Things have quickly escalated in Miami and suddenly the situation with Jimmy Butler and the Heat is approaching an untenable level. In case you’ve been living under a rock, Butler’s agent leaked out that he wanted a trade and had preferred destinations roughly a month ago.
The Heat explored potential trades but didn’t find anything they liked and the rumors became a distraction. So, Pat Riley came out with a public statement that announced to the world that the Heat would not be trading Butler.
Well, apparently Butler didn’t take that statement very well. He missed several games with an “illness” and was away from the team. He returned on Wednesday to face the Pelicans, but played just 24 minutes and was benched for the 4th quarter after a less-than-inspired performance.
Then on Thursday night, things really hit the fan. Butler was clearly disengaged, standing in the corner, refusing to get involved in actions, jogging back, and sulking on the bench. He finished with just 9 points on 6 shots and was a team-worst -27 in a big loss to the Pacers.
After the game, Butler held a candid press conference where he admitted he had lost his joy for playing basketball in Miami. Shortly after, a report from Shams Charania and Brian Windhorst came out stating that Butler was formally requesting a trade to “anywhere but Miami”.
We’ve seen this story play out before; when Butler decides he’s unhappy, he makes things extremely uncomfortable until the team trades him. But Pat Riley and the Heat are stubborn. We’re now set up for a stand-off of epic proportions and I can’t wait to see who blinks first.
Trading for Jimmy Butler would be a massive risk/reward
But looking at this from an outside perspective, if Butler is open to any team, then the Nuggets should absolutely make a call. They can offer Michael Porter Jr., Zeke Nnaji’s contract, perhaps a young player or two, and a 1st-round pick swap down the road. It’s not an amazing return for Butler, but it may be the best the Heat can do.
If Butler becomes such a distraction they need to move on, they could do worse than MPJ and a few other assets. Not only is Butler disgruntled, but he’s also in the final year of his contract. He has indicated that he will opt out of his player option for next season and wants a max contract in free agency.
The Heat were unwilling to offer that contract in the offseason, which has in part, led us to the situation we’re in now. Any team trading for Butler knows this situation and will factor it into their offer accordingly.
Conversely, that means the price for Butler should be lower than his typical market value on the trade market. Butler should also be extremely motivated to go to a new team and prove he is still an elite player. At this point, he’ll be playing for his next contract.
Adding Butler would improve Nuggets' defense tenfold
If the Nuggets are willing to take on the risk, they could be adding an elite two-way talent in Butler with a proven playoff pedigree. Adding another offensive engine and playmaker to the team would be a huge addition. Spacing concerns from his lack of shooting would be mitigated by all of his other skills on and off the ball.
But the real difference would be on the defensive end. The Denver offense is already an elite unit with or without Jimmy; the defense, on the other hand, is a major issue. Without Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, the defense has fallen off a cliff.
The Nuggets have no reliable perimeter stoppers; Christian Braun is doing his best but he’s badly overtasked. Now everyone is trying to step up in the pecking order and it’s not working at all. They can’t stop dribble penetration, they can’t navigate screens, and they can’t keep people in front of them.
This is resulting in the Nuggets’ defense constantly being in rotation, being forced to help, and giving up way too many open shots. The perimeter defense has also cratered the interior defense and the constant rim pressure is exposing the lack of rim protection and Jokic’s weaknesses on that end.
A locked in Butler would be the best defender on the Nuggets by far, especially on the perimeter. He could take on the other team’s best offensive player while allowing Braun and Aaron Gordon to fall into complementary defensive roles. With Peyton Watson coming off the bench, the Nuggets could actually build a formidable defense.
There are a lot of question marks that would come along with the Nuggets trading for Butler, but it’s undeniable that the team’s defense would vastly improve, perhaps vaulting the team to contender status.