Inside The Heat

Former NBA Star Wants Miami Heat’s Jimmy Butler to Join Future Hall of Famer

Jake Elman

Dec 4, 2024; Miami, Florida, USA; Miami Heat forward Jimmy Butler (22) looks to pass against Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) in the first half at Kaseya Center. Mandatory Credit: Jim Rassol-Imagn Images
Dec 4, 2024; Miami, Florida, USA; Miami Heat forward Jimmy Butler (22) looks to pass against Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) in the first half at Kaseya Center. Mandatory Credit: Jim Rassol-Imagn Images / Jim Rassol-Imagn Images
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Good luck finding anyone in the basketball world who doesn’t have an opinion on Miami Heat star Jimmy Butler’s next stop.

Former NBA All-Star big man DeMarcus Cousins is the latest to share his thoughts, and he wants to see one of his former teammates benefit from Butler’s presence.

Appearing on the Dec. 18 episode of FanDuel’s Run It Back, Cousins said he thinks the Phoenix Suns must pursue Butler ahead of the Feb. 6 deadline. Cousins played with Suns star Kevin Durant on the Golden State Warriors. 

Would Cousins swap Bradley Beal for Butler if he ran the Suns?

“Hell yes,” Cousins said. “It should have been yesterday. And no disrespect to Beal; it’s just not a good fit with what you’ve got going on with [Devin Booker] and Kevin Durant. It never made sense. 

“It got a little better with them adding a point guard in the mix,” Cousins added, “but it still just doesn’t make sense.”

Butler averages 19.4 points, 6.1 rebounds, and five assists. Although Butler isn’t a No. 1 scoring option anymore, Cousins remains extremely optimistic about how the All-Star forward fits into a Big Three with Durant and Booker. 

“You add a guy like Jimmy Butler that can play both sides of the ball — give you 15 to 20 points on a nightly basis, and guard the best player,” Cousins said. “That’s a better fit next to a Kevin Durant and a Devin Booker.”

The Suns are 8-2 when Durant, Booker, and Beal all play together. We’ll see their winning percentage if they acquire Butler. 

MORE HEAT NEWS

NBA Analyst Questions Miami Heat Star Jimmy Butler’s Possible Trade Destinations

Heat’s Jimmy Butler Faces ‘Nonexistent’ Free Agent Market, Predicts NBA Insider

Jake Elman works as a contributing writer to Miami Heat on SI. He can be reached at jakeelman97@gmail.com or follow him on X @JakeElman97.

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Jake Elman
JAKE ELMAN

Jake Elman is a veteran sports journalist and graduate of Florida Atlantic University’s journalism program. In recent years, he has covered the NFL for EndGame360 and served as the sports content lead for ExpressVPN. He also covered the Lane Kiffin years at FAU for the Palm Beach Post.