Heat must do this before Jimmy Butler scenario turns into nightmare

The Miami Heat got smoked by the Orlando Magic on opening night, prompting questions about whether or not they are even the best team in their own division anymore and if the window has closed on this particular era.

Jimmy Butler’s listless performance didn’t help. Three points on 1 for 8 shooting just isn’t going to cut it, and more troubling is the fact that he missed three of his four shots in the restricted area. Butler, 35, is playing for a new contract this season, but players don’t get better and healthier at this age.

It’s an overreaction to say that Butler’s window is closed, but it’s at least worth monitoring. The Ringer’s Bill Simmons is keeping an eye on it, raising some trade ideas on his latest podcast.

Bill Simmons suggests that the Heat should think about trading Jimmy Butler now.

“If it gets bad, they don’t have a lot of options, and they got to move fast because what you don’t want is an unhappy Jimmy Butler, and then you’re trading him for 30 cents on the dollar,” Simmons said.

Butler can opt out of his $52.4 million for next season and become a free agent, but that’s a lot of money to turn down, especially if he has entered the twilight phase of his career. If the Heat’s front office determines they need to move on, trading Butler is the surest way to do it.

“They’re just not good enough anymore,” Simmons said. “You have these windows and then the window ends, and either they have to try to add to the nucleus they have or they have to call an audible and maybe think about trading Jimmy.”

On paper, the Heat aren’t in the same class as the Boston Celtics, Philadelphia 76ers, New York Knicks or Milwaukee Bucks. It’s unclear if they belong in the same tier as the Indiana Pacers, Cleveland Cavaliers and Magic. Wednesday night’s game didn’t do anything to suggest otherwise.

Simmons floated three potential destinations for Butler: the Houston Rockets, New Orleans Pelicans and Golden State Warriors.

All three make sense, but particularly Houston and Golden State.

The Rockets have made it clear that they want to take the next step and make the playoffs, but they haven’t made any moves in the offseason that will help them climb the Western Conference standings.

The Rockets could offer a package built around chunky contracts (Dillon Brooks and Steven Adams) and one of their promising young players (like Amen Thompson) and make a competitive offer.

The Warriors have been aggressive on the trade market, striking out on Paul George and Lauri Markkanen this summer. Butler could make a lot of sense in Golden State. But would a deal including Andrew Wiggins, Jonathan Kuminga and other contracts be enough to get a deal with Miami done?

It’s too early to have these conversations in earnest, but Simmons is getting out in front of it.