Shaq on Jimmy Butler: ‘I Know From Personal Experience You Can’t Bicker With Pat Riley’

January 4, 2025

Shaquille O’Neal knows firsthand that team president Pat Riley is running the Miami Heat. Players, meanwhile, come and go.

O’Neal won a championship with the Heat in 2006, playing alongside Dwyane Wade to topple the Dallas Mavericks. But eventually, Riley sent O’Neal out of town when O’Neal’s performance started to decline. That happened in the middle of the 2008 season.

So if Butler has asked for a trade, you can bet that Riley will get him one without thinking twice, O’Neal suggested.

“I know from personal experience you can’t bicker with Pat Riley,” O’Neal said. “If Jimmy wants a trade, he’ll definitely get traded. … Pat Riley runs the ship there, him and (Heat owner Micky Arison). If Jimmy wants to be traded, and he said it publicly he’s not happy there, Pat Riley will definitely oblige him.”

Butler, 35, has indeed requested a trade and the Heat have said they are listening to offers. By all accounts, they have already started seeking deals. In the meantime, Butler has been suspended for seven games. It could be more if the Heat don’t find a taker before that suspension ends.

The Houston Rockets, San Antonio Spurs, Denver Nuggets, Phoenix Suns and New Orleans Pelicans are among those who have been linked to Butler. But acquiring Butler for those teams — or any, really — will come with salary complications.

Butler is set to become a free agent at the end of the season, further making any potential trade difficult.

“I know from personal experience you can't bicker with Pat Riley. If Jimmy wants a trade, he’ll definitely get traded…Pat Riley runs the ship there, him & Mickey. If Jimmy wants to be traded & he said it publicly he's not happy there, Pat Riley will definitely oblige him" – Shaq pic.twitter.com/EHnmoI0SJ0

— Dru (@dru_star) January 3, 2025