The NBA revealed the East and West All-Star starters this week, via the fan vote, and the frontcourt was missing Miami Heat veteran wing Jimmy Butler. Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra had strong words against the tally, calling it a “joke.”
“Jimmy Butler should be a starter in this All-Star Game,” Spoelstra told reporters before Friday night's Los Angeles Clippers matchup, via the Miami Herald's Anthony Chiang. “It's a joke that he's not.”
Spoelstra: "Jimmy Butler should be a starter in this All-Star Game. It's a joke that he's not."
Spoelstra added that Bam Adebayo "better be in." https://t.co/IaMEnVAkwH
— Anthony Chiang (@Anthony_Chiang) January 24, 2020
Spoelstra also boosted third-year center Bam Adebayo's All-Star case, saying the former fourteenth-overall pick “better be in.” The NBA has only announced the starters, however, so the 22-year-old Adebayo's possible career achievement will have to wait. So far, the Eastern Conference's All-Stars include Atlanta Hawks point guard Trae Young, Boston Celtics point guard Kemba Walker, Toronto Raptors forward Pascal Siakam, Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo, and Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid.
Spoelstra argues his veteran wing Butler deserves to be among the starters. In his first season with the Heat, Butler, 30, is averaging 20.3 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 6.5 assists per game, shooting 44.0% from the field. Butler is already a four-time All-Star and will very likely make the team as a reserve, sending the former Sixer to Chicago for the All-Star Weekend festivities three weeks from now.
Under Butler's stewardship, the Heat have rocketed up the Eastern Conference standings and are currently second behind the Bucks with a slim margin over the reigning champion Raptors. Young, the Hawks' second-year floor general, was caught in the crosshairs of controversy due to Atlanta's poor performance during the 2019-20 season despite his individual high-level play. However, Butler was listed by the league as a frontcourt player.
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