3 worst landing spots for Jimmy Butler at the trade deadline

All signs point toward Jimmy Butler getting traded. There was doubt initially, but the All-Star forward has applied enough pressure on Miami Heat ownership to seemingly push things in the right direction.

On Tuesday, the Phoenix Suns made an innovative and risky trade, the conception of which is almost certainly linked directly to Butler's availability. We know the Suns are his preferred destination and his most aggressive suitor.

That said, it does not feel like Suns or bust. Not entirely. We have seen unexpected teams sneak into blockbuster trade negotiations before. Just ask Damian Lillard, who begged and pleaded to join Butler in Miami, only to end up in the heart of the midwest. Butler, for all his "attitude problems" and age-related concerns, is a winning player through and through. His postseason track record is among the most impressive in modern times. Teams will — and should — take interest.

Interest should be tempered in certain spheres, however, as Butler's flair for the dramatic can put a strain on locker rooms and front offices. Few stars are worse at hiding their discontentment than Butler, and it just so happens that he has forced his way out of virtually every NBA home he has occupied to date. He is also 34 years old, in the final guaranteed year of his contract.

So, these teams, for one reason or another, should probably steer clear.

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3. New Orleans Pelicans

The New Orleans Pelicans were a popular hypothetical landing spot for Jimmy Butler early in the season, back before Zion Williamson got hurt and their record spiraled. Things are on the upswing again with Zion back in the lineup — New Orleans has won four straight — but the Pelicans are still 20 games below .500 with no real chance at the playoffs.

As such, it's hard to justify trading for Butler and subsequently wasting a season of his waning prime window. The Pelicans are desperate to offload Brandon Ingram and to rework this lineup around Williamson, and Butler is at least an intriguing fit on paper. With this season lost, however, there should be no mystery here. The Pelicans can't burn through their fractured timeline with Butler.

Instead, New Orleans should look to trade Ingram, CJ McCollum, and Dejounte Murray, then start fresh in 2025-26. The Pelicans have the assets necessary to rebuild on an accelerated timeline and the right trades might even free up cap space to toss around in free agency. David Griffin has one of the deepest asset stores in the NBA. He can make it even deeper in the coming weeks, should he choose to. Build anew around Zion and see what comes next season, when the slate is wiped clean.

2. Orlando Magic

At first glance, the Orlando Magic are a more than reasonable Jimmy Butler landing spot. With the price so low, he fits the organization's general star archetype — a two-way, playmaking wing — and he'd give the Magic a more experienced late-game operator. The Magic need another source of halfcourt shot creation to ease the burden on Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner. Butler fits the bill.

That said, the Magic are also exceptionally deep, and sacrificing that depth for a potential half-season rental of Butler feels ill-advised. Part of what has made Orlando so successful, aside from their locker room continuity and well-coached disposition, is the remarkably interchangable nature of so many players in the rotation. The Magic have several high-level guards and bankable rim-protecting centers to lean on. We have seen Orlando triumph through severe injuries to key pieces in a way few teams could.

To sacrifice that depth — and to potentially throw off the balance of the locker room — for Jimmy Butler, at this stage in the careers of Banchero and Wagner, feels ill-advised. This is not the same as other "young" contenders, such as OKC or Houston, where there's a clear path to the NBA Finals and maybe even a clear path to keeping Butler around. He may come to love it in Orlando. It sure is close to Miami. But, in the end, the Magic would be sacrificing their greatest weapon, their secret sauce, on a non-committed, 34-year-old star in open decline. The Cavs and Celtics aren't going anywhere, and Butler's arrival guarantees very little for Orlando on the postseason stage.

1. Phoenix Suns

Ironically, it's hard to imagine a worse landing spot for Jimmy Butler than Phoenix. This plainly should not happen, and the fact that both sides are so interested in getting together is utterly baffling.

The Suns are old and thin. Bradley Beal was recently demoted to a bench role, and it's clear this "star trio" in Phoenix will not get anywhere. Butler is a sizable upgrade, immediately improving the Suns' defensive backbone and giving them a reliable source of secondary creation and connective passing on the wing.

If Phoenix's lone goal is to crack the playoffs and get bounced early, Butler can absolutely help. I am less sure Butler can actually improve the Suns so much as to make them a real title threat in the cutthroat West. Butler's penchant for postseason heroics is well-documented, but again, the Suns are a frightfully thin team. Their latest trade, which now allows Phoenix to trade up to three first-round picks moving forward, could help in fleshing out the roster more, but the Suns will essentially go six or seven deep in the playoffs and be entirely dependent on favorable health.

It's really a worse fit for Phoenix than for Butler, though. There are other, smaller ways to improve Phoenix's size on the wing and start playing more defense. Being able to trade multiple first-round picks does open up more trade options in the short term. Trading for Butler (and extending him) would completely remove flexibility from the front office equation. The Suns would be tethered to the second tax apron with few pathways to an improved financial situation, lest they start trading stars.

At .500 right now, the Suns are plainly not a contender. Rather than banking on another volatile, aging star to drag them to respectability, Phoenix should probably take a long look in the mirror and consider whether or not its current path is one worth following to the logical conclusion.