NBA Rumors: Jimmy Butler's 'Focus' Is Suns Trade, 'Everything Else Is Secondary'

Miami Heat star Jimmy Butler continues to have the Phoenix Suns atop his list of preferred landing spots amid his trade standoff, according to ESPN's Brian Windhorst.

"Jimmy's No. 1 focus is getting traded, preferably, to the Phoenix Suns. Everything else is secondary," Windhorst said at the 34:50 mark in Monday's episode of his Hoop Collective podcast. "Not getting traded to 'Team X,' not getting traded to 'Team Y,' getting traded to the Phoenix Suns.

"And so, anything that you want to bring that's rational, if it doesn't mean getting traded to the Suns, Jimmy is not going to be interested in it right now. That's one thing you got to remember out of all of that. And that is the way he is operating. The second thing is that what [ESPN's Tim Bontemps] has been saying for months as well, is that Butler's best move is to just focus on playing. I think that is on the table but not until after the trade deadline. And so that's one of the things that the Heat have in the back of their mind."

Butler returned to the Heat lineup from his seven-game suspension last Friday in a 133-113 loss to the Denver Nuggets. He played 33 minutes and finished with 18 points, three rebounds and two assists.

Butler was also on the floor for 28 minutes in Sunday's 128-107 win over the San Antonio Spurs, scoring eight points and dishing out seven assists.

The six-time All-Star is stuck in an unhappy marriage with Miami for now, and Windhorst's newest report underlines how the two sides might have to make the best of it for a few more months.

The Suns are a logical landing spot for Butler for a number of reasons. They need something to invigorate their roster as they sit 10th in the Western Conference at 21-20. The 35-year-old is somebody who's attainable with Phoenix's limited trade resources, which can't be said about a lot of stars who could theoretically enter the market. And team governor Mat Ishbia won't have any second thoughts about extending Butler's contract.

Bradley Beal's no-trade clause remains a major road block, though. The star guard can effectively veto any deal, and his agent said earlier this month waiving the no-trade clause hasn't been discussed.

Beal knows the leverage he possesses, saying that "I hold the cards" in reference to the ongoing swirl of rumors about his future.

Absent a change in Beal or the Heat's position on his no-trade clause, a straight swap between Phoenix and Miami is unlikely to happen. And if a trade involving the Suns fails to materialize, it's hard to see another team stepping up to the plate to acquire Butler.