Tense reunions can be awkward, but the Miami Heat and Jimmy Butler seem destined for such an interaction as the latter’s team-imposed, seven-game suspension comes to an end after Wednesday’s game at the Los Angeles Lakers.
For the last month, both parties have clashed over Butler’s future as his desire to be traded to a new team has grown. But given Miami’s history of standing its ground even against star players, few people are surprised its front office has taken its time in assessing the best course of action as drama with the five-time All-NBA selection continues unfolding. Initially, the Heat resisted entertaining offers for Butler, but that was before the 35-year-old expressed his frustrations over a regressed role and clashed with the team over a new contract.
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In the weeks since, Miami banned Butler from the team as it set up shop to field offers for the six-time All-Star, who has reportedly reiterated his trade demand to team president Pat Riley and said he has no intentions of being with the team next season. Sam Amick has reported Butler does intend to return to Miami once his suspension wraps, but it remains unclear whether he will play Friday at home against Denver — or even how he will perform, given his most recent two appearances in a Heat uniform, which followed a 13-day layoff due to illness and injury. The seven-game suspension cost Butler $2.35 million of his $48.8 million salary, so it’s hard to blame him for counting his coins.
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Given how much this tension has grown since Riley publicly criticized Butler for saying Miami would’ve advanced in the 2024 playoffs had he been healthy enough to play last postseason, it’s hard to overlook the tension between everyone involved … but that may be the only option if Butler returns to the team without a trade in place.
Even if a trade for Butler takes place by the league’s Feb. 6 deadline, there are reasons why it could be best for involved parties to embrace a brief reunion as the next chapter of this trade drama unfolds.
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Let’s examine three ways an awkward Butler return could make sense:
His trade market hasn’t been very strong
A day after Miami announced Butler’s suspension, Marcus Thompson II, Sam Amick and Anthony Slater reported the Golden State Warriors weren’t likely to pursue Butler’s services via a trade. When reports of Butler wanting to leave Miami, the Warriors were said to be one of his preferred destinations, with the Houston Rockets, Dallas Mavericks and Phoenix Suns being the others.
Since then, Phoenix has become the reported apple of Butler’s eye, but a deal to the desert proves difficult because Suns guard Bradley Beal would have to be involved. The 31-year-old, three-time All-Star still has two years and roughly $110 million remaining on his contract after this season, but the true obstacle is his no-trade clause, which he reportedly prefers to not waive to accommodate a deal.
Even in Golden State’s case, Stephen Curry, Draymond Green and Steve Kerr have each publicly chastised the idea of the Warriors’ front office mortgaging its future — namely first-round draft picks and salary-cap flexibility — to make a win-now move and squeeze out one last run at a championship. Other potential destinations for Butler have included teams like the Milwaukee Bucks and Memphis Grizzlies, but that could require making a dramatic in-season move after correcting a 2-8 start (Milwaukee) or risking another potential contract beef with a team that 1) already has a max-level player and 2) doesn’t have a deep history of going into the luxury tax.
Of course, things could change this summer, when Butler can exercise his option to open up his trade market, should that make it easier for Miami to deal him by then, as teams with cap space can do more flexible bidding. But the best way to better entice teams or a creative trade is by proving he can still consistently dominate games.
The NBA’s Player Participation Policy
As we discussed on Tuesday, the NBA acknowledges extenuating circumstances for teams sidelining star players for a lengthy period, but the NBPA stated its displeasure with the seven games Butler was initially banned from. The league prefers teams proactively communicate any reasons a qualified star may miss extended time, but a healthy Butler extensively sitting could further complicate matters, especially given his publicized frustrations with his reduced role on the team.
For the season, Butler is on pace for his lowest scoring average in over a decade, but he has illustrated an ability to still take over games, even at his advanced age (in NBA terms, of course). In a Dec. 16 road loss to the Detroit Pistons, Butler became the first player in NBA history to record a 30-point triple-double without committing a foul or turnover. The league started tracking individual turnovers during the 1977-78 season. In that game, Butler’s dozen free-throw attempts matched his teammates’ output as he grabbed a career-high 19 rebounds.
Even despite Butler’s sporadic presence in the lineup this season, his 33 points in clutch-time situations — spanning a game’s final five minutes with the score within five points — still trail only Tyler Herro’s 46 for the team lead. Butler is shooting 56 percent in those situations.
While things are understandably tense between Butler and the Heat, nobody would buy he can’t play, should his absence persist. Moreover, this situation would have to grow more extenuating if the only reason to further suspend him would be because he’s simply unhappy.
Miami is comfortable with star-centric stalemates
Although Butler has shown he can still take over games, there was public criticism about his effort in his aforementioned two-game return to Miami’s lineup earlier this month. After saying he didn’t care whether he was traded from the Heat by the trade deadline, the 2016 Olympic gold medalist totaled 11 shot attempts in over 50 minutes of action in games against the New Orleans Pelicans and Indiana Pacers.
To be fair to Butler, he said he lost weight and muscle during his aforementioned illness, so one should grant room to acknowledge the need for his body to readjust, especially because the team announced he was regaining his in-game conditioning while preparing to return. But those two games also marked his lowest shot total over any two-game span with that much playing time since November 2013 with the Chicago Bulls.
If there’s even a faint chance of such production being a subliminal message to Riley and Miami’s front office, it hasn’t made the team budge into a trade it isn’t ready to execute. Of course, that can change by tomorrow, this weekend or next month’s trade deadline, but the Heat have been here before with prior stars. Three-time NBA champion Dwyane Wade left the team after his own contract dispute but eventually returned and was recently honored with an unveiled statue earlier this season. Even the beloved Alonzo Mourning returned to the Heat after some time elsewhere. LeBron James departed South Florida after notching two finals MVPs and leading four consecutive finals appearances, but Riley eventually acknowledged he respected James for making his own choice.
Of course, Shaquille O’Neal’s Heat tenure ended with a midseason trade — which the team typically avoids, star or not — but time remains to be seen if Butler will join him on that shortlist. If he does, it will be because matters somehow grew far more tense than they’ve already been, but the Heat are comfortable timing things for their benefit, even if it may risk a big-name player walking altogether. In the interim, Butler can still help Miami climb the East standings and bolster his market in a trade or as a free agent.
Both parties will need to work together for a practical long-term resolution, whether that’s Miami welcoming Butler back into the fold or biding time until the right trade comes its way.
(Top photo: Issac Baldizon / Getty Images)
