After a season full of friction between Jimmy Butler and the Heat front office, the six-time All Star is now headed to the Golden State Warriors in a multi-team trade that includes Andrew Wiggins, P.J. Tucker, Kyle Anderson, and a first round pick going to Miami.
Videos by FanBuzz
During the Heat vs. Philadelphia 76ers game on Wednesday night, a fan in the crowd at the Wells Fargo Center broke the news of the trade to Butler's now former teammates.
This guy broke the Jimmy Butler trade news to the Heat right now 🤣 (via shantsolmaz/IG) pic.twitter.com/wDUb1hICfx
— Overtime (@overtime) February 6, 2025
The fan was heard telling Kevin Love, Tyler Herro, and the rest of the Heat bench the other parts of the trade that also entails Dennis Schroder being sent to the Utah Jazz, in addition to Lindy Watters III and Josh Richardson going to the Detroit Pistons. (per ESPN's Shams Charania).
BREAKING: The Miami Heat are finalizing a deal to send Jimmy Butler to the Golden State Warriors for Andrew Wiggins, Dennis Schroder, Kyle Anderson and a protected first-round pick, sources tell ESPN. pic.twitter.com/82mWHKCnVM
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) February 6, 2025
THIS TRADE IS WILD 🚨
Warriors get: Jimmy Butler
Heat get: Andrew Wiggins, PJ Tucker, protected 1st
Pistons get: Lindy Waters, Josh Richardson
Jazz get: Dennis Schröder
Raptors get: Kyle Anderson
WHAT JUST HAPPENED 🤯
(via @ShamsCharania) pic.twitter.com/TnHFrBLxxh
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) February 6, 2025
While initial reports indicated that Butler would not sign a contract extension if traded to the Warriors, the two sides have agreed to terms on a two-year/$121 million deal that will keep him on the roster through the 2026-27 season (per ESPN's Brian Windhorst).
Three days ago, Jimmy Butler indicated he would NOT be willing to sign an extension in Golden State.
Tonight, he was traded & signed a two-year, $121 million extension with Golden State.
(h/t Brian Windhorst, Shams Charania) pic.twitter.com/eXZC8Nmqwm
— DraftKings (@DraftKings) February 6, 2025
60 million dollars for 2025 Jimmy Butler 😭 https://t.co/VVM0LyHtRG
— Witness King James (@WITNESSKJ) February 6, 2025
Butler's departure from Miami certainly didn't end on great terms, as the 35-year-old was suspended multiple times for "conduct detrimental to the team."
Kevin Love’s recent Instagram post after Jimmy Butler was suspended indefinitely by the Heat 😂
(h/t kevinlove/IG) pic.twitter.com/Ho4aUESEUi
— Ahn Fire Digital (@AhnFireDigital) January 27, 2025
Nevertheless, Butler did accomplish a lot on the court in a Heat uniform, as he was responsible for leading the team to two NBA Finals appearances ('20, '23), while also ranking first for most triple-doubles in franchise history.
Following the news of the trade, Butler took to social media to post a song, in which he captioned it, "welcome to the wild wild west."
welcome to the wild wild west 🎶 pic.twitter.com/dTh3njwWeX
— Jimmy Butler (@JimmyButler) February 6, 2025
When looking at how the drama in Miami started, it seemed to have stemmed from Butler getting his potential contract extension (two-year/$113 million) denied with the team this past summer (per Miami Herald), and ever since his relationship with Pat Riley evidently was beyond repair.
Pat Riley on Jimmy Butler: “If you're not on the court playing, you should keep your mouth shut.” pic.twitter.com/BorsYtOu8J
— Kevin O'Connor (@KevinOConnorNBA) May 6, 2024
Certainly the writing was on the wall for quite some time, as the Butler trade talks started back in early December.
“Sources told me that [Jimmy] Butler told Pat Riley to his face that he wants to be traded, that he will never again sign a contract in Miami. And that if he uses that $52 million player option that he has in the offseason, it would be only as a trade maneuver.” - @ShamsCharania pic.twitter.com/NCz43dklEm
— Dru (@dru_star) January 14, 2025
And in a post game press conference last month, the 14-year NBA star said he didn't think he can 'get his joy back' in Miami.
"I want to see me get my joy back for playing basketball, and wherever that may be, we'll find out here pretty soon."
"Probably not."
—Jimmy Butler when asked if he could get his joy back in Miami. pic.twitter.com/5gahEJxWM7
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) January 3, 2025
And now that Butler's destination has finally been chosen, one day before the NBA trade deadline, fans have reacted to his two-month long attempted holdout coming to an end.
As one user on X wrote, "Jimmy Butler trade is awesome because it doesn't move the needle for either team but we can stop hearing about it!"
While another fan pointed out the Warriors locker room might get pretty intense with another big personality joining the team.
The Miami Heat are finalizing a trade to send Jimmy Butler to the Warriors for Andrew Wiggins, Dennis Schröder, Kyle Anderson and a protected first-round pick, per @ShamsCharania pic.twitter.com/tHVsKCFHwC
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) February 6, 2025
Related: Heat Star Jimmy Butler Gives Shocking Postgame Interview Which Signals An End Of An Era In Miami
