Jimmy Butler and Miami Heat president Pat Riley once formed a very successful partnership, but their relationship has completely broken down now. Butler has no interest in mending fences either, as he told Taylor Rooks before his first game against the Heat for the Golden State Warriors that he wants no interaction with Riley.
“Jimmy told me that he’s used to being the bad guy,” Rooks said on Inside the NBA. “But I asked him what he expects if he sees Pat Riley, and his response was, ‘I have nothing to say to Pat, and Pat better have nothing to say to me.'”
Well, hopefully Riley did stay away from Butler. You wouldn’t have thought a year ago that things would get this bad between them, but here we are. The first cracks in the relationship appeared when Riley ripped Butler for mocking the Boston Celtics and New York Knicks when he was injured. He wanted the star to keep his mouth shut.
Riley then refused to give Butler an extension in the offseason, and their relationship never recovered. The 35-year-old requested a trade from the Heat in January, and what followed was weeks of drama and tension behind the scenes.
Butler was suspended thrice without pay by the Heat for conduct detrimental to the team, and you knew his time in Miami was up after the final one. He was shipped to the Warriors at the trade deadline and is much happier now in his new surroundings.
The Warriors’ success and the Heat’s struggles after the Butler trade led to Riley coming under fire for failing to keep hold of the six-time All-Star. You’d have thought that Butler would give Riley’s critics some more ammunition with a dominant showing in the game at Kaseya Center on Tuesday, but it wasn’t to be.
The Heat surprisingly blew out the Warriors 112-86, with Butler recording just 11 points (5-12 FG), six rebounds, two assists, and one steal. It was a very underwhelming performance, and he’d have given Riley a reason to smile in what has been a disappointing season.
Jimmy Butler’s Thoughts On The Tribute Video From The Heat
Despite Butler exiting on such bad terms, it was reported that the Heat would play a tribute video for him. Butler made it clear he didn’t particularly care if he got one or not, but would watch it if they gave him that honor. The Heat did play the video before the game, and Butler was asked what he thought about it postgame.
“The video was nice,” Butler said. “But I won’t say there were a lot of emotions.”
Butler isn’t too interested in reflecting on his time with the Heat. He has closed that chapter and has moved on.
Butler’s sole focus now is on helping the Warriors win, and they are struggling a bit at the moment. This was their second loss in a row, and they have suffered defeats in three of their last five games to drop to 41-31.
The Warriors need Stephen Curry back from injury as soon as possible, and he could feature in their next game against the New Orleans Pelicans at Smoothie King Center on Friday at 8 PM ET.
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