It appears that an era of Miami Heat basketball is coming to an end as it looks increasingly likely the team will trade Jimmy Butler at some point prior to February’s NBA trade deadline.
There have been trade rumors concerning Butler dating back to last summer after the Heat lost in the first round of the playoffs, but now, those rumors have legs, and he has a few preferred destinations in mind.
In the meantime, the Heat have a 12-10 record and are very much in contention for a playoff spot, and head coach Erik Spoelstra said that trade rumors are simply a part of the business and that they cannot be a distraction, per ClutchPoints.
“That’s this profession, you can’t get sick and see some narratives that are going out there, that’s going to happen.”
Erik Spoelstra on the recent Jimmy Butler trade rumors ?
(via @ZachWeinberger) pic.twitter.com/QomgfOLj8P
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) December 12, 2024
The Heat had been struggling for a few years when Butler arrived in 2019, and at the time, it was thought he would improve their play, but not by a tremendous amount.
However, Butler drove the Heat to an unexpected NBA Finals appearance in his first season with them, and he got them to the championship series again in 2023 while narrowly missing yet another appearance there in 2022.
But after how last season ended, it is clear that they have exhausted the potential of this current Butler-led group.
Butler is now 35 years of age, and while he’s still a viable NBA star, if not an All-Star, it seems as if Miami would be best served to jettison him for draft picks and/or a young prospect or two in order to improve their chances of becoming a contender again anytime soon.
NEXT: Jimmy Butler Reportedly Has A ‘Top Preferred Trade Destination’
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