ReGrade the trade: Heat land a superstar in franchise-altering deal

Acquiring a new superstar

Pat Riley and company inked Butler to a sign-and-trade in the summer of 2019 that allowed Miami to sign him to a four-year $142 million contract.

This could very much wind up being the greatest trade in the history of the franchise when it is all said and done. Butler has put the Heat back on the map and has led this team to two NBA Finals appearances and a Game 7 of an Eastern Conference finals in four years.

Unfortunately, health has impacted all three of those runs to hold him and the team back from winning it all. The closest they ever got was in the 2020 bubble season when Miami was without the services of Goran Dragic and Bam Adebayo due to injury and lost to the Los Angeles Lakers.

Butler attempted to put the entire team on his back, dropping a 40-point masterclass in that Finals and two triple-double performances, but it wasn't enough. He is only the third player in NBA history to record a 40-point triple-double in the NBA Finals.

Last year, he dropped 98 points in a two-game span to close out the top-seeded Milwaukee Bucks in the playoffs a year ago and complete the eighth-seed upset in a gentlemen's sweep.

Although, it is fair to think where would this current Heat core be without him during all these recent impressive playoff runs?