Player Turned Analyst Says Jimmy Butler Was “Disruptive Pretty Much Everywhere”: Should the Phoenix Suns Reconsider?

Jan 21, 2025; Miami, Florida, USA; Miami Heat forward Jimmy Butler (22) reacts against the Portland Trail Blazers during the third quarter at Kaseya Center. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

The ‘Jimmy Butler to the Phoenix Suns’ rumors continue to heat up, as just yesterday the Suns were able to swap one future first-round pick for three. That move gives them the flexibility to now trade those upcoming picks for a big star, and all signs point to that star being Jimmy Butler of the Miami Heat.

Butler has done everything he can to force his way off the Heat as he’s become disgruntled with the organization and its refusal to give him a max extension. He recently returned from a seven-game suspension for conduct detrimental to the team, and though it seems that the Suns are all-in on pursuing him as they try to turn their season around, former NBA vet Chandler Parsons of the Run It Back podcast isn’t so sure that’s a good idea.

“I just think a team that’s struggling this much needs a change, and I don’t know if that change is to commit to Jimmy Butler for years to come, who has proven to be disruptive pretty much everywhere he’s been.”

Parsons is right about Butler’s history. Everywhere he has gone has ended in acrimony. From Chicago to Minnesota to Philadelphia and now Miami, there’s been no such thing as an amicable parting of ways. For that reason, Phoenix should go into any potential Butler deal with clear eyes and the understanding that at some point, this has a high chance of ending poorly.

Should the Suns continue to pursue Jimmy Butler anyway?

The Suns don’t see a problem child when they look at Butler. They see an All-NBA caliber two-way forward that led two undermanned teams to the Finals and could maybe help them do the same. The problem is that Butler isn’t the same player now as he was then. He’s 35 years old and averaging his fewest points in over a decade, so the days of him carrying teams to Finals appearances could be well behind him.

Parsons did make an observation however, which is that acquiring Butler might be the only way for Phoenix to get off of Bradley Beal’s contract. Beal is one of two players int he NBA today who has a no-trade clause, the other being LeBron James. While Brad was a fine talent on the Wizards and led the team following John Wall’s departure, awarding him in such a manner might’ve been a step too far.

Beal has been deemed virtually untradeable due to the amount he makes and his up and down performances on the court. So for Phoenix, this could simply be an issue of addition by subtraction. Anything they get from Butler this year is a bonus, then they can enjoy the added roster flexibility after they let him walk in the offseason.

To do that, the Suns will need assurances from Butler that he won’t rock the boat if he’s forced to play out the season without an extension. This is easier said than done as one of his major gripes with the Heat is the fact that Pat Riley and his front office have been refusing to giving him that max extension that he believes he deserves after everything he’s done for them.

Though when it comes to PHX, perhaps Butler will understand why they don’t hand him an extension right away because technically he’s not done anything for their franchise that deserves one. Add this to his near ‘feral’ desire to want to get away from South Beach and it’s possible he could play well for the Suns even without the promise of that max extension.

What this ultimately comes down to is whether Phoenix believes it’s worth giving up three first-round picks to rid themselves of Beal and maybe have an outside chance of turning things around this year with Butler. Seeing as those three picks were just one 2031 pick a day ago, that answer is yes.

It’s clear that they want to acquire Butler and with how utterly mediocre their season has been, their problems stem way past just a replacement of Beal with Jimmy. Trading for him would be unwise, especially if he comes with the pretext of demanding a max extension from them. The Suns may have dug themselves this hole by pushing all-in with a bad hand, but that doesn’t mean that they shouldn’t now try to dig themselves out of it.