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The drama in South Florida appears to be over.
The Miami Heat are finalizing a trade to send Jimmy Butler to the Golden State Warriors as part of a multi-team deal, according to multiple reports on Wednesday.
ESPN’s Shams Charania was first with the news.
The full reported breakdown at this time is as follows:
• Golden State Warriors receive: Jimmy Butler
• Detroit Pistons receive: Lindy Waters, Josh Richardson
• Miami Heat receive: Andrew Wiggins, P.J. Tucker, 2025 first-round pick (via Golden State – top 10 protected)
• Utah Jazz receive: Dennis Schroder
Original reports had the Toronto Raptors acquiring Kyle Anderson as part of the deal. However, Sportsnet’s Michael Grange reported that Anderson will not end up in Toronto. Charania later reported the Raptors’ part of the deal fell through.
The deal ends what was a two-month-long saga of tension between Butler and the Heat — which led to three separate suspensions, the last of which was indefinite. The conflict between the two sides had been brewing for some time, stemming from the lack of a contract extension in the summer. The five-time All-NBAer was inked through the 2024-25 season, with a $52 million player option for next year.
Part of his move to the Bay Area reportedly includes a new two-year, $121 million extension through 2026-27, according to ESPN’s Charania and Brian Windhorst.
Butler, 35, spent the last five-and-a-half seasons in Miami after signing with the Heat in 2019, eventually leading the team to two Finals appearances. Once it was clear Heat president Pat Riley wasn’t going to hand Butler a lucrative new deal, the relationship between star and franchise took a turn as he had reportedly been quietly asking to be dealt for weeks prior to an official trade request in early January.
Through 25 games with the Heat this year, Butler has averaged 17.0 points, 5.2 rebounds and 4.8 assists a night, his lowest numbers since joining Miami. In the weeks leading up to his suspensions and eventual trade, Butler’s role had also been diminished — his 30.6 minutes per game the fewest since his sophomore season — as he even rode the bench for multiple fourth quarters while going chunks of time without being involved on offence.
When the Heat suspended him for a third time, they released a statement explaining it was due to “a continued pattern of disregard for team rules, engaging in conduct detrimental to the team and intentionally withholding services. This includes walking out of practice earlier today.”
Right before things turned extra-sour for the relationship, Butler made it clear what he wanted out of the situation irrespective of his next landing spot.
“I want to see me get my joy back from playing basketball,” Butler explained a day before he was first suspended. “I’m happy (in Miami) off the court, but I want to be back to somewhere dominant. I want to hoop and I want to help this team win. Right now, I’m not doing that.”
The Heat-Butler marriage wasn’t always bad, of course. Butler arrived to fill Dwyane Wade’s spot as the star of the team, the face of the franchise. He even got Wade’s former locker space. He was an All-Star twice in Miami, helped the Heat to the NBA Finals in the bubble in 2020 and then as a No. 8 seed in 2023 and turned in some epic postseason performances. There have been 18 40-point games in Heat playoff history; Butler is responsible for eight of them, including a team-record 56 against Milwaukee in 2023.
He leaves Miami in third place on the team’s all-time playoff scoring list, behind only Wade and LeBron James. One of the last times Butler was seen as a member of the Heat was at a padel tournament on Jan. 25, which essentially became his farewell to Miami.
“I love this city with everything that I have,” he said that day.
Butler now joins the fifth squad of his 15-year NBA career. Originally drafted 30th overall by Chicago in 2011, the Houston native spent his first six years with the Bulls, followed by brief stints with the Minnesota Timberwolves and Philadelphia 76ers before joining Miami.
With the Warriors, he joins Stephen Curry and Draymond Green — the two players left who have been part of all four recent Golden State title teams, with hopes of getting back to title contention.
— with files from the Associated Press
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