Surprise East Team Could Be in Contention for Heat Star Jimmy Butler

Miami Heat forward and NBA All-Star Jimmy Butler will soon enter his 14th season in the league and sixth in Miami.

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Butler has taken the Heat back to the heights they experienced with Dwyane Wade and LeBron James but has failed twice to bring a title back to South Beach. While Butler is a fine player, his time in Miami has been filled with ups and downs.

Still, he is a star in this league, and when the playoffs hit, Butler always finds a way to turn it up a notch. Butler rises to the occasion when it matters most; however, there’s a chance that this season could be his last in Miami.

Brian Lewis of the New York Post said that Butler is thinking about free agency next summer if he opts out of his deal, and this surprise East team could make a run at him.

“The six-time All-Star is the most accomplished standout on that list not named James, and he likes Brooklyn, according to sources close to the player.”

Butler and the Heat have been at odds regarding his contract since the end of the 2023-24 season.

While the Nets don’t look too hot on paper, they will have a ton of money to spend. Brooklyn is projected to have $70 million in cap space next summer. Combine that with their draft capital and their ability to trade for star players, and they could be big surprise players for Butler.

Brooklyn could turn from zeros to heroes in a matter of a season if they play things right in the next 12 months. While a potential grab of Bulter would shape things up in the East, he will be heading into his age 36 seasons in 2025-26. With the league getting younger, it may not be wise to go after an older player, especially Butler, who has some injury issues.

The Nets could only be in play if the Heat aren’t willing to give Butler the extension he wants. In May, Heat president Pat Riley told reporters that the organization hadn’t discussed an extension at that point.

“We have to look at making that kind of commitment and when do we do it,” Riley said. “We don’t have to do it until 2025, actually. But we’ll see. We haven’t made a decision on it, and we haven’t really in earnest discussed it.”

As we hit September, an extension is still not in play for Butler.

When Butler is healthy, he is still among the top players in the league and is coming off a season where he averaged 20.8 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 5.0 assists per game in 60 starts last season.

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