Miami Heat legend Udonis Haslem has shared his thoughts on Pat Riley recently slamming Jimmy Butler for trash-talking while injured and then questioning Butler’s availability when it comes to giving him a max contract extension.
“At the end of the day, Riles says what he feels. Jimmy says what he feels. That’s the locker room we have and that’s the organization we have. We don’t always agree with each other but we believe in eye-to-eye communication and saying what’s on our mind. We don’t believe in hiding things from each other. That’s just how we operate over there. That’s a regular Tuesday night in Miami, people just don’t know it.”
UD on the Pat Riley comments about Jimmy Butler
“Riles say what he feels. Jimmy says what he feels. That’s the locker room we have”
“We don’t believe in hiding things from eachother. That’s a regular Tuesday night in Miami, people just don’t know it”
🎥 @theOGsShow pic.twitter.com/q4XPO4oZek
— Heat Culture (@HeatCulture13) May 14, 2024
Riley went after Butler publicly during his end-of-the-season address to the media, first criticizing Butler for incessantly trash-talking both the Knicks and Celtics while being sidelined with an MCL sprain.
“For him to say that, I thought, is that Jimmy trolling, or is that Jimmy [being] serious? If you’re not on the court, playing against Boston, or you’re not on the court playing against the New York Knicks, you should keep your mouth shut in your criticism of those teams.”
Riley then questioned whether the Heat would offer Butler a long-term max contract for a player who might not be available every single night.
“We have not discussed that internally right now. We have to look at making that kind of commitment and when we do it. We don’t have to do it until 2025, actually. But we’ll see. We haven’t made a decision on it, and we haven’t really in earnest discussed it. That’s a big decision on our part to commit those kinds of resources unless you have somebody who’s going to be there and available every single night.”
Butler averaged 20.8 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 5.0 assists this season, playing in 60 games. The Heat clearly needed more from the player, as the team ended the season as the No. 8 seed in the East and was comprehensively beaten by the Celtics in the first round, with Butler unable to play.
Could The Heat Move On From Jimmy Butler?
Jimmy Butler has been the face of Heat Culture since he joined the franchise in 2019. He seemed like a perfect ideological fit for the franchise who prioritize their players being tough and gritty above everything else. But with Jimmy’s advancing age and recent injury struggles, the Heat might look to pass the mantle to Bam Adebayo.
“Jimmy Butler is extension-eligible, but between his declining play this season and the constant absences, there are increasingly loud whispers that his future might not be in Miami. The Heat openly talking about Bam Adebayo as the keeper of the Heat Culture flame and not mentioning Butler as much is another notable point.”
The team really has no other star player to bank on outside of Butler, as Bam Adebayo isn’t the offensive engine Butler is. He can average 20 points a game if he puts a concentrated effort behind it, but no team would consider themselves contenders with Adebayo as a primary or even secondary scoring option.
Miami can’t move on from Butler without a plan, especially with Tyler Herro’s development also having stalled. Pat Riley may not be willing to hand out a max contract to an injury-prone player, but he might be forced to sit through another rebuild if Butler leaves the team by 2025 for nothing.
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