Jimmy Butler trading hurdles and more NBA trends that have caught my eye

It’s that time of year when NBA teams start thinking about the bigger picture.

Rumors are spreading around the league like we’re back in high school. Jimmy Butler might go here. But he can also go there. But he can also stay in Miami. Slow starts turn into bad seasons. A role player has invented a new way to rebound free throws. Another float you can’t miss.

Let’s open the notebook and review four trends that have caught my eye over the past week:

The Jimmy Butler saga

The Phoenix Suns could covet Butler all they want, but putting together a package for him isn’t that easy.

Miami Heat “seriously listening” to trade offers for Butler, AthleticsDavid Aldridge reported earlier this week. So far, the suitors are unclear. One supposed destination in particular has been tossed around in the public sphere: Phoenix. Still, any hope for Butler could die with just one word from Bradley Beal.

Beal is making $50.2 million this season, is under contract for two more years after this one and, most importantly, has one of the NBA’s two no-trade clauses (the other belongs to LeBron James). Because the Suns are over the second stage of the agreementnot allowed to ship more than one player at a time in a trade nor allowed to take back more money than they give away, their only way to acquire Butler would be by dealing Beal to the Heat.

There was a time when Beal dreamed of living in South Florida. When the Washington Wizards scoured the market for him in 2023 before eventually trading him to Phoenix, the Heat were the No. 1 on the three-time All-Star’s wish list. Even before Beal and the Wizards eventually parted ways, Miami was in the back of their minds. He appreciated the organizational culture as well as the city.

But life evolves.

The Heat bowed out of the Beal sweepstakes and instead saved their assets for a pursuit of Damian Lillard, which ended with the Milwaukee Bucks. Today, Beal might not want Miami as much as he did back then.

Earlier this year, he sold his house in Los Angeleswhere he used to live in the off-season, to move full-time to Phoenix. His family is now established in the area year-round, a short trip from his in-laws in LA Beal wouldn’t greet the chance to go to Miami now with the same enthusiasm he would a year and a half ago.

But for the sake of argument, let’s switch to a world where the Heat and Suns agree to a Beal-for-Butler trade (which would require Miami to unload more money on a third team and could claim Phoenix including its first-round pick round in 2031). It still may not be enough to get a trade done.

The Heat are notoriously against handing out no-trade clauses. James wanted one but couldn’t get it. Neither could Butler. Beals would go with him to Miami, just as it did to Phoenix in the move from DC

Miami has notoriously tried to stay competitive over the years. If anyone can claim that a spot in the Play-In means title hopes, it’s this organization. So it has handed out big contracts to players like James Johnson, Dion Waiters and Kelly Olynyk, all with the philosophy of not bottoming out. When the contracts get too big, the Heat remedy the situation. They’ve worked salary-cap magic to rid themselves of overpayments, find ways to sign-and-trade for Butler or clear the cap space to add James and Chris Bosh in 2010. But pulling a rabbit isn’t that easy out of the hat when the rabbit has a no-pull clause.

So Butler, who is creepily having his most effective season ever, may not be able to come to Phoenix, although someone could make a move for the 35-year-old, although it will become increasingly difficult to trade with a salary of 48.8 million dollars a season in today’s NBA.

Perhaps the Denver Nuggets, who are willing to part with Michael Porter Jr., who Athletics Sam Amick and Tony Jones recently reported could build a trade around Porter, Zeke Nnaji and Dario Šarić. Maybe the Chicago Bulls are feeling nostalgic. Perhaps, after trading for Dennis Schröder, the Golden State Warriors still feel fresh with Andrew Wiggins’ contract and other additions. Maybe there’s a mystery team out there ready to take a trip.

Because of the money, Butler’s impending free agency and the presumed payday that will come with it, any trade for Butler quickly becomes complicated. But there is no potential destination fraught with more obstacles than Phoenix.

Alex Caruso shoots

The biggest problem for Alex Caruso right now isn’t that he’s missing 72 percent of his 3-point attempts. That’s what all those misses do to the Oklahoma City Thunder offense.

The Thunder traded Josh Giddey for Caruso this summer to create a different look. Giddey was a non-threat from deep, someone who was best with the ball in his hands. But the Thunder were loaded with creators and shooters. By the time they got to the playoffs, they couldn’t reach their peak with defenders falling off Giddey and into the paint, clogging the driving lanes of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams. The Giddey effect hurt OKC enough that his playing time dwindled by the end of the 2024 postseason.

Caruso’s appeal wasn’t just because he could defend the perimeter as intensely as any other guard. He could also knock down an open 3, which would mean space for his teammates. He shot 41 percent from deep last season in Chicago.

But now, the opponents’ way of planning the game for Caruso doesn’t look much different from the way they manned Giddey.

See how much space the Houston Rockets gave Caruso during their matchup against the Thunder last week:

With extra defenders in the middle, Gilgeous-Alexander couldn’t float to the rim. And no one even bothered to raise a free hand in Caruso’s presence once he received the basketball.

The Thunder offense is potent, but two of the rotation regulars, Caruso and Cason Wallace, are suffering uncharacteristic shooting seasons. The defense responds accordingly. Come the playoffs, it may be difficult to play lineups with both of these guys together if neither steps up his game beyond the arc. And if opponents can feel comfortable leaving Caruso alone, then Oklahoma City is in the same position as Giddey.

Ty Jerome’s floats

The Cleveland Cavaliers’ starting five is assembled after a season of inconsistencies. The Cavs are now 23-4, the best record in the NBA. No longer is anyone asking if Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen can play together, if Darius Garland should be on the move, or if Donovan Mitchell is truly committed to the organization.

And yet one part of the conversation isn’t loud enough: The Cavs’ bench is an unexpectedly devastating crew.

Caris LeVert hasn’t missed a 3-pointer since the Browns last won an NFL championship, and neither has Isaac Okoro, who starts now and is still ignored by defenses in the corners, only this season they’re suffering from the strategy. Leave Sam Merrill open at your own risk. And then there’s Ty Jerome, a well-traveled role player with two first names and three teams that have previously let him go.

Jerome is hitting 45 percent of his 3-point attempts and has quietly emerged as a helpful defender. When he’s on the court, he’s responsible for 35 percent of his team’s steals, third in the NBA behind a pair of well-respected pests, Atlanta’s Dyson Daniels and Houston’s Tari Eason. But Jerome’s best attribute is his touch.

Tune in to any Cavs game and you’ll notice a routine,

Jerome will bring the basketball up and then go into a pick-and-roll. If his defender goes under the screen, he’s likely to pull up after the 3. But if he goes over it and follows Jerome from behind, then the defense has to watch because there’s a good chance Jerome will stroll to his favorite spot on the court.

Jerome doesn’t run out of anyone. Instead, he stays slow and low, keeping his defender on his back. His pick-and-roll dissections have all the vibes of a Jamie Moyer MLB All-Star season. If the big man steps back, up goes the floater, which usually doesn’t rush in, but is so soft that it usually goes through the net.

Nearly one in four Jerome shots come from the floater, and 64 percent of them go in, second in the NBA among qualifying non-bigs.

Everything is going right for the Cavaliers through 27 games. Add Jerome to the list.

Jeremiah Robinson-Earl’s free throw rebounds

Some players are masters at recovering loose balls. Others can carve out space on the offensive boards. A few can catch their teammates’ misses after free throws clang off the rim. Robinson-Earl, the New Orleans Pelicans’ 6-foot-9 forward, has combined all three of these performers into one and now proudly calls himself the owner of the NBA’s most prodigious energy and niche skills.

When a Pelican misses a free throw, Robinson-Earl causes a break and instead of grabbing the basketball out of the air, he digs it up from the ground.

Robinson-Earl is already an underrated offensive rebounder, someone who will get playing time on a team riddled with injuries. So far this season, he’s drawn nearly 11 percent of the Pelicans’ misses while on the court, a solid number but nowhere near the league lead.

But after free throws, he is one of a kind.

He will push the man trying to box him forward, hopefully far enough under the rim that he can get a hand on the basketball if his teammate happens to miss the freebie. When he can’t catch it, he spikes it downwards. Then it’s off to the races.

Watch how he maneuvered around Los Angeles Lakers’ Dalton Knecht here, then challenged Knecht to make the save:

Or how about this one when Robinson-Earl flies over from the opposite block and then goes head first into camera line as the ball bounces out of bounds?

Twenty-three percent of the time a Pelican misses a free throw when Robinson-Earl is on the court, he ends up rebounding, best in the NBA by a long shot among qualified players, according to Cleaning the Glass.

The 5-23 Pelicans could use a little luck. At least they have Robinson-Earl creating them an extra possession once in a while.

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(Top photo by Jimmy Butler: Carmen Mandato/Getty Images)