The league had arguably its most eventual weekend of the season. It had trade requests, team-issued suspensions, giants battling, a possible NBA Finals previews and a whole lot more. We haven’t even mentioned the Chicago Bulls announcing the Derrick Rose jersey retirement coming next season. Jimmy Butler’s impending divorce from the Miami Heat is the talk of the league. Trade rumors are ramping up. And we’ve got the NBA Stock Report lauding the best of the best.
Here’s your latest NBA Rewind!
Big Story: Where does this Jimmy Butler situation go next?
Ever since the Heat decided not to offer Jimmy Butler a two-year, $113 million extension this past offseason, there have been plenty of people around the NBA wondering where their partnership was headed. For a few years, Butler had embodied “Heat Culture,” but things started to sour because of how much time he missed. That includes the 2024 postseason, as brief as it was for Miami. It didn’t help that Butler was talking about how things would’ve gone differently if he could have played, and team president Pat Riley said he needed to keep his mouth shut since he didn’t play. It was the first big sign of fissures with Butler and the organization.
Trade rumors and reports have been running wild over the last month as Jimmy’s agent, Bernie Lee, publicly attacked speculation. Any denials went out the window starting Thursday night. Following the Heat’s 128-115 loss to the Indiana Pacers, Butler mentioned his joy on the court was gone, but his joy off the court remained in Miami. When asked if he thinks his on-the-court joy can be regained in Miami, his answer was simple:
“Probably not.”
It was then reported Butler officially requested a trade away from the Heat. On Friday, I actually started writing a section about the latest parts of the Butler-Heat saga and what could happen next. It was meant to lead this NBA Rewind space for Monday, before we wondered if too much could happen between Friday and Monday. We decided to post it with four questions about what happens next on Friday. Not long after it went live, the Heat suspended Butler for the next seven games for conduct detrimental to the team, explaining in a statement, “Jimmy Butler and his representative have indicated that they wish to be traded, therefore, we will listen to offers.”
This was barely a week after this statement from the Heat, which was generally quite unprecedented:
“We usually don’t comment on rumors, but all this speculation has become a distraction to the team and is not fair to the players and coaches. Therefore, we will make it clear — we are not trading Jimmy Butler.”
It is rare that a team does anything like this, let alone the Heat. I’m not saying that because Riley isn’t capable of an off-the-wall press release. (Do remember: He once had some very NSFW words for Danny Ainge in an official team statement.) But let’s get back to the current topic at hand: Butler’s seven-game suspension. This will cost him roughly $3.5 million in missed salary, and the duration isn’t any kind of coincidence. It will keep Butler from being on the six-game road trip the Heat begin Monday in Sacramento and takes the situation to Jan. 15. There are three big markers for trades during the NBA season:
• Dec. 15: Most free agents signed in the offseason are eligible to be traded.
• Jan. 15: Like free agents, most players who were re-signed in the previous offseason can be dealt.
• Trade deadline day: Obviously, this is the last day to make an in-season trade.
Between Jan. 15 and the NBA’s Feb. 6 trade deadline, there can be a mad dash of deals and potential rumors flying about. Now, we try to figure out what the market is for Butler’s current trade value and future contract situation. Sam Vecenie wrote about some possible destinations or trade ideas for Butler, but one of the more fascinating parts of his excellent piece was polling some executives about Butler’s free-agent market. Butler makes $48 million this season. He has a $52 million player option for next season, which seems like a no-brainer for him to pick up, right? Maybe not so much.
The Heat don’t have to trade Butler anywhere he wants to go within the NBA. And as a way to curtail that, Butler could threaten to decline his player option this summer and become a free agent to sign with a team like the Brooklyn Nets — or with anyone else with significant cap room/flexibility by then. Or we could also see him decide to decline that player option and re-sign a lucrative deal with his new team to pay him for the next three years. The 35-year-old Butler might have a tough contract market, though, if the entire league’s sentiments mirror those of the executives Vecenie polled in his piece. They seemed to believe his salary range was in the $30-35 million range annually. Maybe a three-year, $100 million is enough for Butler, although I’m not sure if he’d agree.
Perhaps this is similar to what James Harden went through with the Philadelphia 76ers when he was looking for either a new deal or a new home with a new deal. And the max money was not available for his situation. The teams being kicked around for potential Butler landing spots are the Golden State Warriors (18-17), Houston Rockets (23-12), Dallas Mavericks (20-15), Phoenix Suns (15-18) and maybe the Memphis Grizzlies (23-13). He could go elsewhere, but let’s take a quick look at potential complications to acquiring Butler:
• Golden State: We’ve got some reporting that the Warriors aren’t likely to pursue him. I think it would be a great fit and pickup to swing for another title with Steph Curry at 36 years old, but I’m also not running the Warriors.
• Houston: There are a lot of internet questions roaming about whether the Rockets have actual interest in Butler. It’s very possible/likely they want to just see how this core does, considering they’re currently the No. 2 seed in the West.
• Dallas: This potential destination poses similar logistical questions, since such a move obviously wouldn’t involve Luka Dončić, Kyrie Irving or Klay Thompson. Also, I’m not sure Dallas should even be interested, given how good this team is.
• Phoenix: This would come down to convincing the parties involved of two things. 1) The Heat at one time seemed pretty interested in pairing Bradley Beal with Bam Adebayo and Butler. It never materialized. But now Miami would have to be convinced of bringing in the 31-year-old Beal, who, by picking up his $57 million player option for 2026-27, is still owed $110 million for two seasons after this one. The Heat would also have to convince Beal to waive his no-trade clause. At this point, I’m not sure he’s doing that to go to Miami with no Butler.
• Memphis: This would be a massive swing by a really good Grizzlies team, and Vecenie had a really intriguing trade idea for it. I’d love the move for Memphis because, even in the relatively short term, it would add a veteran dog to this young squad. And Miami wouldn’t be using the Butler deal as a teardown in this scenario. Riley still wants to win and bring in a mix of veterans, young options and picks. But this would involve many moving parts.
There are plenty of other places Butler might end up, but a game of chicken has now turned into burned bridges and some scorched earth. Both sides have their agendas, but at least they know this thing is over. We’ll see if Butler gets moved before the suspension is over, or if Miami can at all swing a complicated deal before the trade deadline. As for now, can I interest you in some “Tyler Herro should be an All-Star” propaganda as a focus coming out of Miami? Will that be the main talking point in South Florida for the next couple weeks?
Stock Report (extended)
There are lots of times you want to check the NBA Stock Report and figure out some of the league gems outperforming their expectations. It makes you feel like you’re getting in on the ground floor of Microsoft or Apple. When, in reality, you’re basically just going, “Hey, the Detroit Pistons have played well lately!” That is worth mentioning too! But this week, we’re mostly giving love to the heavy hitters currently on rolls while welcoming back one of our favorites.
📈 Oklahoma City Thunder (30-5): Oklahoma City has won 15 in a row! Kind of! Technically, the Thunder lost that NBA Cup Final to Milwaukee in the middle of this run, but it doesn’t count for the regular-season standings, so, legally speaking, that means 15 wins in a row. On Sunday, in a possible NBA Finals preview, they hosted the defending champion Boston Celtics in a showdown. It did not disappoint, and neither did the second-half defense by OKC. The Thunder locked the Celtics down after halftime, allowing just 27 total points. That’s right. The Celtics scored 27 points in the final 24 minutes. OKC forced Boston into more turnovers (10) in the second half than it allowed made shots (eight). The Thunder are on pace for 70 wins this season.
GO DEEPER
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Thunder make most of opportunity in win vs. Celtics
📉 Phoenix Suns (15-18): I keep going back to the 9-2 start for the Suns before Kevin Durant got hurt. He, Beal and Devin Booker have all been in and out of the lineup since then, and the Suns are just 6-16 in their last 22 games. Yikes! They are 14-9 with Durant, 3-9 without him and only 3-7 since he got back from his latest injury. They’re 14-14 with Booker while going 1-4 without him, and have lost their last two games since he got back on the court. Phoenix is 10-13 with Beal, 5-5 without him and just 1-7 with him in its last eight games. Overall, the Suns are 8-5 on the season when all three of them play, but they’re minus-7.3 per 100 possessions with them on the floor. And it’s the offense that has been bad. At least Tyus Jones has been really good!
📈 Cleveland Cavaliers (31-4): It’s time to check if KFC is still open because the Cavaliers are going streaking again! Remember their historic 15-0 start to this season? Well, after beating the Charlotte Hornets (7-27) on Sunday, the Cavs ran their current streak to 10 consecutive wins. Their 31-4 start has them on pace to get 72 or 73 wins, depending on what your thoughts are on rounding up (72.6). As you may remember, only the 1996 Chicago Bulls (72-10) and 2016 Golden State Warriors (73-9) have ever reached those marks. The Cavs’ best campaign in franchise history was when they went 66-16 for the 2008-09 season. There’s no LeBron James on this roster, but it has been by far the Cavaliers’ most well-rounded since their 2016 NBA title.
GO DEEPER
The Cavaliers — at 31-4 — are echoing greats like the ’16 Warriors, but don’t tell them that
📉 Milwaukee Bucks (17-16): Do we have an NBA Cup curse? Last season, the Lakers were 14-9 before winning the NBA Cup, and then lost 10 of their next 13 games. The Bucks were just 14-11 when they won the NBA Cup, but had won 12 of their last 15 going into the NBA Cup final. Since then? We’re seeing some slippage with them. They’ve lost five of their last eight games since winning the cup, including losses to Brooklyn twice, Chicago and Portland. On offense, the Bucks have been horrendous during this stretch, with only the Clippers, Magic, Nets and Hornets playing worse on that end of the floor. Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard have only played in four of these eight games, and Lillard is shooting 32.4 percent from the field.
📈 Nikola Jokić vs. Victor Wembanyama: Back-to-back games. Star versus star. Best player in the world versus impending doom for the league. Both games were great. Both games were close. Both stars delivered. On Friday, Wembanyama played the 100th game of his career, and he delivered against the reigning, three-time MVP, posting 35 points, 18 rebounds, four assists and two blocks. Jokić gave it right back to Wemby with a ridiculous 41-point, 18-rebound-nine assist night, but Wemby got the game-clinching stop while guarding The Joker with the game on the line.
wow. pic.twitter.com/d8Pe9vWvDh
— Rob Perez (@WorldWideWob) January 4, 2025
They played the next night and delivered again. No load management. No hiding from the matchups. Wemby had 20 points, 23 rebounds, four assists and four blocks, but it wasn’t enough to close out against Jokić’s 46 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds. The latter missed the game-winning shot at the end of regulation but didn’t allow mystery to linger in overtime. Jokić scored nine of his 46 in the extra period as the Nuggets won, 122-111. Two giants. Two very different games. Two very different points of their careers. Two awesome games. But let’s make sure to talk ratings soon!
📉 Atlanta Hawks (18-18): Just when you start accepting the Hawks as a good team that has finally gotten its stuff together, they start coming back down to earth. Atlanta won four in a row to move its record to 18-15 before the road slapped it in the face. The Hawks have lost three straight games to the Nuggets, Lakers and Clippers. None of those are bad teams, and winning any of those games on the road is understandably tough. But the Hawks lost by 19 to Denver, 17 to the Los Angeles and then by 26 to LA. The good news is they have the Raptors on Tuesday, which should be a win. Then, they have a game in Phoenix followed by home games against Houston and Phoenix before going on the road to face Chicago, Boston and New York. I guess we’ll see their mettle get tested in the next two weeks.
📈 Kawhi Leonard: Let’s not put the cart ahead of the horse by heaping expectations onto him, his knee or what it could mean for the Clippers. But Kawhi Leonard made his season debut on Saturday after missing the first 34 games of the season. He played solidly, scoring 12 points on 4-of-11 shooting from the field, making 3 of 5 from deep and hitting just 1 of 3 from the free-throw line to go with three rebounds, a steal and an assist in 19 minutes. The Clippers were plus-22 on the floor with him in that aforementioned 26-point win over Atlanta. Leonard’s knee has been an issue for years, so I’m not going to start pontificating on what this could mean — just happy to have one of my favorite players back on the floor for now.
📉 Minnesota Timberwolves (17-17): The roller coaster of the Wolves’ season continues. After winning three-straight games against the Texas teams, Minnesota lost its next three. Now, these aren’t terrible losses. The Wolves dropped one in OKC by eight before losing at home to Boston by three. You can understand those defeats. Anthony Edwards seemed frustrated about offense, though, talking about how defenses are trapping him to get the ball out of his hands. He had 20 points on 12 shots against OKC, and followed that with 15 points on 16 shots against Boston. He’d had enough, and decided to correct his struggles on offense against the Pistons. Edwards had a carer-high 53 points on 16-of-31 shooting from the field, made 10 of 15 from deep and hit 11 of 12 from the free-throw line. Problem solved, right? No. He got zero help and had six turnovers to two assists as the rest of his team scored 52 points in a game the Wolves never controlled. Minnesota lost to Detroit by 14.
The Week Ahead: Four big games you won’t want to miss
As we near the season’s halfway point, we’re starting to round into proper time for conversations around MVP and other awards. I’m a firm believer in not really getting into this stuff until January because you need a real sample size when it comes to prestigious awards. We’ve hit that point and then some. With guys like Jokić, Antetokounmpo, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jayson Tatum all jockeying for position, the upcoming schedule for this week is rife with big-time matchups. Here are four games to keep an eye on.
Denver Nuggets at Boston Celtics, Tuesday at 10 p.m. ET on TNT: The Celtics just lost a heartbreaker to the Thunder. The Nuggets have been battling it out with Wemby. Now, we’ll Boston trying to get back on track and solve all of the problems Jokić presents. The Celtics need to get their shooting back on track, so Tatum will have to set the tone early and often against Denver. This should be a great showdown with a lot of offense.
Oklahoma City Thunder at Cleveland Cavaliers, Wednesday at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN: We know the Thunder will be taking a 15-game winning streak into Cleveland. They have two days off before this matchup. The Cavs will be bring a 10-game winning streak, their second double-digit win streak of the season. This could absolutely be another possible NBA Finals preview. They’ve been by far the best two teams in the league. Gilgeous-Alexander against Donovan Mitchell? Sign us up!
San Antonio Spurs at Milwaukee Bucks, Wednesday at 9:30 p.m. ET on ESPN: We just saw Wemby battling Jokić all weekend, as the Spurs star turned 21 on Saturday. Now, he gets to face a different giant as Antetokounmpo and company host San Antonio. These two gave us a great battle a year ago, and I’m expecting them to do the same. Wemby is doing things we’ve really never seen. Antetokounmpo is doing things we haven’t seen since MVP-level Shaquille O’Neal.
Oklahoma City Thunder at New York Knicks, Friday at 7:30 p.m. ET on League Pass: This is another big one for Gilgeous-Alexander and the Thunder later this week, when they head to Madison Square Garden. A couple seasons ago, Gilgeous-Alexander scored 37 points against the Knicks in a 145-135 road win. He has a great chance to beat that total against the Knicks. New York had won nine-straight games before losing two in a row this past week. This will be part of a five-game homestand for the Knicks, so we’ll see how the home crowd fuels Jalen Brunson in this battle.
(Photo: Issac Baldizon / Getty Images)
