NBA Rumors: Jimmy Butler Could Get Max Contract Offer if Traded to 76ers from Heat

It’s not often that teams see backup plans as worthy of max contracts, but that may be the case for the Philadelphia 76ers and Jimmy Butler.

Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer reported Tuesday that the 76ers view Butler as a “fallback option” if they do not land Paul George this summer. According to the report, Butler, who has $48.8 million guaranteed for next season and a $52.2 million player option for the 2025-26 season, is looking for a two-year maximum extension for $113 million.

If the 76ers are able to land him via trade from the Miami Heat, Pompey noted they are open to providing him with that maximum contract.

One thing is clear: the 76ers are going to be a team to watch this offseason.

They haven’t made it past the second round of the playoffs since the 2000-01 season and may not have that many years of peak Joel Embiid remaining considering he turns 31 during the 2024-25 campaign.

The only realistic way they can challenge the Boston Celtics and other top teams in the Eastern Conference is by adding another impact player alongside Embiid and Tyrese Maxey, and Pompey listed LeBron James, OG Anunoby, Zach LaVine and Brandon Ingram as potential targets outside of George and Butler.

Any of those players would significantly raise Philadelphia’s ceiling, even if much of its championship hopes will come down to whether Embiid can stay healthy.

It should be noted Heat president Pat Riley told reporters the team does not plan to trade Butler this summer. Still, plans can change, especially if the front office decides max-contract negotiations with someone who will turn 35 years old before next season are not worth it.

And trading him this offseason would allow Miami to garner more in return.

There is an element of familiarity in place with the 76ers, as Butler played for the team and alongside Embiid during the 2018-19 campaign. That team reached the second round of the playoffs only to lose Game 7 to the Toronto Raptors in difficult fashion thanks to Kawhi Leonard’s buzzer-beater.

Perhaps running things back with Butler with Maxey as a third star this time around would change the 76ers’ fortunes.

They are reportedly willing to pay significant money to find out.