Jimmy Butler facing 1 huge roadblock in path to his preferred team

May 25, 2022; Miami, Florida, USA; Miami Heat forward Jimmy Butler (22) brings the ball up court during the fourth quarter of game five of the 2022 eastern conference finals against the Boston Celtics at FTX Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jim Rassol-USA TODAY Sports

Jimmy Butler is reportedly angling for a trade to the Phoenix Suns, but there is one major obstacle that could prevent him from getting his wish.

Butler has requested a trade from the Miami Heat both publicly and privately. A report this week said the star forward has made it “pretty obvious” that his desired destination is Phoenix. There is one big problem with that, however.

In order for Butler to be traded to the Suns, Miami would have to take on the remaining two years and $110 million that Bradley Beal has on his contract with Phoenix. It is unclear if the Heat are willing to do that. Beal also has a full no-trade clause, and his agent Mark Bartelstein told ESPN’s Brian Windhorst on Wednesday that there have been no discussions with any team about Beal potentially accepting a trade.

One recent rumor claimed Beal has given the Suns a list of three teams that he would waive his no-trade clause for. Bartelstein said that is not true and that Beal and the Suns have not discussed any potential trades, period.

The Suns have a $216 million payroll and are a second apron team. Windhorst notes that Phoenix has no path to acquiring Butler without including Beal in the deal due to trade restrictions.

Butler does not have a no-trade clause, but he is set to become an unrestricted free agent after the season. That gives him some leverage, as most teams would probably need assurances that he would sign a long-term extension before pulling the trigger on a trade. Butler has supposedly told at least one team to not bother trading for him.