season with Chicago, a separate team whose numbers should not inflate the acquisition. Across his Los Angeles stint, the original trade brought 123 regular-season games and 3,446 minutes of wing depth. Although his second year was weaker, it adds genuine roster use beyond a one-year rental. The first-season starting role remains the most important part of the return.
The Hornets Never Collected the Protected 2016 Selection
The conditional 2016 second-rounder did not convey under its protections, so New Orleans received no draftee or replacement selection from this deal. Shedding Butler's contract may have served financial objectives, but a precise payroll benefit is not independently established by the trade ledger. Los Angeles received a full-time starter for one year and a reserve for part of another, plus cash. Those outcomes are markedly more valuable than the old modest Clippers grade suggested. The comparison doesn't require blaming the Hornets for all of Butler's earlier salary or asserting that a phantom second-round pick turned into another NBA player.
Final Verdict
Clippers Win. Los Angeles earns A- for Rasual Butler's 123 games and 3,446 minutes across two Clippers seasons, including 64 starts and an 11.9-point average in 2009-10. New Orleans gets D+ because its conditional 2016 second-round pick never conveyed. The receiving-team playing and cash return favored Los Angeles decisively.