Miami Heat fan Shant Solmaz attended Wednesday’s game against the Philadelphia 76ers without any expectations other than enjoying the matchup. However, when star forward Jimmy Butler was traded to the Golden State Warriors during the game, Solmaz quickly shot to fame on social media. Sitting behind the Heat bench, he shared the news with the players, a moment that was captured on video and quickly went viral.
“We got Kyle Anderson, Dennis Schroder, and Andrew Wiggins,” Solmaz said as Kevin Love, Tyler Herro, and Jaime Jaquez Jr. listened. “We robbed them. A first-round pick protected, they didn’t give out the year.”
A fan sitting behind the Miami Heat bench broke the Jimmy Butler trade news to the team. pic.twitter.com/MoH6VnTtqK
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) February 6, 2025
Although Solmaz’s breakdown of the trade details was slightly inaccurate as he omitted information about the Utah Jazz and Detroit Pistons’ involvement, it was still entertaining to see the Heat players so engaged in the news during an active game. On Thursday, Solmaz recounted this surreal moment to CBS News Miami, describing it as a spontaneous decision to inform the Heat players of the trade. “Honestly, I got the notification on my phone, looked at my girlfriend, and said ‘Hey, pull up your phone. I’m about to tell the boys that Jimmy got traded.’ I saw Tyler (Herro), and his neck broke. He was like ‘What happened?’ I told him Jimmy just got traded to the Warriors, and Kevin Love was really interested in the details. He even thanked me afterward before turning back to the game.”
“Hey, pull up your phone – I’m about to tell the boys that Jimmy got traded” – we’re talking about *that viral #Heat moment last night, as @shantsolmaz_ walks us through his story🏀 #MiamiHeat #GoldenStateWarriors #NBATradeDeadline pic.twitter.com/snqQ0sKFgv
— Samantha Rivera (@JSamanthaRivera) February 7, 2025
Regarding his feelings about the trade, Solmaz expressed a lack of respect for Jimmy Butler’s behavior leading up to the move. He looks forward to seeing how Wiggins and the new Heat players contribute to the team moving forward. “I have a lot of respect and love for Jimmy, but the way he went about things was unprofessional. I just wanted the toxic relationship to end, so I’m glad we have a new chapter starting with Wiggins. I think he’ll do some good things for us.”
