Butler lost Thursday night after scoring just nine points Indiana Pacerssaid he had lost his joy playing in Miami.
“Through his actions and statements, he has made it clear that he no longer wants to be a part of this team,” a statement released by the Heat said Friday night. “Jimmy Butler and his representative have indicated that they want to make a trade, so, we will listen to offers.”
Shams Charania of ESPN reported Thursday that Butler indicated to the Heat that he would like to be traded.
“I want to see me get my joy back playing basketball. Wherever that is, we’ll find out here pretty soon,” Butler said after Thursday’s game against the Pacers. “I’m happy here off the court, but I want to be dominant to some extent, I want to hoop and I want to help this team win, and right now I’m not doing that.”
When asked if he could get his joy back on the court with the Heat, Butler replied: “Probably not.”
One issue that led to Butler’s decision to request the trade, sources told Charania, was the perception by team officials on Thursday that he gave his all in the Heat’s victory against the New Orleans Pelicans on Wednesday. Hadn’t played a hard game since. Butler, playing his first game in 13 days after being sidelined with an illness, took just five shots and scored nine points in 25 minutes.
Heat coach Erik Spoelstra did not play Butler in the fourth quarter of any game this week.
Butler will miss the Heat’s home game against Utah on Saturday and then a six-game road trip to Sacramento, Golden State, Utah, Portland, the Los Angeles Clippers and the Los Angeles Lakers.
According to ESPN’s Bobby Marks, the suspension will cost Butler $346,543 for each game played, or a total of $2.35 million. He has the right to file a complaint within the next 30 days, and if he chooses to, the penalty amount will be kept in escrow until a resolution is reached, a process that could take up to a year. is
Butler is in the final guaranteed year of his contract. He has a player option worth more than $52 million for next season.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.