Proposed Jimmy Butler Blockbuster Trade Signals Heat Rebuild

Jimmy Butler's future in Miami has become the hottest topic in the NBA after the Heat did not extend their franchise star this offseason.

“We don’t have to do that [Butler extension] for a year,” Heat president Pat Riley said in a telling statement during his exit interview on May 6. “And so, we have not discussed that internally right now, but we have to look at that, making that kind of commitment.”

The New York Post reported on September 7 that Butler "isn't just open to joining [as a free agent next summer] but fond of" the Brooklyn Heat. On September 13, The Athletic's Sam Amick said on the "TK Show" podcast the Golden State Warriors are interested in Butler.

With these various reports suggesting Butler's time may be ending in Miami, it behooves the Heat to trade their 35-year-old star rather than let him walk for nothing after this season.

Bleacher Report's Andy Bailey proposed a trade that would send Butler to the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference for a haul that would signal a rebuild.

Bailey's proposal is as follows:

Lakers receive: Butler, Josh Richardson

Heat receive: D'Angelo Russell , Rui Hachimura , Dalton Knecht , Gabe Vincent , two first-round picks (2029, 2031)

The centerpiece of this proposed return package for Butler are the two future first-round picks which could become high-lottery selections as they will convey when Butler and LeBron James are perhaps done playing.

Knecht is a nice piece to add to the Heat's young core of Bam Adebayo, Tyler Herro, Jaime Jaquez Jr. and Nikola Jovic to keep them still in the mix in the relatively weaker Eastern Conference compared to West in the post-Butler era.

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