The Jimmy Butler situation isn’t getting much better in Miami.
The Miami Heat announced Friday they have suspended the six-time All-Star for “multiple instances of conduct detrimental to the team” over the course of the season, a day after he held a surreal news conference in which he loudly signaled he wants to be traded. While taking action against Butler’s conduct, they also added they will listen to trade offers for him.
We have suspended Jimmy Butler for seven games for multiple instances of conduct detrimental to the team over the course of the season and particularly the last several weeks.
Through his actions and statements, he has shown he no longer wants to be part of this team. Jimmy Butler and his representative have indicated that they wish to be traded, therefore, we will listen to offers
The previous day, Butler made his intentions to leave Miami very clear in a postgame news conference. After scoring only nine points in his second game back from a five-game absence due to what was called an illness, Butler lambasted his current role with the team and didn’t hold back when asked what he wants to happen:
“What do I want to see happen? I want to see me get my joy back from playing basketball and wherever that may be, we’ll find out pretty soon. I want to get my joy back. I’m happy here off the court, but I want to be back to somewhat dominant, I want to hoop and I want to help this team win. Right now, I’m not doing that.”
When asked if he believes he can get that joy back in Miami, he responded with only two words: “Probably not.”
The suspension comes after not just days, but months of tensions between Butler and the Heat’s leadership, most notably team president Pat Riley.
The first major crack appeared after the Heat were eliminated in the first round of the NBA playoffs against the Boston Celtics. Butler missed that entire series with a knee injury, then implied the team would have won the series with him.
In response, Riley publicly told Butler to “keep your mouth shut.” This was also after Riley announced the team wouldn’t extend Butler’s contract beyond this season.
More recently, there was a report on Christmas that Butler would prefer a trade from the Heat before the deadline in February, though he hadn’t made a formal request. Riley strongly rejected the idea, plainly stating, “We are not trading Jimmy Butler” in a statement. Butler didn’t seem to agree, as he basically shrugged when asked if he wants to remain with the Heat for the rest of the season. And then, two days later, he was telling the entire basketball world he has no joy for the game and doesn’t think it can be fixed in Miami.
This is nowhere close to Butler’s first messy break-up with a team, and it’s hard to see no teams showing interest in picking up a player with his two-way talent. The NBA trade deadline is scheduled for Feb. 6.
