Jimmy Butler trade talk felt inevitable after he and the Heat did not agree to an extension last summer. Miami wasn’t going down that road — after last season Pat Riley expressed his frustration with players missing time, not coincidentally after a season where Butler played in just 60 games and missed the Heat’s first-round playoff loss to the Celtics. Riley will want to see how much Butler is on the court this season before giving him more money and years, then turned around and locked Bam Adebayo up with a three-year, $165.8 million extension.
Miami is willing to listen to trade offers for Butler, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic.
The Heat are open to listening to offers for Butler and making a deal if the proposal is right, league sources told ESPN, and Butler’s agent, Bernie Lee, has indicated in league circles that Butler is open to destinations such as two of the Texas teams (Houston Rockets and Dallas Mavericks) and the Golden State Warriors. Butler is a native of Houston, Texas. Above all, though, he is believed to prefer a win-now title contender in any trade. Teams have also been informed that Butler intends to opt out of his deal in the offseason and become a free agent, sources said.
Butler has been largely available this season, playing in 17 of the Heat’s 22 games, averaging 19 points, 5.4 rebounds and 4.8 assists a game and is shooting 55.7% overall, the first time in his career he has been over 50%.
Teams will be interested. Golden State is looking for a playoff-tested star to put next to Stephen Curry and make another title run, they make sense. While Butler may want to return to Houston, the up-and-coming Rockets have made it clear they plan to play out this season with their current core and see how they do, assess where they need to improve, and make any moves in the offseason. There have been rumors Butler is open to playing in Brooklyn, partly because the Nets are one team with the cap space to go after a big free agent next summer.
Constructing any trade for Butler will be a challenge because Miami is over the first luxury tax apron, which puts limitations on any deal, the most impactful of which is it can’t take in $1 more than it sends out. While the Warriors may be interested, they are hard-capped at the first tax apron and are already close to that line, meaning Golden State can’t take on much additional money either. That makes finding a deadline Butler trade difficult at best.
The most likely outcome is Butler plays out the season for the 12-10 Heat, who currently sit fifth in the East, then he leaves next summer via free agency or a sign-and-trade.
However, the rumors will continue until the Feb. 6 deadline.