With two months to go before the NBA trade deadline, the Miami Heat are reportedly listening to offers for Jimmy Butler. For as much as Butler has meant to this organization, the Heat face the decision of trading him this season or risk losing him for nothing in free agency.
Butler, who plans to opt out and become a free agent after the season, is seeking another maximum contract. The Heat so far have declined to offer the 35-year-old Butler an extension, further clouding his future.
“Losing him for nothing” doesn’t mean what it used to, though.
Under the current salary cap rules, letting a player walk in free agency isn’t as harmful or embarrassing as it once was. The LA Clippers, for example, preferred to let Paul George leave as a free agent rather than trade him to the Golden State Warriors.
Why?
Because doing so created cap space that allowed the Clippers to become a major player in free agency.
After George signed with the Philadelphia 76ers last summer, the Clippers targeted free agents who fit their specific team needs. Using cap space and exceptions, they signed Derrick Jones Jr., Kris Dunn, Kevin Porter Jr. and Nic Batum.
The Clippers preferred that group of players over what they may have gotten from the Warriors, a package that would have likely included Andrew Wiggins and other salaries.
While Draymond Green publicly criticized the Clippers for taking “nothing as opposed to something,” the Clippers would argue that they didn’t. Rather, they traded George for the flexibility that allowed them to sign a group of players that they preferred over the players that would have come over from Golden State. Essentially, they traded George for Jones, Dunn, Porter and Batum.
The Heat could do the same thing.
The Heat could prioritize cap space in their dealings with Jimmy Butler.
Butler opting out of his $52.4 million salary for next season and walking away in free agency would create roughly $15 million in cap space in the offseason. The Heat could free up more if they trade Terry Rozier before the deadline (owed $26.6 million next season) for less money owed next season. They can also create about another $10 million by waiving Duncan Robinson’s partially guaranteed contract over the summer, something they would only do if presented with a chance to sign a clear upgrade.
Because they would be under the luxury tax, the Heat would also have access to the non taxpayer mid-level exception, projected to be worth $13.6 million.
Among the free agents who could be available this offseason include potential All-Stars and starters such as Fred VanVleet, Kyrie Irving, James Harden, Brandon Ingram, Julius Randle, John Collins, Brook Lopez, Myles Turner, Lonzo Ball, Alex Caruso and Naz Reid.
Other helpful players include Bruce Brown, Malcolm Brogdon, Clint Capela, Bojan Bogdanovic, Caris LeVert, Luke Kennard, Dorian Finney-Smith, Bobby Portis, Larry Nance Jr., Al Horford, Malik Beasley, Precious Achiuwa, Jake LaRavia, Amir Coffey, Spencer Dinwiddie, Dante Exum and others.
With cap space and exceptions, the Heat could target two or three of those players to add to their roster and reboot around Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro.
Is that better than what they could get in return in a Butler trade? That’s up for Miami’s front office to decide as they field calls between now and the Feb. 6 deadline.
The other option is to trade Butler for expiring contracts and future draft compensation. This would retain cap flexibility for the summer while also adding important draft capital to aid in the rebuild.
For instance, rather than ask for a young player like Jonathan Kuminga back from Golden State, the Heat could prioritize draft picks and the expiring contacts of Dennis Schroder, Gary Payton II and Kevon Looney, then find a third team to reroute Andrew Wiggins to in exchange for more expiring salary.
Doing that is admittedly more complicated, but it would be an ideal compromise between replacing Butler in a trade and letting him walk for nothing. However, as you can see, the latter isn’t a disaster.