Golden State Warriors star Draymond Green appeared to take a shot at Miami Heat fans for not appreciating all that Jimmy Butler did for the franchise during his time in South Beach.
Butler, who was traded to the Warriors ahead of the trade deadline in the 2024-25 season, played with the Heat from the 2019-20 season through the start of the 2024-25 season.
“At the end of the day, Jimmy has had an opportunity to leave in free agency or go into free agency, and he decided to sign an extension and stay with the team,” Green said. “Every year, people continue to ask, ‘They’re gonna bring in Damian Lillard. They’re gonna bring in Giannis Antetokounmpo. They’re gonna bring in this person. They’re gonna bring in that person to double down and help Jimmy take this team to a championship.’ That never happened.
“And so, at a certain point, Jimmy’s in year 14. He’s given them seven years of his career. At a certain point, you just gotta appreciate what somebody’s given, and just they move on and it is what it is. In saying that, people aren’t always rational, and it is what it is.”
While Miami didn’t ever end up landing a superstar player to pair with Butler, he did play alongside Tyler Herro, Bam Adebayo, Goran Dragic and Kyle Lowry during his time in Miami. The Heat made a move to get Lowry in hopes of winning a title, but ultimately they came up short in the 2022-23 season, losing to the Denver Nuggets in the Finals.
Butler did a lot for the Heat during his time with the franchise. He led Miami to NBA Finals appearances in the 2019-20 season and 2022-23 campaign, and he also took the Heat to the Eastern Conference Finals three times.
However, Miami never ended up capturing a title with the six-time All-Star on the roster.
Now, Butler is aiming to chase that elusive NBA title with the Warriors. Golden State is currently the No. 6 seed in the Western Conference, and it has played well with Butler on the floor. In the 22 games that Butler has appeared in for Golden State, the team is 18-4.
Butler is averaging 17.1 points, 6.1 rebounds and 6.3 assists per game since he was traded to Golden State. Since Butler had an unceremonious exit from Miami, which included multiple suspensions from the franchise before he was traded, it may be hard for Heat fans to root for him to win a title elsewhere this season.
