Jimmy Butler’s fantasy has come true. He is leaving Miami through a trade.
According to a source familiar with the negotiations, the Heat and Golden State Warriors have reached an agreement that will send Butler to the Bay Area on Wednesday. Butler’s Miami career, which will be remembered primarily for two trips to the NBA Finals and three suspensions following a harsh divorce, comes to an end with the trade.
The transfer was initially reported by Shams Charania of ESPN.
The source, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the trade has not received league approval, claimed that Golden State is making it happen by moving Andrew Wiggins, Dennis Schroder, Kyle Anderson, and draft compensation out of the transaction.
Whether all three of those guys would end up in Miami was not immediately apparent.
Following stops in Chicago, Minnesota, Philadelphia, and Miami, Golden State is Butler’s fifth team. All four cities celebrated his arrivals, but none of them were particularly happy when he left.
However, he expects to return to title contention with the Warriors, joining Stephen Curry and Draymond Green, the two remaining players who have played on all four of the most recent Golden State championship teams.
Months passed before Butler and the Heat parted ways. Money was the main factor that led to the end of his time in Miami; he was eligible for a two-year, $113 million extension, but the Heat never made the offer, primarily because he had missed about 25% of the team’s games since joining in 2019.
Other elements also played a role. In the end, neither party was especially pleased with the other, and it became clear that the fracture could not be fixed. Dealing with Butler may be challenging, and the Heat culture is one that functions best when everyone shares the same values. He was given a seven-game suspension in early January for what the team referred to as harmful conduct after he stated that he didn’t anticipate enjoying himself on the court with the Heat once more.
That marked the beginning of a wild conclusion: Butler was suspended three times in January alone, twice for missing a team flight, and once for an indefinite period of at least five games after leaving shootaround early after finding out he wouldn’t start a game against Orlando on January 27.
After his first game back after the initial suspension, Butler remarked, “Everyone said a lot, but I’m the only one who told the truth.” We’ll let the conversation continue. The complete truth will be revealed.
Since it’s against league rules and might have resulted in a fine of up to $150,000, he never publicly said that he requested a trade. The Heat said that Butler requested one, and upon learning of this, they also veered away from team president Pat Riley’s December promise not to move him. The Heat claimed that they were attempting to arrange a deal at the time of the ban.
There were clear indications, though, as his hair for a few games coincidentally matched the colors of Phoenix, Dallas, Golden State, and Houston—the four clubs most frequently discussed as potential Miami trade partners. Butler also wore shoes that were exactly the same color as the Suns for at least one game.
This season, Butler is scoring 17 points per game on average. On December 16, he scored 35 points, pulled down 19 rebounds, and dished out 10 assists in one of the Heat’s greatest statistical performances ever against Detroit.
Never again was it the same. Butler averaged 9.5 points, 2.7 rebounds, and 4.2 assists in his six games after that Detroit game, including one in which he left the game in the first quarter due to sickness.
Of course, the Heat-Butler marriage wasn’t always a horrible one. Butler came to take Dwyane Wade’s place as the team’s star and spokesperson. Wade’s old locker area was even given to him. In addition to helping the Heat reach the NBA Finals as a No. 8 seed in 2023 and in the bubble in 2020, he was named an All-Star thrice while playing for Miami and had some incredible postseason performances. Butler is responsible for eight of the 18 40-point games in Heat playoff history, including a team-high 56 against Milwaukee in 2023.
After Wade and LeBron James, Butler leaves Miami in third place on the team’s all-time playoff scoring chart.
A padel tournament on January 25 marked one of Butler’s final appearances as a Heat player, effectively serving as his farewell to Miami.
That day, he declared, “I love this city with everything I have.”
He received his third and last suspension from the Heat two days later. His Heat era is now ended.
— AP Basketball Writer Tim Reynolds
