With the Miami Heat taking on the Golden State Warriors on Wednesday night, it will mark the expected return of Jimmy Butler to the Kaseya Center. After the Heat beat the New York Knicks in a 115-113 thriller on Monday, the team will no doubt be surrounded by storylines with Butler, prompting a response by head coach Erik Spoelstra.
There's no denying the impact Butler has had since being traded to Miami in 2019, being the main engine to two NBA Finals appearances in the five-year stint. Besides the ugly exit from the team last season before the trade deadline, the drama is in the past, with the two teams even having a heated game on March 25, where the Heat won 112-86.
As there is another game on deck between the two, is the same luster there? Spoelstra would downplay any narrative surrounding Miami and Butler after Tuesday's practice, according to The Miami Herald.
“We already have done the game, so how many games do we have to play for it not to be the big storyline?” Spoelstra said.
There could be a question about whether Butler plays since it will be the second game of a back-to-back for Golden State, as the team faces the Orlando Magic on Tuesday. The same goes for Miami, as, besides the known news of Tyler Herro being out, Bam Adebayo is dealing with a toe injury, though he has finally been upgraded to “questionable” after missing the last six games.
Adebayo's viewpoint on the forced Butler storyline is that “you move forward in life.”
“You kind of block it out,” Adebayo said. “You move forward in life. We got a great team playing great basketball, and you want to continue that rather than try to chase a headline.”
Jimmy Butler's impact on the Heat
When the Heat traded Butler to the Warriors before the trade deadline last season, it marked the start of a new era for the team, led by Adebayo and Herro. It really has shown this season with Miami changing their offensive identity to a free-flowing, fast-paced system, which the team wants to focus more on than any narrative, which was echoed by Jaime Jaquez Jr, currently in his third season.
“I’m sure the media and the public have their own feelings. But for us, we did our thing,” Jaquez said. “We played our games, we went there, they went and been here, kind of moved on. I think both guys are enjoying their new time. And we’re here, they’re there, and we’re taking it as another game.”
Still, Butler developed relationships with many on the team, especially Nikola Jovic, who sees the star forward “as a brother.”
“I still look at him as a brother, as a part of a family,” Jovic said. “I learned a lot from him. He helped me a lot, and I don’t think I’ll ever have anything bad to say about him. I still look up to him, and I was looking up to him when he was here. I can say that he was my role model. And, yeah, it’s all love.”
At any rate, Miami is 8-6, looking to get a big win over the Warriors on Wednesday.
