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As the Miami Heat and Jimmy Butler trade drama continues, there have been an immense amount of details released that show both sides of the story. Even though the Heat play the Los Angeles Lakers on Wednesday night, the team is still surrounded by a bevy of rumors including some new reporting from Chris Haynes.
The NBA insider was on “The Dan LeBatard Show” where he spoke about how after Pat Riley made some comments during his end-of-season press conference, Butler would be taken aback as the two “recognized” a meeting needed to take place. Per Haynes, it never materialized as the team and Butler wouldn't talk until Jan. 1 when they questioned his effort level.
“I believe he made additional comments later that day or the next,” Haynes said. “I think that’s what Pat Riley was referring to when he said something along the lines of, “If you’re not playing, you probably should stay quiet.” Obviously, that rubbed Jimmy [Butler] the wrong way. He felt like those comments took things too far. Both sides recognized the need for a face-to-face meeting to clear the air after everything that happened.”
“Jimmy was under the assumption that Pat was going to visit him during the offseason at his place in San Diego,” Haynes continued. “Jimmy even told him about it, but that meeting never materialized. Pat never went out there. There was no communication—no texts, no phone calls, no face-to-face meetings—until January 1, when the Heat brought Jimmy into the office. At that meeting, they questioned his effort, suggesting they didn’t think he was giving his all. From the end of last season until that point, there had been no communication between Jimmy and the team.”
Heat's Pat Riley tells Jimmy Butler to “keep your mouth shut”
Haynes is talking about the quotes from Riley who told Butler to “keep your mouth shut” as the star boasted about Miami beating the Boston Celtics and New York Knicks in the playoffs if he was healthy. He would end up missing the entirety of the playoffs last season with an MCL sprain in the first play-in tournament game to the Philadelphia 76ers as the Heat lost to the Celtics in five games.
“For him to say that, you know, I thought, is that Jimmy trolling? Or is that Jimmy serious?” Riley said. “If you're not on the court, playing against Boston, or on the court playing against the New York Knicks, you should keep your mouth shut and the criticism of those teams.”
Butler was said to be “caught off guard” by the comments according to Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald. There have been many events that have led to the fractured relationship between Butler and the Heat with the one mentioned by Haynes being when the team questioned the effort level.
Still, Butler ends his seven-game suspension and is eligible to come back Friday when the Heat host the Denver Nuggets.
