Miami Heat star Jimmy Butler is heading into the final guaranteed year of his three-year, $146.4 million contract. He may already be laying the groundwork for his next payday.
In early May, Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald reported that Butler was "expected to seek a maximum two-year contract extension worth about $113 million from the Heat this offseason." However, Heat president Pat Riley was less keen on that idea during his end-of-season press conference.
"That's a big decision on our part to commit those kinds of resources unless you have somebody who's going to be there and available every single night," he said. "That's the truth."
Butler has missed at least 15 games in each of his five seasons with the Heat, and he's now heading into his age-35 campaign. "Playoff Jimmy" helped drag Miami to two NBA Finals appearances and an Eastern Conference Finals berth over that span, but his regular-season absences routinely impact the Heat's playoff seeding.
With Butler and the Heat at a standstill, his camp appears to be playing the media game to begin building leverage ahead of free agency next offseason.
In late June, Shams Charania of The Athletic reported that Butler planned to "play out next season on his existing contract" and would not sign an extension with the Heat or any other team. Charania added that Butler had "an affinity for Miami and has wanted to stay with the Heat," so his camp likely leaked that to deter the Heat from fielding trade offers.
To wit, Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer reported in late May that the Philadelphia 76ers were prepared to offer Butler a max extension if he forced a trade. Butler spent most of the 2018-19 season in Philadelphia, and both he and Sixers center Joel Embiid have long expressed their affinity for one another.
The Sixers no longer seem like a viable option for Butler after they landed Paul George in free agency this offseason. However, the NBA's rumor mill has been abuzz lately about Butler's reported interest in the Brooklyn Nets.
First, Brian Lewis of the New York Post wrote that "Butler isn't just open to Brooklyn, but fond of it." Then, Bob Windrem said the following on The Brooklyn Pod: "Jimmy Butler's interest in the Brooklyn Nets is very, very real. Part of it is New York; part of it is that Bernie Lee, who is Ben Simmons' agent, is very happy with how his client has been dealt with by the Nets." (Lee also represents Butler.)
There's only one problem: The Nets just traded away their best player to the New York Knicks this summer and are now entering a rebuild. They have the NBA's lowest preseason win total (18.5) this season, according to FanDuel Sportsbook.
Why would Butler be interested in playing out the twilight of his career on a team that seems years away from championship contention? Is the New York market or the Nets' treatment of Simmons enough that appealing?
You just have to follow the money.
According to Danny Leroux of The Athletic, "only four teams seem extremely likely to wield cap space" during the 2025 offseason. The Nets and Washington Wizards are the only two that "project to have enough to offer a 30% max contract without shedding additional salary," Leroux added.
Butler is eligible for a max contract that starts at 35% of the 2025-26 salary cap. His options therefore appear limited if he's hoping to change teams as a free agent next summer, which gives Miami a ton of leverage over him in contract negotiations.
If Butler and the Heat can't agree on a new deal, he could always explore sign-and-trades next offseason. However, teams over either salary-cap apron aren't allowed to acquire players via sign-and-trade, nor can they take back more money in a trade than they send out. The Phoenix Suns, Boston Celtics, Minnesota Timberwolves, Denver Nuggets and Cleveland Cavaliers are already projected to be over the first apron in 2025-26, while the Sixers, New York Knicks, Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Lakers aren't far behind.
Plenty can change between now and next offseason. If the Houston Rockets decline their $44.9 million team option on Fred VanVleet, they might become a viable Butler landing spot, either via free agency or sign-and-trade. If the Memphis Grizzlies have a bounce-back season, they project to be far enough under the first apron to be a sign-and-trade possibility as well. The same goes for the Oklahoma City Thunder, if they decide Butler is worth going all-in on.
But for now, Butler's free-agent options might be Brooklyn, Washington, Miami or bust. With the Wizards also in the early stages of a rebuild, he appears to have chosen the Nets as his source of leverage over the Heat.
