Latest On Jimmy Butler
When word broke last Thursday that Jimmy Butler had informed the Heat he wants to be traded, a report from ESPN indicated that the star forward was open to playing anywhere besides Miami. However, it doesn’t sound as if Butler’s camp is sticking to that stance.
According to NBA insider Chris Haynes (Twitter video link), multiple teams – including the Grizzlies – have “received word” that Butler isn’t interested in joining them and have been advised not to pursue the 35-year-old. Kevin O’Connor of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link) has heard rumblings that the Bucks may also be included in that group.
Butler doesn’t have the ability to veto a trade, and the Heat will be seeking the deal that makes the most sense for the organization, so there’s nothing stopping Memphis or another team not on Butler’s list of preferred destinations from rolling the dice on him.
However, as Haynes observes, Butler’s ability to become an unrestricted free agent at season’s end by declining his $52.4MM player option gives him some leverage. A potential suitor would be reluctant to sacrifice valuable assets for Butler without being reasonably confident that the six-time All-Star would be more than a rest-of-season rental — especially since the veteran has made it clear he’s willing to make things uncomfortable if he’s not happy.
The Suns, Warriors, Mavericks, and Rockets were reported last month to be the landing spots on Butler’s wish list. It’s unclear whether that list has expanded at all in recent weeks. As I wrote earlier today in our latest Front Office article, the Grizzlies are one team that would make sense as a fit, given the strength of their roster, their cap situation, their available trade assets, and their desire to add a defensive-minded wing.
ESPN’s Brian Windhorst also provided an update on the Butler situation during Tuesday’s episode of First Take (Twitter video link). Noting that Butler has long conveyed his intent to become a free agent after this season, Windhorst says teams are hesitant to give up significant trade chips to acquire him, given his contract situation and salary expectations.
“Jimmy Butler isn’t going to extend with any team. And so because teams know that, they’re offering the Heat right now the pu-pu platter,” Windhorst said. “There is only one team that is ready to pay Jimmy Butler exactly what he wants, and that is the Phoenix Suns. And you know why that’s fascinating? Because of the 29 other teams that are out there that could trade for Jimmy Butler, the team that he wants to go to, which is Phoenix, is the team that has the hardest time trading for him.”
As we’ve discussed multiple times in recent weeks, there’s mutual interest between Butler and the Suns, but Phoenix would almost certainly have to send out Bradley Beal to acquire Butler due to the team’s second-apron restrictions.
Beal has a no-trade clause and is on a maximum-salary contract that is widely viewed as an albatross, given that he’s still owed nearly $111MM over two years after this season. The Heat reportedly have zero interest in acquiring the veteran guard, so a third team (that he’d be willing to go to) would be necessary, and the Suns likely lack the draft assets to incentivize both the Heat and that third team to make a deal.
“We’re at a genuine stalemate,” Windhorst continued. “I don’t know how it’s going to play out. The Heat are preparing internally for this to last past (Butler’s seven-game) suspension, not because they’ve got some sort of sinister motive, but because they know what offers they’ve gotten and they stink. And so that’s where we’re at now.”
Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald confirms (via Twitter) that the Heat have yet to be presented with an offer for Butler that’s particularly tempting or that they’ve strongly considered.
Here are a few more Butler-related items:
- In a full story for The Herald, Jackson takes a look at why Butler’s escalation in pushing for a trade may not be in either his or Miami’s best interest.
- The Heat haven’t looked good in the first two games of Butler’s suspension — they were blown out at home by a lottery-bound Jazz team on Saturday and blew a 17-point fourth quarter lead against the Kings on Monday before losing in overtime. As Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel writes, Miami is now outside the top eight in the Eastern Conference and is increasingly at risk of an unwanted outcome with its traded first-round picks. If the Heat make the playoffs this season, they’d send the Thunder their 2025 first-rounder and would owe the Hornets their 2027 first-rounder with lottery protection, whereas missing the playoffs and keeping their 2025 pick would mean they owe Oklahoma City their 2026 pick and Charlotte their 2028 pick without protections. While it’s possible that latter scenario could ultimately work out for the best, it would increase the risk of the team having to give up a high first-rounder.
- Heat captain Bam Adebayo admitted that the Butler saga has been an “emotional roller coaster” for the team in recent days, as Winderman details in another Sun Sentinel story.
Hoops Rumors Front Office Subscriber Chat Transcript: 1/7/2025
Hoops Rumors’ Arthur Hill held a live chat today exclusively for Trade Rumors Front Office subscribers. Topics included the Bulls' trade options with Zach LaVine and Nikola Vucevic, the price the Nets should demand for Cameron Johnson, the chances of the Suns trading Kevin Durant, the possibility of Jimmy Butler winding up in Phoenix and more!
Raptors Waive Bruno Fernando
10:11 am: The Raptors have officially waived Fernando, tweets Murphy.
7:25 am: The Raptors are waiving big man Bruno Fernando, according to Michael Grange of Sportsnet (Twitter link). Fernando is on a non-guaranteed contract, so cutting him on Tuesday will ensure Toronto isn’t on the hook for his full-season salary.
Fernando, who signed a one-year, minimum-salary contract with the Raptors in August after previously suiting up for the Hawks, Celtics, and Rockets, was sparingly used during the first half of this season even though centers Kelly Olynyk and Jakob Poeltl both missed some time due to injuries.
Fernando appeared in 17 games for Toronto, making two starts. He averaged 3.4 points, 3.0 rebounds, and 1.1 assists in 8.6 minutes per contest.
The language in Fernando’s non-guaranteed contract initially called for his full $2,425,403 salary to be locked in if he made the Raptors’ opening night roster. However, the two sides agreed to amend the deal, pushing back the salary guarantee date to the league-wide deadline of January 7.
If Fernando hadn’t agreed to adjust the terms of his deal, he likely would’ve been released before earning any of his $2.43MM salary. Instead, he’ll end up making $1,115,128, a prorated portion of his minimum deal.
That’s also the cap charge the Raptors will carry on their books for the 26-year-old, assuming he’s not claimed on waivers. A waiver claim would ensure Fernando’s full salary becomes guaranteed and would take Toronto off the hook for his cap hit, but it’s an unlikely outcome.
According to Grange, the expectation is that the Raptors will maintain some flexibility with their 15th roster spot for now, perhaps auditioning players on 10-day contracts. That opening could come in handy at the trade deadline to accommodate certain deals. As Blake Murphy of Sportsnet observes (via Twitter), it could also potentially be used later in the season to promote two-way player Jamison Battle to the standard roster.
As for Fernando’s next step, the veteran center is considered a potential target for the Turkish club Fenerbahce, which has been in the market for frontcourt help, notes Johnny Askounis of Eurohoops. Exploring a deal with the EuroLeague powerhouse could be an appealing option for Fernando if he doesn’t get an offer from an NBA team right away.
Thunder Cut Branden Carlson
The Thunder have placed center Branden Carlson on waivers, the team announced today. The move ensures that Oklahoma City won’t be on the hook for Carlson’s full-season salary, since his deal was non-guaranteed.
Carlson, who opened the season with the Raptors 905 in the G League, signed a one-year, minimum-salary contract with the Thunder in mid-November.
Carlson only saw garbage-time action with Oklahoma City at the NBA level, logging 25 total minutes across seven outings. He also appeared in five Tip-Off Tournament and regular season games for the OKC Blue, averaging 15.2 points and 8.6 rebounds in 25.6 minutes per contest.
A team that wants to avoid locking in a player’s non-guaranteed salary for the rest of the season must waive him by January 7, which is why the Thunder are making this move today. Although Carlson won’t earn his full $990,895 salary, he’ll be credited for 55 days of service, resulting in a salary (and dead-money cap hit) of $365,767.
The Thunder will open up a roster spot as a result of the transaction. I’d expect them to keep it open or use it for 10-day signings until they get a sense of whether it will be useful for trade purposes.
As Blake Murphy of Sportsnet tweets, the Raptors 905 still control Carlson’s G League rights, so if he ends up returning to the NBAGL, Toronto’s affiliate would have the option of bringing him back to the team.
Central Notes: Mobley, Cavs, Bulls, Giannis, Pistons
Fourth-year big man Evan Mobley is having the best season of his career for the 31-4 Cavaliers and making a strong case for All-Star consideration, as Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com writes in a subscriber-only article. The Cavs have an eye-popping +16.0 net rating when Mobley is on the court, compared to a team-worst +4.4 mark when he sits.
“He has taken that step,” Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell said of his teammate. “Everyone has been asking and he has taken that step. It’s beautiful to see. This is the worst that Evan is going to be and it’s not too shabby. He’s an All-Star. He will be in San Francisco in February.”
Speaking to Grant Afseth of RG.org, Cavaliers forward Georges Niang agreed with Mitchell’s assessment, comparing Mobley’s skill set to that of Hall of Famer Kevin Garnett. While Niang raved about Mobley’s evolution, he argued that there are actually four Cavaliers – Mitchell, Mobley, Darius Garland, and Jarrett Allen – who deserve to be at All-Star weekend in San Francisco.
“When are we going to celebrate winning? These guys sacrifice stats to help us win,” Niang told Afseth. “This isn’t an individual sport, but All-Star is an individual accolade. Donovan, Evan, Darius, and J.A. are All-Stars. Sharing the wealth and being team players doesn’t diminish what they’re capable of.”
In an interesting and wide-ranging conversation with Afseth, Niang also spoke about Mitchell’s commitment to Cleveland, making it clear that the five-time All-Star was exhibiting that commitment to the franchise well before he signed a multiyear extension during the 2024 offseason.
“Donovan is making this his home,” Niang said. “He even called Max (Strus) and me during (2023) free agency to bring us here. When your star player wants to be here and recruit others, it creates something special.”
Here’s more from around the Central:
- Addressing the Bulls‘ potential trade deadline plans, head coach Billy Donovan reiterated on Monday that the front office is considering everything and that nothing appears imminent, per Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times. Donovan also shared one tenet of his current roster-building philosophy. “If we want to continue playing (a fast-paced style), you can’t have eight guys,” Donovan said. “There’s no way you can sustain playing that way, that fast. So instead of (focusing on adding) one guy or two guys, how do we build out where there’s 10 or 12 guys? (Then) if you lose a guy, you’re not taking this huge hit. That’s what I’ve shared with them in terms of what I’ve thought.”
- Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo suffered a laceration on his right pinky finger during Monday’s game, writes Jim Owczarski of The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Head coach Doc Rivers told reporters after the game that the issue “definitely” seemed to be affecting Antetokounmpo’s ball-handling, but the two-time MVP stayed in the game and downplayed the issue after getting stitched up. “I’m fine,” he said. “My finger’s kind of numb but I’m fine. I played the second half but I’m fine. Just stitches. I’m not going to overthink about it.”
- The two-way contracts that Ron Harper Jr. and Tolu Smith signed with the Pistons are both for two years, tweets Keith Smith of Spotrac. If they’re not waived or promoted before the end of their respective deals, Harper and Smith would be eligible for restricted free agency in 2026.
Finding A Jimmy Butler Trade Scenario That Makes Sense
There are plenty of obstacles standing in the way of a Jimmy Butler deal being finalized before the February 6 trade deadline.
Butler is 35 years old. He has aggressively pushed for trades multiple times over the course of his NBA career. He hasn't played more than 65 games in a season since 2016/17. He's earning $48.8MM this season and will be seeking another significant payday this summer.
On top of that, his team, Miami, is prohibited from taking back more salary than it sends out in any deal, which will complicate the Heat's ability to work something out with certain potential trade partners.
Still, when he's healthy and committed, Butler is an All-NBA caliber talent. And given how messy the situation in Miami has gotten, it's hard right now to envision a scenario in which he returns to the Heat and finishes out the season.
A trade seems to be the most likely outcome, so we're going to dig in today on what a Butler trade might look like, running through all 29 other NBA teams to determine whether or not they could be a fit.
Let's dive in...
Pacific Notes: Beal, Nurkic, Finney-Smith, Vanderbilt, Batum, Leonard
Speaking to reporters prior to Phoenix’s game against Philadelphia on Monday, Suns head coach Mike Budenholzer discussed his reasons for benching Bradley Beal and Jusuf Nurkic, saying he needed to shake things up for his slumping team, Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic tweets.
“Feel like we needed to make a change,” he said. “Throughout a 48-minute game, you got to figure out your best combinations, your best ways to try to have success. They’re two important players to us, two very good players.”
Beal said he was “100 percent” surprised by the move, Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic tweets.
Ryan Dunn and Mason Plumlee moved into the lineup and Phoenix posted a 10-point win over the Joel Embiid-less Sixers. Beal wound up leading the team in scoring with 25 points in 30 minutes while Nurkic had five points and seven rebounds in 14 minutes.
We have more from the Pacific Division:
- The Lakers‘ four-point loss to Houston on Sunday displayed the athleticism and physicality gap between the clubs, Jovan Buha of The Athletic writes. It could result in another lineup change. Recently acquired Dorian Finney-Smith could be moved into Rui Hachimura’s spot, Buha suggests, noting that Finney-Smith has outplayed Hachimura and provides better two-way balance.
- Lakers forward Jarred Vanderbilt is nearing his season debut after an extensive rehab from offseason foot surgery. He has participated in non-contact portions of practice. “He continues to progress and ramping up to on-court activities,” coach JJ Redick said, per Khobi Price of the Orange County Register. “And hopefully we have a firm update on the timetable soon. But his progress is real right now.”
- Clippers forward Nicolas Batum said Kawhi Leonard‘s return to action, in which Leonard scored 12 points against Atlanta on Saturday, unfolded as expected. “Nothing crazy. He didn’t force anything. He’s too good for that,” Batum said to Sportskeeda’s Mark Medina. “He’s going to let the game come to him. Then he’ll see the right opportunity to attack. He did that. It’s the first game. I wasn’t expecting him to get 30 [points]. But with the way he played and the way he took his shots and he attacked and he played defense, we’ll be fine.” Leonard was limited to eight points in 21 minutes in a loss to Minnesota on Monday.
Community Shootaround: Lakers’ Season
There’s still a month to go before the trade deadline arrives, but the Lakers have gotten the jump on the competition.
Late last month, they acquired forward Dorian Finney-Smith and guard Shake Milton from the Nets in exchange for D’Angelo Russell, Maxwell Lewis and three second-round picks.
Finney-Smith was the centerpiece of the deal for the Lakers. They were seeking a forward who could upgrade their defense and also space the floor.
Thus far, coach JJ Redick has used Finney-Smith off the bench in four games since the deal was completed. The Lakers have a 2-2 record during that stretch. Milton has also received second-unit minutes.
The Lakers’ hopes in the Western Conference still rely on the health and steady contributions of Anthony Davis and LeBron James, as well as the perimeter shooting of Austin Reaves.
Rui Hachimura, Max Christie, rookie Dalton Knecht, and Gabe Vincent are the other players who have received steady minutes. The Lakers have played well since moving Christie into the starting lineup. Knecht has cooled off after a strong start. They’re hopeful of getting a boost soon from forward Jarred Vanderbilt, who has yet to play this season due to foot and knee ailments.
Statistically, the Lakers rank among the top 10 in field goal percentage and fewest turnovers. However, they’re a middling three-point shooting team and they’re in bottom 10 in rebounding and defensive field goal percentage.
The deal with the Nets gave the Lakers some relief below the second tax apron and they still have some draft capital to offer in future deals — a pair of 2025 second-rounders, first-rounders in 2029 and 2031, and first-round pick swaps in 2026, 2028, and 2030.
They don’t have any players with expiring contracts who are making $4MM or more, so they’ll have to be more creative to make another deal.
That brings us to today’s topic: Did the Lakers improve their postseason prospects enough with the addition of Finney-Smith? If not, what other upgrades do they need to make to become true contenders again?
Please take to the comments section to weigh in on this topic. We look forward to your input.
Central Notes: Cavs, Garland, Vucevic, Giannis, Bucks, Johnson
With a 31-4 mark, the Cavaliers are tied for the fifth-best start in league history through 35 games. However, they’re not chasing regular season records. Guard Darius Garland told Joe Vardon of The Athletic that his main focus is how well they do in the postseason.
“I really don’t think it will (ever) become important (to chase regular season history),” Garland said. “We all know what it’s like to win regular games. Our next step is to go to the Eastern Conference finals, go to the finals. I mean, the regular season is super cool, it’s like a ramp-up for what we’re trying to get to. If we’re on that pace, keep trying to win games, there’s nothing you take for granted. We’ll take it for sure, we love it, but our next step is to win playoff games.”
We have more from the Central Division:
- Bulls center Nikola Vucevic is considered one of the most likely players to be dealt before next month’s deadline. He told Julia Poe of the Chicago Tribune that he tries to ignore all the chatter. “This time of year, it’s part of it,” Vucevic said. “You can’t get caught up into that stuff. I’ve heard rumors ever since I was in Orlando. Everybody knows it and that’s just how it goes. Everybody online is going to have their opinions.”
- Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo battled an illness recently and he says he’s still trying to regain his strength, according to Eric Nehm of The Athletic. “Think about it like a savings account. Now I’m in the minus,” he said. ” So, I’ve gotta keep building. I’ve gotta build my body, gotta get some weights, gotta get some food in me, gotta get some cardio in me to go back to the positive and be able to compete, because I’m digging myself into a hole right now.”
- The Bucks have dropped six games to sub-.500 teams and they’re growing weary of their mediocre play, Nehm writes in the same story. “What’s not happening is we’re getting off to bad starts,” coach Doc Rivers said. “We’re not moving the ball. We’re not playing right. We’ve gotta play right. We’ve done that. We’ve gotta get back to doing it.”
- Pacers 37-year-old big man James Johnson signed a one-year, $3.3MM veteran’s minimum contract in July that had a $750K guarantee. Johnson has only appeared in five games and Indiana would have to waive him by Tuesday to prevent the contract from being fully guaranteed. However, that’s not going to happen, according to coach Rick Carlisle. “He’s not going anywhere. We need him,” Carlisle said, per Dustin Dopirak of the Indianapolis Star (Twitter link).
Southwest Notes: Sheppard, Adams, Williamson, Murray, Grimes
Reed Sheppard was touted as a strong Rookie of the Year candidate after the Rockets selected him with the No. 3 overall pick in last June’s draft. However, Sheppard has found it difficult to get into an offensive groove, averaging just 3.3 points and 1.2 assists in 11.6 minutes off the bench during his first 30 games. Now, Houston has assigned Sheppard to its NBA G League club, the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, the G League team tweets.
We have more from the Southwest Division:
- After missing all of last season due to right knee surgery, Rockets center Steven Adams says his knee is “back to normal,” Ben Dubose of Rockets Wire relays. Adams has been playing limited minutes but racked up eight points and nine rebounds in 17 minutes against the Lakers on Sunday. “It’s back to normal,” he said. “It’s been progressing more and more. We’ve been keeping an eye on it, and my comfort with the team has just been progressing, as we planned.”
- Zion Williamson is getting close to returning to action. Williamson participated in the Pelicans’ 5-on-5 practice on Monday and coach Willie Green stated “there’s a chance” he could suit up sometime this week, Will Guillory of The Athletic tweets. Williamson, who hasn’t played since Nov. 6 due to a left hamstring strain, is listed as questionable to play against Minnesota on Tuesday, according to the team’s injury report.
- The Pelicans have posted back-to-back victories for the first time since the first two games of the season. They snapped a 15-game road losing streak on Sunday, beating the Wizards in Washington after beating them at home on Friday. Dejounte Murray notched his first triple-double since New Orleans acquired him in the offseason. “He’s keeping the game simple and making solid decisions and he’ll continue to build from there,” Green told Rod Walker of the New Orleans Times-Picayune.
- In the short run, Mavericks guard Quentin Grimes has been thrust into the role of primary play-maker with Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving sidelined by injuries. It’s an opportunity to prove Dallas can rely on him to provide offense as the team’s third play-maker, Brad Townsend of the Dallas Morning News writes. “Big opportunity for me, for sure, knowing we’re not gonna have Luka for a while, and then Kyrie was out,” said Grimes, who delivered a season-high 26 points and six assists against Cleveland on Friday.