Former NBA star DeMarcus Cousins believes the Miami Heat made a grave error by trading six-time All-Star Jimmy Butler to the Warriors on the eve of the Feb. 6 trade deadline.
In Friday’s segment of FanDuel’s “Run It Back” show, Cousins explained to fellow panelists Michelle Beadle, Lou Williams and Chandler Parsons why he's confident Miami shouldn’t have traded the disgruntled face of its franchise.
“He’s a winner, man,” Cousins said. “He’s a winner. I mean, we’ve all heard the notorious story – the practice scrimmage; he didn’t score a basket, but he won every game. That just shows the winning attitude, the winning nature, the winning mentality … it shows the impact that he brings to the team. It also shows that Miami definitely made a mistake.”
"Miami definitely made a mistake by trading Jimmy Butler." - @BoogieCousins
— Run It Back (@RunItBackFDTV) February 28, 2025
"He's impacting winning but doesn't have to score." - @TeamLou23
"He's a classic example of box score not showing a player's value." - @ChandlerParsons
"It's almost been too easy." - @MichelleDBeadle pic.twitter.com/GURTFoYQwS
Cousins cited Butler’s “notorious” practice showcase from when the Warriors wing played for the Minnesota Timberwolves. In 2018, Butler cursed out Timberwolves management, staff and players for their effort and the team’s underwhelming standing and, with Minnesota’s bench unit, beat the starters in an intense, prove-it scrimmage.
The Warriors’ and Heat’s records since the blockbuster deal also support Cousins’ claim. “And you can see the results with how they’re playing right now as well,” he said.
Golden State has won seven of its first eight games with Butler and is positioned to make a deep-but-familiar playoff run out West. Plus, the Warriors simply are having fun again.
Golden State Warriors
Conversely, Miami has won just two of nine games since trading Butler and is even more of a shell of the team that reached the 2020 and 2023 NBA Finals with its old star.
The Heat were in a tough position at the deadline, granted Butler made his desire to be traded quite clear. Still, Cousins believes Miami made a mistake, and Golden State is reaping the rewards.
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