Warriors' Jimmy Butler Feels Heat Organization 'Really Appreciates' Me Ahead of Return
Golden State Warriors star Jimmy Butler has changed his tune quite a bit when it comes to the sense of appreciation he feels from the Miami Heat.
With the Warriors playing the Heat on Tuesday, Butler will return to South Florida for the first time since his bitter standoff that resulted in a trade to the West Coast.
Speaking to The Athletic's Anthony Slater, the six-time All-Star reflected on his old team.
"What I will tell you is I know the (Miami) fan base really appreciates myself and what I've done there," he said. "I'm pretty sure my teammates—my former teammates—do as well. And honestly, I think the whole organization does. When you realize that this is a business, you understand that business isn't always pretty. It's not always going to end the way that you want it to end. You just got to be appreciative of what happened and the memories that you're able to gain throughout it."
This is a departure from Butler's tone in the weeks leading up to his departure.
His trade request came immediately after a press conference in which he said he had lost his joy from playing basketball.
A little over a week later, Butler seemed to take a veiled shot at the team when he shared a video interacting with an employee from his Bigface coffee shop in Miami. He praised a barista and said, "That's what bosses do. We build you up; we don't break you down."
Andscape's Marc J. Spears reported on March 13 the 35-year-old "wanted to be traded because he felt the Heat were moving in a direction without him in mind and he wanted to be more valued."
Butler subsequently told NBA insider Jake Fischer he feels "wanted" and "appreciated" in Golden State.
Beyond the $184 million extension they signed him to in 2021, ESPN's Ramona Shelburne reported in February how the Heat allowed Butler to enjoy some privileges they didn't afford to past stars. It got to the point where behind the scenes "alumni and staffers started to express concern at how much leeway the Heat were giving Butler."
The rubber finally met the road this season. The Heat's approach to Butler's contract showed they were starting to have questions over whether the bargain was still worth it.
Two things can be true.
From the top of the franchise on down, Miami can broadly value what Butler helped it achieve during their first five years together. At the same time, team president Pat Riley and general manager Andy Elisburg may have stopped seeing him as being good enough to command the kind of money he wanted.
As Butler told Slater, the NBA is a business at the end of the day and that will lead to some pragmatic, cold-hearted calculations.
