Heat have finally reaped the rewards of trading Butler to the Warriors.
When the Golden State Warriors acquired Jimmy Butler from the Miami Heat, they included their 2025 first round pick to the Miami Heat in order to sweeten the deal. That pick was top-10 protected, but would convey otherwise.
That pick indeed conveyed when the Heat were poised to select 20th in the 2025 NBA Draft, a pick they used to select Kasparas Jakučionis from the University of Illinois. Projected on most notable mock drafts to be a late lottery selection, Jakučionis fell to the latter part of the first round and into the laps of Pat Riley and Erik Spoelstra.
Kasparas Jakučionis is selected 20th overall by the @MiamiHEAT in the 2025 #NBADraft presented by State Farm!
Watch on ABC & ESPN. pic.twitter.com/8zGJLebZIv
— NBA (@NBA) June 26, 2025
Jakučionis has been described as a “high-feel orchestrator and playmaker who’ll add rhythm and flow to whatever offense he joins,” per The Ringer’s J. Kyle Mann — who, interestingly, has compared the 6’5” guard to the Warriors’ own Brandin Podziemski.
Acquiring Butler has led to this pick by the Heat. But whether it’ll be of any significant impact next season or in the years to come is yet to be determined.