Jimmy Butler finally went public this week about his hesitancy about a long-term future with the Miami Heat.
Still, according to Charles Barkley, it’s an open secret around the NBA that Butler is as good as gone.
Discussing the situation postgame on Inside the NBA, Barkley described the stalemate between Butler and Miami and where both sides are headed.
“This was one of the worst-kept secrets in the world. This thing’s been over,” Barkley said. “The situation is this. Pat Riley, who’s arguably the greatest ever, he’s not going to pay Jimmy Butler, (and) Jimmy Butler is upset … he wants an extension.”
Over the summer, Riley told Butler to “keep your mouth shut” after he taunted Miami’s postseason opponents on social media. Riley then specified that the Heat would not be giving Butler a contract extension and that he needed to play more games this season.
Throughout the NBA season, ESPN maintained that Butler wanted a trade out of Miami. Butler’s agent sparred with ESPN’s Shams Charania over the details of his reporting, but Butler confirmed that report on Thursday night.
Within the past week, Riley reaffirmed that Miami would not trade Butler. But in a postgame press conference, Butler mourned the loss of his joy on the court and all but demanded a trade.
The latest comments were just the nail in the coffin, for what Barkley said is clearly the end of an era.
“This relationship has been over. It’s been over, I think, [since] some of the stuff that was said after last season,” Barkley said. “This relationship is over.”
The Inside the NBA panelist compared the fracturing between Butler and Miami to the end of Klay Thompson’s tenure in Golden State in 2024, arguing that sometimes relationships simply reach a natural conclusion.
In Barkley’s mind, that happened between Butler and Riley long before this week.
About Brendon Kleen
Brendon is a Media Commentary staff writer at Awful Announcing. He has also covered basketball and sports business at Front Office Sports, SB Nation, Uproxx and more.