Report: Heat Explored Trading Jimmy Butler After 2023 Finals Run
Jimmy Butler’s time in Miami officially ended when the Heat dealt him to the Golden State Warriors just ahead of the 2025 NBA Trade Deadline. But according to a recent report from Ethan Skolnick, that wasn’t the first time Pat Riley and the Heat front office considered moving on from their star forward.
In fact, the Heat reportedly explored Butler’s trade value back in 2023-right after their improbable run to the NBA Finals.
Let’s pause there. That’s not just surprising-it’s borderline shocking for anyone who watched that 2022-23 Heat team claw its way through the Eastern Conference as a No. 8 seed, with Butler playing the role of fearless leader and postseason assassin.
The idea that Miami would even consider shopping him after that kind of run? It challenges what we thought we knew about the Heat’s internal dynamics.
But here’s what Skolnick had to say:
“You know Pat shopped him after they got to the Finals. You know that, right?
He was done with it. They shopped him.
They couldn’t find anything. This was after the 2022-23 season.
How would the fans have reacted after he dragged them to the Finals?”
That quote paints a very different picture of the Heat’s mindset post-Finals. Rather than doubling down on the Butler-led core, it seems Riley may have already been thinking about the next chapter-possibly frustrated with behind-the-scenes tensions or simply unconvinced that the team could get over the hump with Jimmy as the centerpiece.
And yet, the market didn’t move. Despite Butler’s value being sky-high after dragging Miami to the Finals, the Heat couldn’t find a deal they liked.
That’s the part that raises eyebrows. If Miami was truly serious about moving Butler in 2023, there should have been suitors.
A two-way wing with elite playoff chops and a proven ability to lead a team deep into the postseason? That’s not something you find on the shelf every day.
So either the Heat were quietly testing the waters without full commitment, or the offers just didn’t match the value Riley had in mind. Either way, the trigger wasn’t pulled-at least not until nearly two years later.
Looking back now, this revelation adds another wrinkle to the Jimmy Butler era in Miami. It reframes the eventual trade to Golden State not as a sudden pivot, but as the culmination of a longer internal debate. And for fans who questioned why the Heat waited so long to move Butler, this report suggests they didn’t-they just couldn’t find the right deal when his stock was at its peak.
Ultimately, both sides have moved on. Butler’s now in the Bay, chasing another ring alongside Steph Curry, while the Heat are charting a new course in the Eastern Conference. But this latest report adds a compelling “what if” to the story-a reminder that even in the NBA, where loyalty and legacy often take center stage, front offices are always thinking two steps ahead.
The Jimmy years in Miami were far from perfect, but they were undoubtedly impactful. And now, we know they were also more complicated behind the scenes than we might’ve realized at the time.