Miami Heat star Jimmy Butler appears to be ready for a change of scenery, as he has reportedly indicated to the Heat that he wants to be traded.
BREAKING: Jimmy Butler has indicated to the Miami Heat he wants to be traded, per @ESPN
— Heat Nation (@HeatNationCom) January 3, 2025
In light of the Butler news, two-time NBA champion Vernon Maxwell took to social media and threw major shade at the Heat.
In addition to the Butler situation, Maxwell brought up the 2014 departure of former Miami star LeBron James and explained that there is a “special kind of stupid in the water” when it comes to the Heat organization.
I completely understand now why Lebron would leave Miami to go back to Cleveland (of all places) and now Jimmy Butler wants out. There is a special kind of stupid in the water out there.
— Vernon Maxwell (@VernonMaxwell11) January 3, 2025
Heat president Pat Riley was upset when James left the franchise in 2014 to return to the Cleveland Cavaliers. One five-time NBA champion implied recently that Riley deserves some of the blame for James’ departure. Before James left the organization, he helped the Heat win two championships during its iconic Big 3 era.
Now, Riley is involved in another situation that could end with the departure of a star player. The relationship between Butler’s camp and the Heat organization appears to be broken. Even if Butler doesn’t get traded before the deadline this season, he can leave the franchise this offseason.
Of course, Riley may or may not be who Maxwell is referring to in his post on X, but the Heat president is obviously the first person who comes to mind when it comes to the Heat’s roster management.
Butler’s Heat tenure has featured some very bright times. He helped the franchise reach the NBA Finals in 2020 and 2023, and he also helped it reach the Eastern Conference Finals in 2022.
But Miami has never been able to get over the hump during the Butler era, and some fans feel like Riley is to blame for failing to give the veteran enough help. Meanwhile, there have been indications of relationship issues behind the scenes.
The NBA trade deadline will come around in early February, leaving the Heat will a little over a month to figure out if they’re going to trade Butler midseason or approach the situation in a different fashion. Either way, nobody wanted to see Butler’s Heat tenure reach a stage like this.
