Jimmy Butler got what he wanted. He’s being traded out of Miami and secured a new contract in the process.
The Heat and the Golden State Warriors reached an agreement on a deal that sends Butler to the Bay Area, according to a person familiar with the negotiations, who spoke on Wednesday. Butler had helped lead the Heat to the NBA Finals twice before a strained relationship with the team that resulted in him being suspended three times in January.
Golden State is making the trade by moving Andrew Wiggins, Dennis Schroder, Kyle Anderson, Lindy Waters, and first-round draft picks, the person said, speaking to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity since the trade hasn’t yet received league approval.
Wiggins and Anderson will be going to Miami; it’s not clear if Anderson will remain with the Heat. Schroder is being traded to Utah—where the Warriors were on Wednesday night—and Josh Richardson is headed from Miami to Detroit along with Waters. P.J. Tucker is also moving, having just been traded to Utah, but is now set to return to Miami, where he played in 2021-22.
“My brother, man. I’m going to miss him, for sure,” said Heat forward Nikola Jovic, who admired Butler. “I think a lot of guys here will. He’s someone who did a lot for this franchise.”
The Heat will receive a protected first-round pick from Golden State, which is currently set to be a pick in this year’s draft, but that could change based on final terms. Butler has already agreed to a two-year, $113 million extension with the Warriors.
“I’m really happy that he got what he wanted,” Jovic said. “That bag’s kinda really big.”
Golden State is Butler’s fifth team after playing for Chicago, Minnesota, Philadelphia, and Miami. His arrivals were celebrated in all of these cities, though his exits were not always smooth.
With the Warriors, Butler will join Stephen Curry and Draymond Green, who were part of all four of the Warriors’ recent championship teams and are hopeful of making another title run.
The Warriors had a closed-door meeting on Wednesday as news of the trade was coming out. Coach Steve Kerr spoke with the team during the time that the locker room is typically open to reporters before games. The Warriors ended up losing to Utah 131-128.
“Our guys were in the locker room getting ready to play and all of a sudden we’re saying goodbye,” Kerr said.
Butler’s split with the Heat had been building for months. The main issue was money; he was eligible for a two-year, $113 million extension, but the Heat never offered it, mainly because he missed about 25% of the games during his time with Miami.
The relationship broke down completely by the end. When Butler said in early January that he didn’t expect to find joy on the court with the Heat again, he was suspended for seven games, which was the final straw in a series of incidents the team labeled detrimental conduct.
The situation got worse: Butler was suspended three times in January, the second time for missing a team flight and the last time for leaving a shootaround early after learning he wouldn’t start a January 27 game against Orlando. That was the end.
“There was a lot said by everybody, except for me, to tell you the truth,” Butler said after his first game back following the first suspension. “We’ll let people keep talking. … The whole truth will come out.”
The Heat said Butler asked for a trade, which led them to shift their stance from team president Pat Riley’s earlier promise not to trade him. After the first suspension, the Heat said they were working to make a trade happen.
Butler is averaging 17 points per game this season. He had one of the best statistical games in Heat history against Detroit on December 16, with 35 points, 19 rebounds, and 10 assists.
It wasn’t the same after that. In his next six appearances, including one where he left early due to illness, Butler averaged 9.5 points, 2.7 rebounds, and 4.2 assists.
Wiggins, the No. 1 pick in the 2014 draft, has averaged 18.5 points over 11 seasons—first with Minnesota and then with Golden State. He is someone Kerr has praised at times this season, and when Wiggins played well, the Warriors usually followed suit. Golden State had an 8-3 record this season when Wiggins scored at least 23 points.
“Wiggs is one of my favorite players I’ve ever coached,” Kerr said. “Just a beautiful soul, just a wonderful human being. And we don’t hang that (championship) banner in ’22 without him. Everything he brings every single day, the laughter, the smile, the joy, just a wonderful human being. And so, I’m going to miss him.”
Butler joined Miami in 2019 to fill the role of the team’s star player, replacing Dwyane Wade. He was an All-Star twice in Miami, led the Heat to the NBA Finals in the bubble in 2020, and again in 2023 as a No. 8 seed. He also delivered several standout postseason performances.
There have been 18 40-point games in Heat playoff history, and Butler is responsible for eight of them, including a team-record 56 points against Milwaukee in 2023.
The last time Butler spoke publicly as a Heat player was at a padel tournament on January 25. “I love this city with everything that I have,” he said that day.
Two days later, he was suspended by the Heat for the third and final time.
