Miami Heat star Jimmy Butler made an appearance on the tennis court and even had a rally with World No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz.
The US Open officially commences next week with qualifying currently ongoing. Meanwhile, the Stars of the Open took place Wednesday with the event benefiting Ukrainian relief efforts.
Reigning US Open champion Alcaraz took on American Frances Tiafoe in a what was a rematch of last year's semifinal clash. However, there was a lot more fun than competitiveness given the nature of the event as can be seen below.
If a better point of tennis has ever been played, we've never seen it 🤣 pic.twitter.com/udc6iGZkxx
— US Open Tennis (@usopen) August 23, 2023
The match was made more memorable as Butler made an appearance as a ball crew member.
THAT'S @JImmyButler's MUSIC!
AND AS A BALL CREW MEMBER! pic.twitter.com/SQKJmcNalg
— US Open Tennis (@usopen) August 23, 2023
He would later get a racket from Tiafoe and announce his master plan to defeat Alcaraz with a drop shot. After a rally, he ended up getting the point.
You can watch it below:
Article Continues BelowJimmy Butler just showed the world how to beat Carlos Alcaraz 👀 pic.twitter.com/k8WJYlY5Xh
— US Open Tennis (@usopen) August 23, 2023
Later on, the Miami forward declared himself as one of the best tennis players in the world.
.@JimmyButler believes he's one of the best players in the world (in tennis). pic.twitter.com/2dcBdtPTVa
— US Open Tennis (@usopen) August 24, 2023
Jimmy Butler is notably a big fan of Alcaraz.
The two-time NBA finalist has been in attendance to watch the Spaniard at the Argentina Open and Miami Open. Most recently, he traveled to London to watch Alcaraz's Wimbledon quarterfinal win over Holger Rune.
“He’s always poised. He’s never rattled and more than anything, it looks like he’s having so much fun out there,” Butler said of Alcaraz at the Miami Open earlier this year. “I think whenever you have fun and you have that mentality that you know you’re the best, you go out there and you play as though you’re the best, results happen and he’s not No. 1 for no reason.”