Miami Heat Exec Addresses Future of Potential Sixers Trade Target

Pat Riley brushes off the idea of trading Jimmy Butler.

Apr 4, 2024; Miami, Florida, USA; Miami Heat forward Jimmy Butler (22) goes up for a shot as / Jim Rassol-USA TODAY Sports

Could Joel Embiid and Jimmy Butler reunite back on the Philadelphia 76ers after being Eastern Conference rivals for all of these years?

Don’t count on it.

While Jimmy Butler has been painted as the perfect potential third star candidate for the 76ers entering their summer of plenty cap space, the Miami Heat currently do not have any plans to trade away the outspoken All-Star.

This week, Heat executive Pat Riley fielded questions about the state of the Eastern Conference’s eighth-seeded team and claimed that Butler would not be a trade candidate this offseason.

Apr 14, 2024; Miami, Florida, USA; Miami Heat forward Jimmy Butler (22) brings the ball up the / Jim Rassol-USA TODAY Sports

“Who moves the needle the most on our team is Jimmy,” Riley said, according to The Athletic. “Jimmy moves the needle the most. He’s an incredible player.”

It’s still early on in the offseason. With the second round of the playoffs just getting started, a lot can happen over the next few months.

It seems the Heat are content with building around the 34-year-old Butler, who turns 35 before the start of next season. That only that changes if the veteran All-Star decides he wants out.

So far, Butler hasn’t given any indication he wants to move on from Miami. While the Heat struggled to put together a big postseason run this year, Butler didn’t have the opportunity to contribute as he was sidelined with an injury.

His most recent run with the Heat in the playoffs started on a strange note — entering the bracket as the eighth seed — and ended with them falling short against the Denver Nuggets in the NBA Finals.

Surely, the Heat need to make some key personnel changes to keep Butler happy. So far, it seems unlikely Butler is headed towards a trade demand.