In shocking post-game comments, Miami Heat star Jimmy Butler openly admitted that he is unhappy with his current team and believes there is no way to “enjoy” playing in South Florida.
This comes after weeks of speculation that the Heat could trade the 35-year-old star, or that Butler could demand his transfer.
Butler scored just nine points on 3-of-6 shooting to go along with two rebounds, four assists and two steals in Miami’s 128-115 loss to the Indiana Pacers.
But after the game, Butler said he wasn’t happy at all about being a member of the Heat. Although he did not expressly say that he wanted to leave, he admitted that he wants to be happy again playing “wherever that may be.”
‘What do I want to happen? “I want to bring back the joy of playing basketball, wherever that may be, we’ll find out here very soon,” Butler said in a postgame press conference.
‘I want to recover my joy. I’m happy here, off the court, but I want to be somewhat dominant again. I want to play and I want to help this team win. I’m not doing that right now.’
Miami Heat star Jimmy Butler has reportedly demanded a trade away from the team.
When asked in a follow-up question if he could recapture his Miami joy on the court, Butler matter-of-factly replied, “Probably not.” The press conference ended immediately afterwards.
After the press conference, a report from ESPN’s Shams Charania and Brian Windhorst indicated that Butler demanded a trade from the team.
Last month, Charania indicated the team was listening to potential trade offers for Butler.
When reports surfaced that Butler wanted a trade and had several Western Conference teams as preferred destinations, Heat president Pat Riley issued a blunt statement saying, “We’ll make it clear: We are not trading Jimmy Butler.”
Now, Charania reports that Butler doesn’t plan to tell the Heat about potential trade destinations, and that he just wants to play anywhere other than Miami.
Charania reported through sources that Butler plans to continue participating in team activities and “will plan to do whatever the Heat asks of him during this process.”
Butler returned to the court earlier this week after being sidelined due to illness. He has not played in the fourth quarter of any of the games he has participated in this week.
Charania says Butler’s representation has met with Riley and Heat owner Micky Arison to try to resolve any issues between them. Those talks have reportedly been unsuccessful.
Butler has apparently been looking for a trade since the Heat decided not to extend him
With the Heat, Butler participated in two NBA Finals and lost both times.
Last year, Riley announced that the team would not extend the 35-year-old’s contract before the 2024-25 season. Butler would earn up to $113 million on a two-year contract to remain in Miami.
Tensions rose after the Heat were eliminated in the playoffs at the hands of the eventual NBA champion Boston Celtics. Butler, who missed the series after a knee injury, said on social media that the team would have beaten the Celtics if he were healthy.
Riley issued a cold response in his end-of-season media session, saying, “If you’re not playing on the court, you need to keep your mouth shut.”
Butler has been in the league since 2011, when he was drafted 30th overall by the Chicago Bulls out of Marquette University.
Since then, in addition to Chicago and Miami, Butler has played one season with the Minnesota Timberwolves and one season with the Philadelphia 76ers.
He made two appearances in the NBA Finals with the Heat, losing both. Their first loss came in the 2020 NBA Finals held in the bubble, losing in six games to the Los Angeles Lakers. The second loss came in five games in 2022 at the hands of the Denver Nuggets.
Last season, Butler averaged 20.8 points, 5.3 rebounds and five assists per game in 60 games played in the regular season.
He is a six-time NBA All-Star, one-time All-NBA Second Team selection, four-time All-NBA Third Team selection and five-time NBA All-Defensive Second Team selection.