Jimmy Butler's motivational methods may not have gone over well in Minnesota, but he seems to personify the famous Miami Heat culture that Pat Riley and Erik Spoelstra have proudly cultivated in Miami.
That culture and Butler's tactics have rubbed off on the rest of the Heat (35-19), who currently hold the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference. Besides being ice cold from deep (24.8 percent this season), Butler has been great on both ends while averaging 21.6 points, 7.2 rebounds,and 6.4 assists per 36 minutes — the latter would easily mark a career-high.
Butler may have been divisive in locker rooms in the past, but it seems to be having the opposite affect on this Heat squad.
According to the Miami Herald's Barry Jackson, Udonis Haslem — in his 17th season with the Heat and a standard-bearer for Heat culture — said this Heat group has chemistry as strong as any he's been a part of, and he's been on five Finals teams.
Butler's teammates acknowledge that the All-Star fowward can push guys hard, but they seem to appreciate it.
“They push you here. Jimmy is the same,” Goran Dragic said. “If you’re not used to it, it can [be] like, ‘I don’t like him.’ But this is the perfect situation for us and Jimmy. He just wants you and the team to get better.”
Recently crowned Slam Dunk champion Derrick Jones Jr. echoed the same sentiments Dragic has and praised Butler for being “super-competitive” and pushing the team the right way.
“He’s not the person people say he is,” said Jones Jr. “He is a super-competitive person, as everybody in this organization is. For someone to come in like him and hold everyone accountable, it’s not him being a [jerk] about it. It’s about him being Jimmy Butler, and us loving him for that reason.”
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