Could the marriage between Jimmy Butler and the Miami Heat be coming to an end? It certainly sounded like it following Thursday's blowout loss to the Indiana Pacers, 128-115. One in which Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton made NBA history.
Butler has often been the topic of potential trade talks. Following the game, he was asked what he would like to see happen.
“I want to see me get my joy back from basketball. Wherever that may be.”
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) January 3, 2025
Jimmy Butler after the Heat’s loss to the Pacers tonight 👀
(via @ZachWeinberger) pic.twitter.com/r483NHV4Jk
“I want to see me get my joy back from playing basketball. Wherever that may be, we'll find out here pretty soon,” Butler admitted. “I am happy here, off the court. But I want to be back to somewhat dominant. I want to hoop and help this team win and right now I am not doing that.”
Associated Press NBA writer Tim Reynolds followed up asking if he can find that joy again in Miami.
“Probably not,” Butler retorted candidly.
The fact that the Heat star so casually admitted that he does not see a future in Miami is stunning. But it was not just the media in attendance that was caught off guard with Butler's comments. Fans online upon seeing this interaction were also blown away.
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“How does Jimmy think this helps his case with this team or the next?” one fan wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
“Gave up on em man, Just trade the man and build around bam and herro. Dont let him force his way out its gonna get bad” another fan wrote.
Despite the loss, the Heat are still solidly in playoff positioning. They are currently the six-seed in the Eastern Conference at 17-15. But Butler has missed 11 of the 32 games thus far and appears to be leveraging the team for a trade.
