NBA Insider Links Mavericks to Jimmy Butler Amid 'Quiet Discourse' About Possible Heat Exit

The Mavericks’ outlook for competing for a championship is favorable, making exploration of any possible way to improve a natural priority. This organization has made a midseason change each season under general manager Nico Harrison, making it a franchise to monitor for trade deadline activity. One name became linked as an option for Dallas on Monday: Jimmy Butler.

Mavericks Among Teams Linked to Jimmy Butler?

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As speculation about Butler’s future with the Miami Heat grows, several teams with postseason aspirations may keep an eye on the six-time All-Star forward, including the Mavericks. According to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, there has been “quiet discourse” around some league circles regarding Butler’s potential availability, with the Houston Rockets and Dallas considered possible interested suitors. However, the Brooklyn Nets, previously linked to Butler, are reportedly not considering him a fit as they focus on developing younger talent.

Butler, 35, holds a $52.4 million player option for the 2025-26 season, making him an unrestricted free agent if he declines it. Earlier this year, Shams Charania of The Athletic reported that Butler had no plans to sign an extension with Miami or any other team before his opt-out window.

Butler has averaged 18.9 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 4.8 assists in 14 games. The Heat, currently sitting at 9-10 and sixth in the Eastern Conference, are in a precarious position. However, despite a mediocre start, they remain in playoff contention in a weak conference. This group’s history, including reaching the NBA Finals as the No. 8 seed in 2023, could make Heat president Pat Riley hesitant to part ways with Butler, even if the team’s ceiling appears limited in the regular season.

While no trade appears imminent, Butler’s value as a proven playoff performer ensures that Riley would have no shortage of options should the Heat decide to explore a move. Another team to keep an eye on, according to Sam Amick of The Athletic, is the Golden State Warriors as they explored a potential trade for Butler during the offseason, in addition to other high-profile stars.

Mavericks Face Limited Path for Butler Acquisition

The Mavericks’ chances of making a move as significant as trading for Butler before the midseason deadline are bleak. The current Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) makes it restrictive to pull off a trade that requires a significant amount of moving parts once rosters are set.

As one member of a rival NBA front office told DallasHoopsJournal.com, the Mavericks appear too limited financially to pull off a trade for Butler during the season, even if that’s an outcome he sought during the season. This sentiment was common among league personnel who shared insight on this matter.

“You’ve got to look at the money before anything else,” an NBA executive told DallasHoopsJournal.com. “Moving that kind of salary midseason is almost impossible for a contender with this CBA. The salary-matching rules are brutal, and unless you’re sending out another massive contract, moving around contracts to fit roster spot limits is tough. For Jimmy, we’re talking about a player making more than Luka and Kyrie—it’s tough to see how that adds up.”

This particular executive added that even if the finances worked, the Mavericks would have to part with many rotation players to do it, saying, “Even if the numbers lined up, they’d have to gut their rotation,” the executive added to DallasHoopsJournal.com. “This kind of move makes more sense in the offseason when you can make other changes to address new roster holes a big trade creates… Also, Jimmy’s going to be 36 next season. He’s a great player, but moving role players in their prime on good contracts is risky. The circumstances have to make sense. There’s more flexibility doing this in the summer.”

What Could Make it Work?

The Mavericks must consider Kyrie Irving’s likely free agency with their short-term team-building plans. He has a $43.9 million player option that he is expected to decline before signing a new contract with Dallas. As one executive put it, it would become a more viable idea if Irving and Butler—teammates on the 2016 USA Olympic gold-medal-winning team—were willing to sacrifice financially to join forces.

“They’d have to get creative and be ready to spend big on luxury tax to bring in another star who still expects to be paid like one,” another executive told DallasHoopsJournal.com. “Kyrie will need a new deal this summer unless he picks up that option. I don’t see him doing that, but I expect him to stay in Dallas on a new deal. Things are working out great for him there. For him, the sooner he locks in a multi-year deal, the better since he’s in his 30s. The key is for how much, though. Remember, Luka has another supermax coming up soon, too. Unless Kyrie took less, bringing in another player making over $40 million would obviously be complicated.”

Retaining Irving remains the obvious priority, but regardless, the Mavericks’ multi-year cap table will change when new contracts are signed for key players, mainly but not limited to Dončić. Not only is he expected to decline his player option to lock in a new deal in 2026, but Daniel Gafford, P.J. Washington, and Maxi Kleber will be on expiring deals next season, barring any future extension agreement that gets reached with those players. It could get costly very fast.

This rival front office member expanded on the subject and described a sign-and-trade as necessary to add a talent like Butler unless he was willing to sign for a surprisingly low amount. However, some pieces in place could help the Mavericks construct a balanced team after landing another key piece.

“Having Lively on a rookie deal for now is a massive luxury. They hit a home run there. It would be even better if they kept [Daniel] Gafford, too. Finding shot blockers gets very challenging when you don’t have flexibility,” the executive expanded to DallasHoopsJournal.com. “I’d be curious to see who they could keep in the process because a sign-and-trade would be needed unless Jimmy took a much smaller contract. The Heat would need to be interested in the deal, too, though. Naji Marshall is on a great contract. Kleber would be an obvious salary filler since he’ll be on an expiring deal [$11 million]. Jaden Hardy’s new deal kicks in next season… P.J. Washington would be an obvious name for Miami to try to get, but they’d have to pay him. The Mavericks need to do what they can to keep him. He’s a big part of what they do… Dallas is pretty limited on assets. The draft taking place before free agency makes their 2025 pick a tougher asset to use. Maybe the Heat could take a flier on Prosper since he’s young, 6-foot-8, and is a good athlete. He hasn’t shown much yet, though. There are some options, but the market matters a lot. If another team Jimmy wants to go to has a better trade package, that impacts the situation.”

Final Thoughts

The Mavericks are as win-now as it gets, meaning the time to make an aggressive move is sooner rather than later. Whether the target is Butler or a different option, a move for such a large contract has significant challenges. Given his reported preference to take his situation into the offseason, it’ll probably be some time before Butler’s situation gains more traction regarding a possible change of scenery.

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