January 07, 2025
Bill Streicher/Imagn Images
Is a Jimmy Butler return to Philadelphia possible? Don't hold your breath.
The time has come for the first Sixers mailbag of 2025! The questions submitted covered a wide range of topics, and today the focus will be on Jimmy Butler trade talks and whether or not the Sixers could make a real play for the six-time All-Star, how the Sixers can fill out the back end of their roster and the long-term outlook of rookie two-way wing Justin Edwards.
Once again, questions for this mailbag were fielded on my Bluesky page.
From @swagsxo.bsky.social: Should the Sixers even entertain the possibility of a Jimmy Butler homecoming?
Given the limited nature of their ability to actually make a trade happen, the answer here is no — despite Butler's brilliance.
I will continue to issue this reminder at the beginning of every discussion about trade talks: the Sixers cannot absorb more 2024-25 salary than they send out in any deal this season. So, if the Sixers wanted to acquire Butler and his $48,798,677 salary for this season, they would have to trade at least as much salary to the Miami Heat.
Here is a breakdown of the salaries of players the Sixers can trade without their consent (Joel Embiid cannot be traded at all during the season, while Kyle Lowry has veto power). The two players whose names are bolded cannot be traded until Jan. 15, but all of the others are eligible to be traded right now:
| Player | 2024-25 salary |
| Paul George | $49,205,800 |
| Tyrese Maxey | $35,147,000 |
| Caleb Martin | $8,149,001 |
| Kelly Oubre Jr. | $7,983,000 |
| KJ Martin | $7,975,000 |
| Andre Drummond | $5,000,000 |
| Jared McCain | $4,020,360 |
| Eric Gordon | $3,303,771 |
| Reggie Jackson | $2,087,519 |
| Guerschon Yabusele | $2,087,519 |
| Ricky Council IV | $1,891,857 |
| Adem Bona | $1,157,153 |
Outside of a one-for-one swap of George and Butler, the Sixers' only path to sending out enough money to take Butler back is — once Jan. 15 passes — trading Maxey and at least two more rotation players. That, obviously, is not a reasonable move.
Some will wonder about the feasibility of that George-for-Butler framework, especially as the Sixers are armed with some valuable draft picks. Consider this, though: this Butler saga in Miami started because the Heat refused to engage in substantive talks with him about a contract extension. All indications were that despite Butler's brilliance on the floor and track record of carrying two Miami teams to the NBA Finals, the Heat felt his aging and durability issues made it unreasonable for him to receive an extension.
The Heat were unwilling to commit long-term to a 35-year-old Butler after all he has done for the organization and what he has shown as a playoff riser who is capable of leading a team to tremendous heights. Why would they have any interest in trading for a 34-year-old George, who is in the first season of a massive four-year contract, has not shown either of those traits in several years and may have an even more concerning injury history?
MORE: George talks shooting struggles after Monday's loss
From @sixersallie.bsky.social: Are there any players available you think the Sixers should give a 10-day exhibit? If so, why?
The 10-day contract market is always a crapshoot to some degree, but there are a few names currently out there which do intrigue me at least a bit. Unless Edwards continues to ascend — a real possibility, as the Sixers appear to like him quite a bit — the team could look for a more reliable wing, perhaps a veteran who has been around the block, to provide some stability in the mix. Ricky Council IV has had a rough second NBA season, and the Sixers will likely need another wing they can at least conceivably rely on for decent minutes at some point.
One option which stands out is Lamar Stevens, a sturdy and tenacious defender who lacks offensive utility but has played nearly 3,200 NBA minutes at 27 years old. A Philadelphia native and Roman Catholic alum, Stevens can play either forward position. In lineups with very good existing floor spacing — perhaps ones featuring Guerschon Yabusele at center — the Sixers could believe they would be capable of stomaching Stevens' subpar three-point shooting as the cost of adding a terrific, hard-nosed defender to the mix.
Nearly 12 years ago, Justin Holiday began his NBA career by signing a 10-day contract with the Sixers to end the 2013-14 season. Holiday has since played for 10 separate organizations, notching 680 games of NBA experience. He made 58 appearances for the 57-25 Denver Nuggets last season and shot a hair over 40 percent from beyond the arc. Holiday has more length than strength, but has generally proven to be a decent defensive option on the wing who is more than capable of knocking down an open three-point shot. Bookending Holiday's career with another stint in Philadelphia would be poetic, right?
He is not a wing-sized player, but Dennis Smith Jr. has transformed from a lottery pick who failed to cash in on his offensive upside to a defensive-oriented guard who leverages both a long wingspan and body strength — in combination with a relentless attitude — to pester opposing guards and (some) wings. Smith is currently playing in the G League, awaiting another NBA shot. He averaged 3.2 steals per 100 possessions in 56 games for the Brooklyn Nets last season, a strong mark.
MORE: Is there anybody worth trading Jared McCain for?
From @hallubin.bsky.social: How realistic would it be for Edwards to develop into a rotation piece? If so, does that help with cap issues down the road?
It is hard to take anything substantive from a 59-minute NBA sample, but the Sixers have liked what they've seen from Edwards on both ends of the floor. Here is what Tyrese Maxey had to say about his fellow Kentucky Wildcat on Monday night:
"Justin's played really well, honestly. He knows what [Nurse] wants from him. He knows that he's a shooter, he's defending. I was telling him today -- we've got him on a lot of different people. KD, Brad [Beal], Devin Booker. That's tough, you know what I'm saying? That's tough. As a rookie coming in and the coaches having trust in you to go guard these guys... I've just been telling him to watch the game every single time you go home at night time, turn the TV on and watch the game and find out what your niche is. And I think he's done a good job with that."
In a world in which Edwards is even a fringe rotation-caliber player — someone who does not necessarily play every night, but can be used in a pinch if someone goes down or the matchup calls for a wing of Edwards' ilk — the Sixers would benefit tremendously from a salary cap perspective.
Generally speaking, two-way players who have their deals converted to standard NBA contracts end up on long-term, inexpensive contracts. Council was in an extremely similar situation last year, and ended up signing a deal which keeps him under affordable, flexible team control for the 2024-25, 2025-26 and 2026-27 seasons. During that three-year span, the Sixers will owe Council about $6.5 million, a minuscule amount in today's NBA. The kicker: none of that money is guaranteed up front. Council's salary in each of those seasons will represent barely over one percent of the NBA's salary cap. Even having a situational player on that sort of bargain deal is a major boon for a Sixers team building around three massive contracts moving forward.
MORE: Edwards talks rotation chance
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