Jimmy Butler and the Miami Heat instantly became a match made in heaven when he joined the South Beach squad last summer. The two-way forward embodies every bit of the Heat culture, and it's hard to picture Butler thriving on any other squad other than Miami right now.
However, according to Sam Amick of The Athletic, the 31-year old was apparently scheduled to meet with the Lakers and Los Angeles Clippers after meeting the Heat:
During the July 2019 free agency period in which he fell in love with the Heat culture during that storied Miami meeting and decided so quickly that he was all in with Pat Riley & Co., a source with knowledge of his situation said the next two meetings on his travel schedule were with the Clippers and the Lakers in Los Angeles. A source with knowledge of James’ thinking said Butler had the respect of the Lakers people who mattered most — James among them — but the Lakers chose to prioritize Kawhi Leonard above all else before he signed with the Clippers and were thus delayed in their process.
As it turned out, it didn't take long for Butler to fall in love with Miami, and he quickly signed on the dotted line. While Butler had this meeting set up, he recently insisted there was never really a chance of him signing there. Furthermore, while LeBron James and the Lakers respect him, prioritizing Kawhi Leonard made sense.
Over a year later, Jimmy Butler is leading the Heat in their best run since the Big Three era in the previous decade. Their emergence as one of the top teams in the NBA is in large part due to the leadership of their All-Star forward.
Miami may be down 2-0 to the Los Angeles Lakers in the NBA Finals, but there's no denying how special of a run they are having in these 2020 playoffs.
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