![\"Jimmy](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_7871-1024x654.jpeg\")
Heat wing Jimmy Butler averaged 26.9 points, 6.5 rebounds and 5.9 assists on 56.4 percent true shooting.(Mandatory Credit: Eric Espada\/NBAE via Getty Images)<\/p>\nHeat wing Jimmy Butler averaged 26.9 points, 6.5 rebounds and 5.9 assists on 56.4 percent true shooting.(Mandatory Credit: Eric Espada\/NBAE via Getty Images)<\/p>\n
We are just over one calendar year from the Miami Heat dealing Jimmy Butler to the Golden State Warriors in a five-team blockbuster. Their relationship soured \u2014 largely due to the Heat\u2019s unwillingness to sign Butler to an extension in the summer of 2024 \u2014 and it was best for both sides to go their separate ways.<\/p>\n
But that wasn\u2019t the first time the Heat explored trading the six-time All-Star.<\/p>\n
According<\/a> to Five Reasons Sports\u2019 Ethan Skolnick, the team reportedly shopped the now-36-year-old after the 2023 NBA Finals. Though they couldn\u2019t find \u201canything,\u201d the longtime insider noted.<\/p>\n Pat Riley reportedly placed Jimmy Butler on the trading block after the 2023 Finals, per @EthanJSkolnick<\/a> <\/p>\n \u201cYou know Pat shopped him after they got to the Finals. You know that, right? He was done with it. They shopped him. They couldn\u2019t find anything. This was after the 2022\u201323\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/1QXqyj90ic<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) February 13, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n Skolnick clarified later<\/a> that the excerpt from the recent Five On The Floor episode (ft. ESPN\u2019s Jorge Sedano) wasn\u2019t the first time he\u2019s talked about this, stating that it \u201cwasn\u2019t new.\u201d<\/p>\n What was said last night with @Sedano<\/a> \u2026 I said more than a year ago, it\u2019s not new. But as a birthday present to me, you can listen to our entire podcast, not just the aggregation. https:\/\/t.co\/X1phgMtdNd<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Five Reasons Sports \ud83c\udfc0\ud83c\udfc8\u26be\ufe0f\ud83c\udfd2\u26bd\ufe0f (@5ReasonsSports) February 13, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n Even though this would\u2019ve stirred some controversy, it was always the right move to sell high on Butler before, well you know, the chaotic circus that was the 2024-25 season. If they weren\u2019t going to pay him, then trade him.<\/p>\n Although the most bizarre part of that report is that they couldn\u2019t find anything for him; perhaps they didn\u2019t find a package that would\u2019ve satisfied them, given the player. Let\u2019s not forget that, before Butler got injured in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semis, he averaged 37.6 points, 6.0 rebounds, 4.8 assists and 1.8 steals on 59.7\/44.4\/70.8 shooting splits.<\/p>\n It was one of the most miraculous single-series performances in franchise history. In the summer of 2023, Butler was entering his age-34 season, and was beginning the first year of a three-year, $146 million extension he signed in 2021.<\/p>\n In that postseason entirely, Butler posted 26.9 points, 6.5 rebounds, 5.9 assists and 1.9 steals on 56.4 percent true shooting.<\/p>\n It would\u2019ve commanded a haul to pry Butler away from the Heat after a Finals run. But that\u2019s neither here nor there, now. Assuming this is true, I guess I would like to be a fly on the wall in terms of what was offered, and whether it was worth it.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n To check out our other content, click\u00a0here<\/a>.<\/p>\n Follow Hot Hot Hoops on Twitter\/X\u00a0here<\/a>!<\/p>\n Follow Hot Hot Hoops on Instagram\u00a0here<\/a>!<\/p>\n Check out Hot Hot Hoops on Facebook\u00a0here<\/a>!<\/p>\n Subscribe to our YouTube channel\u00a0here<\/a>!<\/p>\n \t\t\t