The Miami Heat, as good as they have been this season, may be dealing with some internal conflict that could derail the rest of their season. During the Heat’s game against the Golden State Warriors, Jimmy Butler got into a heated verbal altercation with Erik Spoelstra and Udonis Haslem.
Jimmy Butler seemed to disagree with something that Erik Spoelstra said. Things got heated between the two, and words were exchanged. The Heat’s veteran, Udonis Haslem, intervened and defended Spoelstra. And it appears Haslem used some really harsh language against Jimmy Butler.
“What? Do you want me to f*cking fight you? I’ll beat your ass. I’ll beat the f*ck out of you!”
After the game, Erik Spoelstra spoke about the altercation, noting that things had just gotten heated because of the unwithering desire to win from everyone on the team. Wizards’ star Kyle Kuzma was more frustrated with the media’s reaction, noting that they have been the first seed in the Eastern Conference, but the media has never paid them the kind of attention they are paying now after the escalation within the squad.
Haslem has been one of the longest-tenured players in the league and has stuck around with the franchise throughout his entire career. Haslem’s final years with the Heat have seen him take a reduced role on the court, but becoming the locker room leader and the person who upholds the Heat culture to the best of his abilities.
Given how long Haslem has been around and has played under Erik Spoelstra, it should come as no surprise that he came to his defense against Butler. Haslem is extremely loyal to his coach and was not going to stand for his teammate disrespecting his head coach.
