The Miami Heat are still deciding whether or not to trade away Jimmy Butler before the Feb. 6 deadline, but one particular scenario appears to be completely off the table for them.
Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald reported this week that Miami is not interested in having Butler remain away from the team once his suspension is over. Thus, Butler, if he is still on the roster by then, would be expected to rejoin the Heat and play in games (rather than being paid the remainder of his $48.8 million salary this season to stay at home).
The six-time All-Star Butler is currently away from the team after they suspended him for seven games for detrimental conduct. That conduct included both public and private remarks indicating a desire to be traded as well as a recent stretch of games in which team officials reportedly thought that Butler was not playing his hardest.
Miami might not be able to get much right now for Butler, a 35-year-old with a $52.4 million player option for next season as well as a history of diva behavior at multiple NBA stops now. But they could stand pat through the end of the season, betting that Butler would need their help in a sign-and-trade to get to his preferred team in the summer. Since the Heat are also a free agent destination, they could also just let Butler walk for nothing and bank on being able to fill out that fresh cap space with quality new signings. But as for Butler being able to collect checks from the Heat by simply sitting on the couch for the rest of the season, that apparently won’t be happening.
