In the midst of his 6th year with the Miami Heat, star forward Jimmy Butler has requested a trade, stating that he’s “open to playing anywhere other than Miami.” This comes after a perfectly mediocre 23-23 start to the Heat’s season, seeing Butler average 17 points on good efficiency, along with 5 rebounds, 5 assists, and a steal per game. There has been considerably less anger over this trade request compared to many in recent memory, which can be chalked up to the Heat simply not being very good over the past 2 seasons. Jimmy led the Heat to championship appearances in 2020 and 2023, which could be seen as a good enough reason for him to want to stay, but both of those appearances are largely seen as over achievements on the Heat’s part, and in neither instance did people really favor the Heat to win. 

With this trade request in context, it seems completely reasonable on Jimmy’s part, but then comes the question of what team would be trading for him. The Warriors have been the most mentioned destination, but with Jimmy’s 48 millions dollar salary, it’s a hard fit, especially to put together a trade that would be enticing for the Heat. And for any other team, a 35 year old on that big of a contract only averaging 17 points doesn’t seem like a good idea to trade for.