Jimmy Butler Trade Packages: Ideas for Lakers, Warriors and More

Jimmy Butler Trade Packages: Ideas for Lakers, Warriors and More 0 of 5

Jimmy ButlerDavid Dow/NBAE via Getty Images

Jimmy Butler surfaced in the NBA’s ever-churning rumor mill this week, and it doesn’t feel like it’s the last time we’ll see his name there between now and the trade deadline.

On The TK Show, The Athletic’s Sam Amick said that the Golden State Warriors may be interested in the potential 2025 free agent and “probably” even made some phone calls this summer.

It makes sense, given the lack of extension for Butler with the Miami Heat and Golden State’s failure to land either Paul George or Lauri Markkenen.

The Warriors need another star to push back into contention during Stephen Curry’s post-prime years, and Miami would be wise to restart now if it thinks Butler might bolt a year from now.

If the Heat do make (or have made) Butler available, though, Golden State won’t be the only team calling. He may be past his prime, but he’s still a needle-mover, and not just the kind that can take a team from bad to good.

Butler could be the missing piece for a championship winner, especially in the next year or two.

Below are organizations that should be interested and trade packages that could entice Miami.

Houston Pushes in Some Chips1 of 5

Jalen Green and Jimmy ButlerLogan Riely/NBAE via Getty Images

Jimmy Butler for Cam Whitmore, Dillon Brooks, Jeff Green, Jock Landale, a 2030 first-round pick and a 2031 first-round pick swap

The Houston Rockets’ young core proved last season that it may be a little closer to meaningful contention than most realized. They had a fringe All-Star candidate in Alperen Şengün, threatened the play-in tournament well into the spring and have several potential future All-Stars still on their rookie deals.

What makes them particularly interesting in this discussion is the number of relatively short-term, tradable contracts they have.

Dillon Brooks’ money almost has to be included, and swapping Butler in for his minutes would instantly give Houston a shot to finish above the play-in altogether. Jeff Green and Jock Landale aren’t even guaranteed rotation minutes on a developing roster. And though Whitmore is one of those young players who’s shown real upside, the Rockets won’t be able to pay all of them as they age beyond the rookie deals.

A consolidation trade now is easy to justify, at least in the short term.

Things certainly get trickier when you consider what Butler might want from his next contract, but there’s a team option for Fred VanVleet’s $44.9 million in 2025-26. If Amen Thompson, Reed Sheppard and Jalen Green appear up to the task, the Rockets can let VanVleet go and make the Butler the big-money man for the next few years.

For Miami, this deal gives it Brooks’ declining contract, which wraps up at just shy of $20 million in 2026-27. The Heat could move that in a future trade. Landale’s deal is very movable, too. Green’s expires after this season. All three of those players just give the organization flexibility going forward.

Whitmore is probably the biggest get here, and he’d fit nicely in a young core that already includes Tyler Herro, Jaime Jaquez Jr., Nikola Jović and Bam Adebayo (who’s still only 27).

Add the 20-year-old Whitmore to the draft pick and pick swap, and there’s a decent amount of consideration for the future here.

Spurs Speed Up the Timeline2 of 5

Jimmy Butler and Victor WembanyamaPhotos by Michael Gonzales/NBAE via Getty Images

Jimmy Butler for Keldon Johnson, Jeremy Sochan, Zach Collins, a 2025 first-round pick and a 2031 first-round pick

At least in terms of winning percentage, the San Antonio Spurs don’t have as much evidence of a forthcoming leap as the Rockets, but they can just as easily justify going for one.

Victor Wembanyama played at an All-NBA level as a rookie (and maybe even like a fringe MVP candidate for the last few months of the season). When he shared the floor with Tre Jones (an actual point guard) and Devin Vassell (a decent wing), San Antonio was plus-10.2 points per 100 possessions.

Just playing their future All-Star in more traditional alignments and adding some veteran competence from Chris Paul and Harrison Barnes could have the Spurs competing for a spot in the play-in tournament.

If they could turn a couple of their younger players and a pinch of their significant stash of draft assets into Butler, the play-in might suddenly seem like a pretty low bar.

With Wemby’s willingness to get threes up in volume and his burgeoning ability to hit cutters as a passer, he’d be a good complement to Butler on the offensive end. And though the elder statesman in that duo isn’t quite the defender he once was, in concert with Wemby, he could be a terror for a couple more years.

Wembanyama may already be the NBA’s best mistake eraser. And with him patrolling the backline, perimeter defenders like Butler, Vassell and CP3 could be ultra-aggressive.

For the Heat, this deal is probably a little more enticing than Houston’s. There are fewer strings attached to the draft assets (because one of the Houston offerings is a swap). It gives Miami two young(ish) players instead of one in Keldon Johnson and Jeremy Sochan.

And though Zach Collins isn’t a huge prize, his outside shooting might give Miami the option to deploy some creative “Bam as a point forward” lineups in which he can drive, draw and kick to shooters.

Nuggets Go All In3 of 5

Jimmy Butler and Nikola JokićBart Young/NBAE via Getty Images

Jimmy Butler and Alec Burks for Michael Porter Jr., Peyton Watson, Julian Strawther, Zeke Nnaji and a 2031 first-round pick swap

The Denver Nuggets caught a lot of flak for an offseason in which they lost Kentavious Caldwell-Pope to the Orlando Magic, but upgrades to the bench and development from one or two young wings could very easily mean they’re just better in 2024-25.

That’s obviously not guaranteed, though. It’s especially not in the Western Conference, which has been a relentless gauntlet for a quarter of a century now. The Oklahoma City Thunder, Dallas Mavericks, Minnesota Timberwolves (thanks mostly to 23-year-old Anthony Edwards) and Memphis Grizzlies could all be better.

If by some time around the trade deadline, Denver feels like another year of Nikola Jokić’s prime might be slipping away from title contention, a dramatic shakeup like the one above could at least be offered.

Michael Porter Jr. is eight years younger than Butler, and losing his three-point shooting would be a very real concern. Denver just finished the 2023-24 campaign in 25th place in threes made.

But there isn’t a player in the world who’d be better at leveraging Butler’s cutting and slashing than Jokić’s. The two-man game between those two would be unstoppable, giving the Nuggets another late-game option beyond the Jokić and Jamal Murray interplay.

This move could also torpedo Denver’s depth, but it’d give the Nuggets a slightly more dynamic, playoff-ready top five or six.

For the Heat, this deal doesn’t offer as much draft capital (because Denver really doesn’t have any), but Peyton Watson is one of the league’s most interesting up-and-coming defenders. Julian Strawther looks like he could be a high-volume floor spacer.

And if Miami wants to tip off a sort of quick, aggressive rebuild that doesn’t really sacrifice winning now, MPJ would be a heck of a running mate for Bam.

With Adebayo’s point center skills and Porter’s experience playing alongside a playmaking big, that duo would do plenty of damage right away.

Lineups with Bam surrounded by shooting from Porter, Herro, Nikola Jović and potentially Jaquez could spread defenses thin and stack points up in a hurry.

The Obligatory Lakers Trade4 of 5

LeBron James and Jimmy ButlerMegan Briggs/Getty Images

Jimmy Butler and Josh Richardson for D’Angelo Russell, Rui Hachimura, Dalton Knecht, Gabe Vincent, a 2029 first-round pick and a 2031 first-round pick

Snarky subheading and the media’s need to insert the Los Angeles Lakers into every NBA story aside, Butler joining LeBron James and Anthony Davis might actually make some sense.

Despite the Lakers’ stars both playing like top 5-10 players in 2023-24, L.A. once again found itself in the play-in mix. And with much of the West potentially better this season, it’s hard to imagine running it back with the same supporting cast yielding a much different result.

Adding Butler to the mix might create some interesting spacing issues. The floor could get a little crowded with him and AD both on it, but he’d obviously represent a talent upgrade.

With LeBron turning 40 in December, the Lakers will have to take some pretty aggressive swings to win him another championship ring.

Miami, meanwhile, might insist on Austin Reaves being in the deal instead of Gabe Vincent. L.A. might even budge on that or counter by taking one of the picks out of the framework.

Either way, this would give the Heat some valuable draft assets (or again, one valuable asset). By 2029, LeBron and Butler will likely be long gone. Davis will be way past his prime. And L.A. first-rounders could be top 3-5 picks.

Adding a couple young (or young-ish, in the case of D’Angelo Russell and Rui Hachimura) to the already intriguing core of Herro, Jaquez and Jović would be even better.

Jimmy to the Warriors5 of 5

Stephen Curry and Draymond GreenJared C. Tilton/Getty Images

Jimmy Butler and Josh Richardson for Jonathan Kuminga, Andrew Wiggins, Kevon Looney, Gary Payton II, a 2025 first-round pick, a 2027 first-round pick and a 2028 first-round pick swap

Now, for the team that brought us here today.

Tthe Warriors almost certainly need more raw talent to get back to the title contenders’ tier. And the potential one-two punch from Curry and his unparalleled outside shooting and Butler’s inside-the-arc scoring is easy to imagine.

A defense led by Butler and Draymond Green could cause plenty of heartache for opponents, too.

With that trio and a solid supporting cast that would include Kyle Anderson, Brandin Podziemski, Buddy Hield and De’Anthony Melton, Golden State would at least give itself one more puncher’s chance in Curry’s age-36 campaign.

Of course, the Warriors are giving up a lot of depth, young talent and picks here, but this is the kind of desperate, win-now move they might have to make to get Curry his fifth title.

The Heat, on the other hand, would be able to preach patience for the foreseeable future after a trade like this. They’d add Jonathan Kuminga to an already solid young core. They’d have movable contracts in Andrew Wiggins, Kevon Looney and Gary Payton II.

And perhaps most importantly, they’d have more draft capital to either use the conventional way as time passes or attach to deals for some other star who might become available down the road.