After months of drama, the Jimmy Butler saga in Miami is finally over. There were suspensions, PR battles and whatever else, but Butler is officially headed to the Golden State Warriors in a trade first reported by ESPN’s Shams Charania.
While rumors had Butler linked to the Suns, there didn’t appear to be a viable path with Phoenix unless Bradley Beal waived his no-trade clause. The Warriors were also reportedly interested in a Kevin Durant reunion, but the former MVP didn’t want to return to Golden State.
So, finally, the Warriors landed on Butler. It’s clear Golden State is looking to remain competitive while Stephen Curry is still contributing this late in his career. The Warriors parted ways with Andrew Wiggins, Kyle Anderson and a top-10 protected 2025 first-round pick in the deal.
There are other parts of the trade. Per reports, the Heat are also getting PJ Tucker from the Jazz. The Pistons are also involved as they land Lindy Waters and Josh Richardson. The Jazz are set to get Dennis Schroder. While it was reported Anderson was going to be sent to the Raptors, Charania reports that part of the deal fell through, so the Heat will retain Anderson instead.
Here’s a look at the Heat and Warriors in the aftermath of this blockbuster deal:
Rival finally gone from Miami
The Celtics and Heat have been the East’s best rivalry during the 2020s, meeting up in the playoffs four times this decade with three of those in the East Finals. Butler has been a consistent force during those times, eliminating the Celtics on two such occasions.
The return doesn’t pop off the page in the package going back to Miami. But that’s what happens when a star publicly wants out and does it like Butler did. It was clear Butler wanted to end up in Phoenix, but instead, the Heat elected to go with what they believed to be the best package. Notably, the Heat also get under the luxury tax and first apron with the deals, giving them future financial flexibility.
The Butler situation in Miami became tenuous this season. He was openly disgruntled as the team suspended him multiple times for being a distraction. Now, the Heat move on from Butler after declining him to give him an extension recently.
From a Celtics perspective, the Heat are pushing a reset as the Butler era comes to an end. While Miami made deep playoff runs, including two berths in the 2020 and 2023 NBA Finals, they never made it to the mountaintop. Heat president Pat Riley now needs to build around current assets like All-Star Tyler Herro and Bam Adebayo moving forward.
Looking to remain competitive
While the Warriors had a strong start to the season, that has fizzled in Curry’s 16th season in the NBA. Curry’s production has started to fall off as he turns 37 years old next month, but it’s clear the organization wanted to still put pieces around him to see if they can still get one more ring.
Earlier this season, they traded for Schroder in hopes of getting a boost. But now, they turned around by shipping the former Celtics guard out as part of the deal. Butler, when engaged, gives the Warriors another two-way wing and takes pressure off of Curry. Of course, the hope in Golden State is going to be that Butler can raise his game when it matters most during the playoffs, like he has in the past.
Notably, the Butler saga in Miami started because they didn’t give him an extension. But the Warriors elected to do so, signing Butler to a two-year extension beyond this season, per ESPN. Butler turned down his player option for next year to sign with Golden State through the 2026-27 season.
The Warriors lose Wiggins, who was a key piece of their 2022 NBA title, along with Anderson. But it was clear they wanted to upgrade with star-level talent — they did just that with Butler. It’s hard to envision the Warriors becoming a threat coming out of the West, but they’re at least trying to extend Curry’s window while he’s still a major contributor on the court.
Final thoughts
This trade ended up being larger than anticipated than just the Heat and Warriors. From the Celtics perspective, too much doesn’t change. Butler was on his way out of Miami considering all the drama. The Warriors add another star, but a crowded and competitive West is still a tough task to get through. The East also loses more star power in Butler, though he wasn’t making much noise this season to begin with anyway.
