Jimmy Butler's Blockbuster Trade to Warriors Left NBA Fans in Disarray

Butler's long saga with the Miami Heat ended with him as a Warrior.
Former Miami Heat forward Butler looks on before the game against the Denver Nuggets at Kaseya Center.
Former Miami Heat forward Butler looks on before the game against the Denver Nuggets at Kaseya Center. / Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

Jimmy Butler got his wish. He's no longer a member of the Miami Heat, ending the dramatic monthslong saga of trade requests, suspensions and drama galore.

According to a report from ESPN's Shams Charania Wednesday evening, Butler was traded to the Golden State Warriors for Andrew Wiggins and a protected first-round pick. To help facilitate the deal, Dennis Schroder will go to the Utah Jazz and Kyle Anderson to the Toronto Raptors. Finally, the Detroit Pistons received Lindy Waters III from Golden State and Josh Richardson from Miami.

Charania, along with ESPN's Brian Windhorst, also reported that Butler agreed to a new two-year, $121 million contract extension, keeping him with the Warriors through the 2026-27 season at least. Butler declined his player option for next season to work out the new contract.

Although the Heat were unlikely to hold onto their disgruntled star past Thursday's deadline, the NBA world was surprised about Butler's new destination and the end to the long battle between franchise and star:

After all that, the drama ended up in the NBA's newest duo. Jimmy Butler and Steph Curry.


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Blake Silverman
BLAKE SILVERMAN

Blake Silverman is a contributor to the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. Before joining SI in November 2024, he covered the WNBA, NBA, G League and college basketball for numerous sites, including Winsidr, SB Nation's Detroit Bad Boys and A10Talk. He graduated from Michigan State University before receiving a master's in sports journalism from St. Bonaventure University. Outside of work, he's probably binging the latest Netflix documentary, at a yoga studio or enjoying everything Detroit sports. A lifelong Michigander, he lives in suburban Detroit with his wife, young son and their personal petting zoo of two cats and a dog.