Acquiring an established superstar would help the Los Angeles Lakers bolster their title hopes this season.
A Miami Heat standout wing hoping to move on from the organization may be an ideal target for the Lakers.
The fact that the Los Angeles Lakers have to give up four players in this deal (Rui Hachimura, Austin Reaves, Jarred Vanderbilt, and Gabe Vincent) makes it inherently unlikely, but they don’t have the worst package in the world (for Jimmy Butler),” All U Can Heat’s Jack Simone wrote Sunday.
“There’s technically a way for them to put together a deal that doesn’t include Austin Reaves, but the Heat probably wouldn’t go for it.
And in this scenario, they’d still have Shake Milton and Alec Burks for point guard depth. (Though LeBron James would likely just run the show.)”
“Miami probably would like to get a better offer elsewhere, but Reaves and Rui Hachimura aren’t terrible, and the future first could be valuable.”
For clarity, Simone’s three-team trade proposal would send Butler and Alec Burks to the Lakers, Hachimura, Reaves, Vanderbilt, and two future first-round picks to the Heat, and Vincent and two future second-round picks to the Detroit Pistons.
Butler averages 17.6 points on 55.2% field goal shooting and 37.5% three-point shooting this season with the Heat, but he hasn’t enjoyed basketball lately.
The Heat look like a Play-In time at best, prompting Butler to inform Miami he would like to move on from the franchise after guiding them to two NBA finals appearances.
Butler, a mid-range assassin and physical defender with a knack for taking over games when necessary, would give the Lakers a versatile wing threat capable of impacting games on both ends.
Reaves is as reliable as it gets for a role player in the NBA, but Butler’s stardom could motivate Los Angeles to complete a blockbuster trade for the six-time All-Star.
