At the NBA trade deadline, the Heat and Maverick parted were their best players. Miami sent Jimmy Butler to Golden State and Dallas sent Luka Doncic to the Lakers.
Both trades received a ton of criticism around the league. Recently, former NBA player Theo Pinson was talking with his co-hosts on the To The Baha Podcast. Pinson believes Pat Riley trading Jimmy Butler was worse than Nico Harrison trading Luka Doncic.
What team has suffered more from trading their star player?
Theo Pinson says Pat Riley made a worse trade than Nico Harrison 😳
“That is a worse trade than Dallas and the Lakers, by far… Jimmy Butler was Heat culture. Regardless of what the f*** you thought he was doing off the court, that motherf***** brought a toughness. He brought a… pic.twitter.com/iSyoItqHDZ
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) March 18, 2025
Former NBA player Theo Pinson gave a hot take on his podcast about Jimmy Butler and Luka Doncic. Pinson believes Miami has been affected more by losing Butler. Comparative to the situation in Dallas. He explained how the Miami Heat are fully healthy but have been struggling since Butler left. The team is 4-15 since trading Butler to Golden State. That includes a current eight-game losing streak.
Theo Pinson said Miami lost their edge and toughness when they traded Butler. He’s not wrong. The spark that Butler brought to the Heat is now with the Warriors. Golden State is 14-2 since they acquired Butler from Miami. Despite the Luka Doncic trade being more lopsided, Pinson believes Miami trading Butler away was worse.
Dallas is dealing with a plethora of long-term injuries and their season has derailed because of it. The same cannot be said for the Miami Heat. They are healthy since trading Jimmy Butler and the team cannot find wins consistently. Theo Pinson has a point when he says Miami trading Butler away was worse than Dallas trading Luka Doncic. Miami went from yearly championship contenders to a play-in team in the blink of an eye.
