SAN FRANCISCO — The Miami Heat were at Chase Center on Tuesday night.
Jimmy Butler wasn’t.
The temperamental superstar’s feud with his organization reached a boiling point in recent days, with Butler’s demands to be traded resulting in a suspension handed down by the team that just so happened to coincide with its six-game swing up and down the West Coast.
By the time Miami returns home, could Butler be on his way out west?
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General manager Mike Dunleavy is evaluating the Warriors’ options ahead of the Feb. 6 trade deadline, and it’s difficult to think of a more enticing possibility than the six-time All-Star and playoff showman. Steph Curry needs a sidekick, and who better than a dynamic scoring wing with a reputation for lockdown defense?
Well, it’s complicated.
Butler owns a home in Southern California, and he has reportedly singled out the Warriors as one of his preferred destinations. But the interest isn’t necessarily mutual. According to reports, the Warriors’ front office prefers other options, such as Bulls center Nikola Vucevic and Pacers forward Aaron Nesmith.
While Butler, 35, has taken a backseat to Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro in his 14th NBA season, he is still scoring 17.6 points per game on the highest efficiency of his career — 55.2% from the field). However, the Warriors aren’t alone in their hesitations. The questions regarding Butler’s availability, contract and motivation have made him a toxic asset.
Butler previously forced his way to Miami, and now he is under contract for $48 million this season with a $52 million player option for 2025-26. And while he has a well-earned reputation for crunchtime heroics, he hasn’t played more than 64 regular-season games since 2018-19. Before things boiled over this season, he earned a public rebuke last spring from Heat president Pat Riley, who said, “if you’re not on the court playing, you should keep your mouth shut.”
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On Tuesday, Brian Windhorst reported on ESPN that, so far, teams have offered “poo-poo platter” in exchange for Butler, who isn’t expected to sign an extension anywhere he is traded. Chris Haynes, of Clutch Points, reported that certain teams have been advised not to acquire him.
Butler’s gambit has backed Riley and the Heat into a corner. In the span of two weeks, Riley went from issuing an unprecedented public pronouncement that Miami was not even listening to offers for Butler to suspending him for “conduct detrimental to the team” while backtracking from his initial show of support.
“Through his actions and statements, he has shown he no longer wants to be part of this team,” the Heat wrote in a statement Friday. “Jimmy Butler and his representative have indicated that they wish to be traded, therefore, we will listen to offers.”
Last time we heard from Butler was after Miami’s loss to Indiana last week, and he said he had lost his “joy” for the game. Asked if he thought he could find it again in his current situation, he responded succinctly: “Probably not.”
“I want to see me get my joy back from playing basketball, and wherever that may be, we’ll find out here pretty soon,” he told reporters.
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Few players have a stronger reputation for inspiring joy on the court than Curry, but it’s worth wondering if Butler is worth the trouble.
As the Warriors hover around .500, less than a month from the trade deadline, that is what Dunleavy and his associates will be deliberating.
ORLANDO, Fla. — Lionel Messi scored twice in a four-goal second half, defender Telasco Segovia added a goal and two assists and defending champion Inter Miami CF rallied to beat Orlando City SC 4-2 on Sunday night, winning for the first time at Inter&Co Stadium.
Messi took a pass from Segovia and scored in the 57th minute to tie it 2-2, and Segovia scored unassisted in the 85th for the lead. Messi put the finishing touch on the victory when he scored off a free kick in the 90th.
“The victory belongs exclusively to the players,” Miami coach Javier Mascherano said after the game. “In the second half, they were a championship team. There were no tactics, nothing like that. There was heart, courage, possession, resilience, commitment. I think the team came out because they were champions last year.
“In the end, the players showed it. This victory is theirs.”
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Messi’s first two goals of the season give him 52 in his first 55 regular-season MLS matches — 51 of them in his past 49 appearances. It also brought the reigning MLS MVP to 898 career goals scored, including 672 for Barcelona and 115 for Argentina.
“He’s the best player to ever play this sport. He’s a leader, and as a leader, he inspires others, but he also often needs to be inspired himself,” Mascherano said of Messi. “When he was driving forward, he had more attacking options, and with so many opportunities, he clearly has the ability to create chances like no one else, and that’s what allowed us to turn the game around.”
Marco Pašalić took a pass from Iván Angulo and scored in the 18th minute to give Orlando City a 1-0 lead. Pašalić has scored in four straight matches against Inter Miami.
Inter Miami players celebrate after scoring a goal against Orlando City in MLS.
Defender Griffin Dorsey set up Martín Ojeda for a goal six minutes later for a 2-0 advantage that stood through halftime.
Inter Miami cut it to 2-1 four minutes into the second half on Mateo Silvetti’s first career goal. Defenders Segovia and Facundo Mura had assists as the 20-year-old forward found the net in his fifth career appearance.
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Segovia had eight goals and six assists as a rookie last season, while Mura collected his first assist in his first season.
Dayne St. Clair, the reigning goalkeeper of the year, turned away three shots — all in the second half of his second start with Inter Miami, but let in a soft goal for Orlando’s first.
Maxime Crépeau had four saves in his second start for Orlando City.
Teenager Colin Guske, 19, will miss Orlando City’s next match after the rookie picked up two yellow cards in his first start — the second one led to his exit in the 88th minute.
Inter Miami, which had never won in its previous nine trips to Orlando, was coming off a 3-0 road loss to LAFC.
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Orlando City swept Inter Miami during the regular season last year and leads the all-time series 8-7-4.
Inter Miami plays D.C. United on Saturday at Audi Field. Orlando City is also on the road with a match against New York City FC.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this recap.
Rain floods Miami Beach streets, cut short Miami Heat Family Festival
MIAMI BEACH, Fla. — Much-needed rain fell across South Florida on Sunday, but the downpour quickly led to flooding and traffic headaches.
“The drainage systems aren’t the best but in ten minutes it will be gone,” one person said.
The rain lasted longer than 10 minutes, flooding several spots along Collins Avenue in Miami Beach.
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In one neighborhood, at least a foot of water blocked the entrance. Drivers who attempted to pass through sent waves crashing onto nearby sidewalks.
The heavy rain also snarled traffic on parts of Interstate 95 and on the bridges to and from Miami Beach, slowing drivers trying to get around the area.
“It’s Miami for you. What do they call it, a sun shower?” one driver said.
The weather disrupted Sunday plans for many. The 26th annual Miami Heat Family Festival was cut short after strong winds swept through Dan Paul Plaza, knocking over several tents.
There is no word yet on how or when the Miami Heat plan to make up the family festival.
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Brett Knese
Brett Knese joined the Local 10 News team as a general assignment reporter in March 2025.
Jack and Jill of America’s Miami chapter closed out Black History Month with an inaugural “Roots Across Waters” trip to Nassau, where families explored ancestral sites, honored the Bahamian labor that helped build early Miami, and donated Afro‑Caribbean children’s books to local students.
