People within the Miami Heat organization reportedly are “just happier” in the 2025-26 season now that veteran forward Jimmy Butler is no longer with the franchise.
“I just don’t think that they really understood who they were dealing with, and they should have because they had seen it behind the scenes, all those stories that are out there, the weight that was lifted from the organization simply by Jimmy being gone, which I don’t think I can overemphasize,” Heat insider Ethan J. Skolnick said. “There’s no way to because it’s just — people are just happier this year. They just are. And that’s the support staff, that’s everybody.”
Butler cast a shadow over the Heat in the 2024-25 season, and he eventually forced himself from the franchise and was traded to the Golden State Warriors ahead of the trade deadline.
Miami still found a way to make the playoffs last season, but barely, ending up with the No. 10 seed in the regular season before winning back-to-back play-in tournament games to earn the No. 8 seed.
The Heat have gotten off to a better start this season, as they sit in the No. 7 spot in the Eastern Conference with a 19-15 record. Miami has won four games in a row, and it’s just half a game back of the No. 4-seeded Toronto Raptors. So, there’s a real chance the team will make a jump up the standings by the end of the campaign.
As for Butler, he’s a part of a Golden State team that is the No. 8 seed in the Western Conference.
This season, Butler is averaging 19.7 points, 5.6 rebounds and 4.9 assists per game while shooting 51.6 percent from the field and 41.0 percent from 3.
While the six-time All-Star led the Heat to a ton of success during his tenure with the franchise, he clearly wore thin on people in the 2024-25 campaign (and perhaps at other points during his stint).
The Heat made the NBA Finals twice during Butler’s tenure, losing to the Los Angeles Lakers in the 2020 NBA Finals in six games and the Denver Nuggets in the 2023 NBA Finals in five games.
Hopefully, the Heat can use the positive vibes around the organization this season to help them make the playoffs once again under head coach Erik Spoelstra.