The future of Jimmy Butler with the Miami Heat has come into question after he missed their first round series against the Boston Celtics and is eligible in July for a contract extension worth up to $112.9 million over two seasons. Pat Riley was publicly non-committal on the possibility of an extension for Butler when he addressed the media this week.

"He has clearly wanted to be in Miami," said Shams Charania. "He has seen that as a perfect marriage of sorts."

The Heat tried to trade for Damian Lillard last offseason to improve their roster around Butler and Bam Adebayo. There are questions of whether the Heat roster is good enough to continue competing at a championship level as Butler ages. 

"It is interesting the back and forth that we're seeing, but I think Jimmy Butler has always made it clear he wants to be in Miami long-term, it's going to be about will they be able to pay him what he wants," said Charania.

The Phoenix Suns' disappointing first round performance against the Minnesota Timberwolves has led to some speculation that they may have to break up their superstar duo of Kevin Durant and Devin Booker in order to field a more balanced roster.

"Do people in the league say that?" said Brian Windhorst on The Rich Eisen Show. "Yes, they do. I talk to multiple people who think that's what they're going to have to do that. Do the Suns say that? No, they do not.

"I think the Suns' intention is to keep all three of these star players. Tweak the roster, tweak some of their systems and processes and try to be better next year."

Windhorst also stressed how Durant spoke about how the Suns could benefit from continuity. 

The Suns have also yet to publicly decide the future of Frank Vogel as head coach.

Jimmy Butler reportedly wants an extension from the Miami Heat this offseason. Butler has two years remaining on his current deal, including a player option for 2025-26. It's unknown where the Heat stand on adding even more guaranteed money to their payroll moving forward. Butler will turn 35 years old ahead of next season and missed the Heat's first-round series loss to the Boston Celtics due to a knee injury.

If the Heat balk at extending Butler, rival teams believe the Philadelphia 76ers could attempt to swing a trade for the veteran wing. The Sixers project to have more than $60 million in cap space this summer. Daryl Morey will be seeking to fill out the roster around Joel Embiid and re-sign Tyrese Maxey.

Butler previously played for part of one season with the 76ers. Philadelphia acquired Butler from the Minnesota Timberwolves. Following the end of the 2018-19 season, Butler was acquired by the Heat in a sign-and-trade deal with the Sixers.

LeBron James is widely expected to return to the Los Angeles Lakers next season though he has decisions to make on how much longer he wants to continue playing and whether he prefers to finish his career with the franchise.

James has a $51 million player option for 24-25 with the Lakers. James is expected to become a free agent and re-sign some type of multi-year deal and possibly seek a no-trade clause. James can only get a no-trade clause by becoming a free agent and can't do so as part of an extension.

"I think the expectation is that in one shape or another, LeBron James will be back with this Lakers' team," said Adrian Wojnarowski. "It probably includes declining that player option and doing a new deal. Whether that's a one-year deal or a two-year deal, however they want to structure it. I think there's a working expectation that he's back, but things can change. He can make a different decision later."

Both the Golden State Warriors and Philadelphia 76ers had interest in LeBron James ahead of this year's trade deadline. 

The Philadelphia 76ers have long been connected to a pursuit of Paul George this offseason.

"The player at the top of theeir list is Paul George," said Brian Windhorst on Get Up on Friday morning. "His contract extension discussions with the Clippers have not led to an agreement. The Clippers are fighting for their playoff lives tonight in Dallas. They have not wanted to offer the max contract. They got Kawhi to accept an extension at less than a max, that has been the standard.

"I think Philly is going to come out with a max offer to Paul George. The Clippers are going to have to decide max or not. Paul George is going to have to decide 'Do I want to stay here or not?'

"But you don't just to have use cap space on free agents. You can use it in trade. This is where I think Daryl Morey is going to go to work. There's going to be a number of names who are going to come up, but I'm going to give you two off the bat here. Both involve who can get extensions with their teams, but for various reasons will not.

"The first name to watch is Jimmy Butler from the Miami Heat. He has two years left on his contract. There is interest in him extending... If Jimmy Butler wants to extend and the Heat are not willing to do it facing heavy luxury tax penalties, is there a way to revisit that?

"Also, another player to watch is Brandon Ingram. He had a very poor playoff session for the Pelicans. He is due a contact extension. The Pelicans have never paid the tax in the history of their franchise. They are set to sign Trey Murphy as a big dollar player alongside Zion Williamson. This is a player who might be on the market and again, I don't think even their No. 1 choice behind Paul George, but this type of player is who Philly can potentially look at to add firepower and offense to this team.

Zion Williamson and the New Orleans Pelicans enter the 2024 offseason in a much better place compared to where they were last year. While sources tell The Athletic that Williamson was never included in any official trade offers, the Pelicans didn't express any urgency in denying rumors about his availability. The Pelicans were strongly linked with Scoot Henderson leading to the draft.

Sources also tell The Athletic that the Pelicans were "impressed by the progress Williamson made with his mental and physical state" before he suffered a hamstring injury in the fourth quarter of their play-in game against the Los Angeles Lakers.

Williamson remained engaged with teammates following the injury and was in the best shape of his NBA career.

During the previous offseason, the Pelicans hired Amy Atmore as director of rehabilitation. She worked with Williamson and other players on a more day-to-day basis, which contributed to him playing in a career-high 70 games. Williamson's relationship with Aaron Nelson, who was previously the head of the training staff, had "grown frigid over time."

Brandon Ingram is entering the final season of his contract with the Pelicans and his future with the franchise is believed to be far less certain than Williamson.