Jimmy Butler has insinuated in the past that something happened behind the scenes with the Philadelphia 76ers which ultimately led to his decision to leave the Sixers in free agency for the Miami Heat.
In an interview with Rachel Nichols of ESPN, Butler says he's not going to reveal what happened since he doesn't want to be a snitch, but the four-time All-Star maintains that Tobias Harris getting the richest deal in Sixers franchise history wasn't the reason he left Philadelphia for Miami (clip starts at 10:30):
Butler played 55 games for the Sixers last season after the team acquired him from the Minnesota Timberwolves. He got multiple standing ovations from the Philly crowd during the 2019 playoffs. However, now that he’s on the Heat after choosing not to re-sign with the Sixers, the fans booed Butler in his return to Philadelphia last month.
Butler signed a four-year, $140.8 million contract with the Heat this past summer as part of a four-team sign-and-trade deal between Miami, Philly, the Los Angeles Clippers and Portland Trail Blazers. Philadelphia acquired combo shooting guard Josh Richardson from Miami.
Multiple reports have stated that the Sixers didn’t offer Butler a five-year max contract in free agency. There were also reports of tension between the team’s coaching staff and Butler last season and it played a role in the Sixers’ decision not to re-sign Jimmy.
Butler had a heated argument with Sixers head coach Brett Brown during a film session shortly after Philly acquired him from the Timberwolves. Both men downplayed the incident, but it’s clear the team was content with moving on from Butler, something which Jimmy likely took personally given how fierce of a competitor he is.
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