Jimmy Butler wants out of the Miami Heat.
There’s not much more that can be said about the six-time All-Star after a surreal, two-minute postgame conference following the Heat’s 128-115 loss to the Indiana Pacers on Thursday. Butler, who was playing in his second game since a five-game absence due to illness, scored nine points on 3-of-6 shooting, then sat down and lambasted his role and future with the team.
When asked what he wants to see happen, Butler didn’t hold back:
“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.”
It was a rough game all around for Butler, who was playing a role different than his usual one in his six seasons with the Heat. Miami was outscored by 27 points in his 27 minutes on the court.
Butler didn’t have warm words for the new role:
“I felt great. I felt like I was focused. I felt like I did my job, or at least what my job is.”
He also didn’t sound excited about continuing to play that role with the Heat:
“It can be my role here. That’s not what I’m used to being. I haven’t been that since my second, third year in the league, where I just went out there and played defense.”
And when told that Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra wanted him to play more at point to get more “activated,” Butler shot it down:
“That ain’t going to fix it.”
There has been smoke building around Butler’s situation with the Heat for more than a week now. 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. Heat president Pat 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 wouldn’t be the first time Butler has pursued an exit from a team after deciding his situation wasn’t working, but the Heat had always seemed like an ideal match for the veteran. The results speak for themselves, as the team has reached the playoffs every season with him aboard and the NBA Finals twice. Then again, the Heat fell to 17-15 on Thursday and haven’t provided much reason to expect anything better going forward, especially if Butler is in a role that isn’t working for him.
The NBA trade deadline is scheduled for Feb. 6, and Butler just provided plenty of reason for teams and fans to start firing up their offers.
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