The Golden State Warriors were handed a drubbing by the Miami Heat last night, as the Heat picked up a 112-86 win in Jimmy Butler’s first game against the franchise since his February trade. Butler received a tribute video from the franchise he left acrimoniously, but it’s clear that gesture didn’t change his personal feelings much.
After the game was over, Butler dapped up a few courtside fans before walking straight into the locker room as his teammates exchanged pleasantries with the Heat roster. Butler ignored everybody, while the Warriors greeted their former teammate Andrew Wiggins with open arms.
Jimmy Butler left without dapping up any of the Heat players 👀 pic.twitter.com/mQ5gLst54p
— BricksCenter (@BricksCenter) March 26, 2025
There was no reason to celebrate for Butler, whose team lost pretty convincingly. On top of that, Butler put up a paltry 11 points (5-12 FG) and six rebounds as he couldn’t carry them in Stephen Curry’s absence. The atmosphere didn’t reflect the homecoming of a franchise legend, but the Heat definitely played with a lot of intent and desire to pick up this win tonight.
This momentary win for the Heat can’t take the sting out of the overall disastrous season the franchise has had. Even though the Butler trade saga distracted them for the first few months of the season, the team was a top-six contender, even with Butler playing with reduced effort or on suspension.
The Heat only won four of their first 21 games after trading Butler, going through an 11-game losing streak in that stretch, which has condemned them to the Play-In Tournament. Their 31-41 record this season won’t feel like a win under any circumstance, even though they won this matchup.
Butler’s time with the Warriors has been far better, averaging 17.3 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 6.3 assists as the team has gone 15-5 in games he’s played.
The veteran forward has been the perfect co-star next to Curry but hasn’t had much success rising to the occasion as a genuine No. 1 right now. It would’ve been great to see that version of Butler against the Heat, but he was clamped down by the opponents.
Jimmy Butler Distancing Himself From Heat Culture
Butler was considered the face of ‘Heat Culture,’ an NBA staple associated with the Miami Heat and their unique cultural traits, which differ from other squads in the NBA. The main thing has been an intangible sense of grit and toughness the franchise has embodied well, especially over the Butler era.
It was during this era that the Heat themselves and their partners started talking about their culture more than fans did. As a result, the term is thrown around a lot now. Butler commented on ‘Heat Culture,’ calling the term overused.
“There was some foundation to it in the sense of the work and all that stuff, which is great. I’m not saying it in a bad way, but I think it’s a little bit, like, overused talking about the ‘Heat Culture.’ It is a great organization.”
“But I think a large part of that culture is you get guys that buy into a winning mindset. You get some guys that buy in, you get some really good players and you get the opportunity to talk about ‘Heat Culture’ a little bit more.”
“I’m not saying it to talk down or anything, but I think whenever you have really good players you can name it whatever you want to name it.”
Butler averaged 21.0 points, 6.0 rebounds, and 5.7 assists in 316 games with the Heat. He played five seasons and made two NBA Finals, with the championship being the only missing accomplishment from what was a great run with the franchise.
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