NBA trade deadline rumors: Latest news on Jimmy Butler, Cameron Johnson and more

The NBA trade deadline has been a very busy period for basketball teams in recent years. In fact, in every year since 2018, there have been at least 10 deals made at the deadline. Yet, with less than three weeks until the 2025 trade deadline, set for Thursday, Febr. 6, there haven't been many, if any, game-changing deals.

The Los Angeles Lakers added Dorian Finney-Smith. The Golden State Warriors added Dennis Schroder. But those happened almost a month ago, and they aren't the types of moves that elevate mid-tier teams into contenders. With players like Jimmy Butler, Cameron Johnson, and Zach LaVine all on the table, it's only a matter of time before we see a contender take a massive swing on one of these All-Star caliber players. When that will happen, and who it will be is anyone's guess though.

Here are the latest NBA trade rumors as we approach February.

ANALYSIS: 10 players who could be on the move ahead of NBA trade deadline

Nets asking for too much in return for Cameron Johnson

According to the New York Post, the Brooklyn Nets are asking for two first-round picks or the equivalent in young talent in exchange for Johnson.

While Johnson is a good player, that's obviously a strong asking price for someone who would likely be a third or fourth scoring option on a contender. Perhaps the Nets are playing the long game with Johnson. The deadline isn't imminent, so the Nets could simply be setting the bar high, expecting the price to come down in negotiations.

That said, Johnson is not near the end of his contract, so the Nets have no incentive to deal Johnson at the deadline. They could, theoretically, just deal Johnson during the offseason for a similar asking price. With Johnson being one of the last few quality pieces in Brooklyn, the Nets will be hesitant to move him for anything more than a king's ransom as they rebuild.

Heat are content holding Jimmy Butler

The Athletic's Shams Charania reports that the Heat will not trade Jimmy Butler for anything less than what they want.

Charania writes, "(The Heat) want to have their needs satisfied as well in terms of their desire for role players that can come in and contribute. Potentially having draft capital, and overall on this roster, they're not just going to move Jimmy Butler to move him."

Despite his recent return to the team from suspension, many reports call the situation between Butler and the Heat "not fixable."

The Heat have taken calls and listened to offers but haven’t found the right deal, USA TODAY's Jeff Zillgitt reported. However, with the Feb. 6 trade deadline approaching, the intensity of talks has begun to increase, a person familiar with discussions told USA TODAY Sports. The person requested anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about trade talks.

The Heat don’t like the distraction, and both sides – headstrong as Miami Heat president Pat Riley and Butler both are – would like a fresh start without the other, Zillgitt wrote.

Bulls could be stuck with Zach LaVine

The Chicago Bulls have been actively trying to trade All-Star guard Zach LaVine for almost a year at this point, but there hasn't been much interest it seems.

Even more unfortunate for the Bulls, this deadline appears to be one of the calmer deadlines in recent memory, and not a single player worth more than $20 million a year has been moved so far.

With Chicago's biggest trade pieces – LaVine, Nikola Vucevic, and Lonzo Ball – each carrying a cap hit of $20 million or more, the Bulls will need some creativity in order to get a deal done, and it may require them getting back much less than they anticipate.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: NBA trade deadline rumors: Jimmy Butler, Cameron Johnson, Zach LaVine