Jimmy Butler is due for a contract extension this summer. It has been heavily reported that Butler is looking for the maximum in terms of his impending payday, but more recent reports have confirmed that has no desire to play anywhere but South Beach.
Despite rumors flooding social media that noted the rival Philadelphia 76ers interest in re-acquiring Butler, that interest doesn’t seem mutual (as of yet at least). Shams Charania, a top NBA insider, went on the Pat McAfee show and doubled down on Butler’s desire to retire a Heat Lifer.
“Jimmy Butler does not want to be anywhere but Miami … Sense is that he loves it in Miami. But again, he is extension-eligible this year. There are multiple teams out there that would give him an extension, and I think this is something that we’ll see play out over the next month or so. The Heat don’t want to trade him; he wants an extension. Will they give him an extension? That’s the question.” (per Shams)
It would be a catastrophic turn for this Heat franchise if they aren’t able to handle business with Butler. This is a guy who has almost single handedly changed the team’s trajectory into contender status for the first time since the “big three” days over a decade ago. Prior to his arrival in the summer of 2019, Miami hasn’t gotten farther than a game 7 of the Eastern Conference semi’s since LeBron James’ departure.
Now this Heat build has reached two NBA Finals and a game 7 of an Eastern Conference finals over the course of their last five seasons. There is no question that this team may have overachieved with their rosters over recent years, but Butler’s talents have been the catalyst of doing so.
During Pat Riley’s end of season press conference, he quickly shot down any idea of trading Butler. But he did however dare him to commit to improving his availability, if he truly wants that max extension. There are several different ways not only this situation can go over the summer, but also the entire outlook of the team’s overall direction.
The Heat have until this time next year to decide on that Butler extension. Maybe the team holds off until mid-season next year to evaluate his performance and availability? Maybe the Heat go all in on the Butler build and give him what he wants before the start of next season?
Something that shouldn’t be discussed is the possibility of trading him. The last thing this franchise needs to endure is another 2016 Dwyane Wade situation. Players that earn “Heat Legend” status are meant to finish their career here, and it would be a shame to not be able to have a send off with Butler like how the team did with Wade when he returned.
Hopefully this is something that both sides can mutually find a happy medium with sooner rather than later. The necessary moves to re-tool and improve the roster around the Butler/Bam Adebayo duo can fall into place afterwards. At the end of the day, Butler has the skillset and IQ to age like fine wine, and he is coming off an elite season statistically still even at an older age.
Outside of the 76ers, the Golden State Warriors were another team mentioned that would be interested in his services if he becomes available.
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HAPPY FATHER’S DAY! LET’S ALL CHILL AND ENJOY THE DAY!
Abe Lincoln quote:
”The man who represents himself has a fool for a client.”
I think the same can be said for any person whose only source of sports knowledge is himself. Yup, a fool. 😆😆
most guys that are hard core sports fans make judgements themselves.
LMAO!!!! How absurd some delusional people can be.
“It’s not the first time Butler has been speculatively linked to the Lakers. Here is a trade Bleacher Report recently proposed to send the Heat star to Los Angeles:
Lakers receive: Jimmy Butler, Thomas Bryant
Heat receive: Austin Reaves, Rui Hachimura, Jalen Hood-Schifino, Jarred Vanderbilt, 2029 1st Round Pick, 2031 1st Round Pick”
Once again, I couldn’t get my pen on that dotted line fast enough! Take the 2 first round picks plus Herro for the best player you can get.
Bam, Rui, Jaquez, Reaves, Rozier.
New player, #15 draft pick, Jovic, Love, J Rich.
Wright, #43 pick, Duncan, Vanderbilt , one of the g leaguers.
Of course, depending on who that new player is, he very possibly would be a starter.
bam butler mt edey terry jjj .gimme that lineup any day of the week and twice on sunday2nd team.orob jon collins cain jrich wright,think orob got the goodsto be decent backup.so stupid giving bryant those minutos.stunted orobs growth.coaches use of personnel not perfect.
Bad trade for Heat!
The only player worth keeping is Reaves, if Herro is traded. Schifino is a project and Hachimura is an underperformer. At best they may be rotation players. Picks are too far out to make a difference. If you can’t turn them plus Herro into a very good C or PF Heat will be worse than before.
I still think Duncan plus pick for Stewart is better option and Butler for Houston package (Green, Brooks, Eason and #3 pick) gives the Heat a much better bargaining position to put a younger, more athletic, less expensive and more competitive team on the court.
Okay, so if you parley Herro and, say 3 future first round picks for a Markennen, and get Collier, Edey, Ware, or McCain with pick 15, you’d still think it wouldn’t be good?
Hachimura hasn’t lived up to the expectations, but is decent and had a good year from 3pt range. You’re right about Schifino – a major project who may never pan out, but with the Heat? Who knows? Vanderbilt is an okay backup and still young. My focus was more on flipping the picks and the draftee.
Nope. Not a big Hachimura fan. Good back-up/rotation player, nothing more. Lakers found that out.
I am suggesting that Rui could be a backup/rotation player. The combination of Markennon/Collier or McCain or Carter …… OR the combination of Edey or Ware/Mitchell or Murray are both very appealing to me. Anyway, I’ll agree to disagree on this one.
I don’t think Miami is getting Markkanen or Mitchell without giving away the ranch. However,
If Miami is going to re-tool, might as well think big! Otherwise, Riley should just pick up another back-up center off the trash heap again and play it safe until the trade deadline when he finally realizes he has to blow the whole thing up and sell at bargain basement prices.
I’m fine with this as well. Que sera sera. (we’re both old enough to remember that song haha)
Jimmys not going to hous memphis not ready to win next few years.hed be a perfect fit nyk phil,dallas okc .either one of those teams get jimmy instant contender.and the heat maybe make playoffs next year.one thing about the heat except for a few years since pat has been here weve been a good team.2-3 years mediocrity would suk
Yup. Right again. Memphis really sucks!
In 2022-2023, (before Ja’s gun problems and shoulder injury), the Grizzlies finished 51-31 (two games back of the first place/eventual NBA Champion Denver Nuggets).
Plus their player’s stats can’t hold a candle to Miami’s. Just look at these deplorable numbers for 2023-2024:
Plus, they are in terrible shape regarding draft picks from 2024-2030. See below:
Right. Some people don’t let facts get in the way of their perceptions, opinions, and personal prejudices about teams or certain players therein.
uh what was their record last year mr piggyback criticizer
2024 record got them #9 pick (to go along with # 39 and #58).
i dont look at espn.com and make evaluations.watch the games make them myself 50 good years of nba watching think i can make good evaluations.dont need ira winderman’s 50 years of nba watching to influence me like u do
morant should be thrown out of league what an embarassment he is.your right though on paper good team.bad year last year see what happens this year to them not that we really care coolio
There are several others who should be thrown out too for domestic abuse. But, oh well. Sign of the times. If convicted felon can be president and have his fingers on nuclear codes, anything is possible. What a country!
It looks like JRich intends on returning. I really like this guy and his game. 🙂 https://twitter.com/i/status/1802017589389889896
If the Heat uses Butler, Herro and/or Robinson to upgrade the SG and PF positions with two-way players, drafts a back-up C, uses Jaquez and Jovic to fill the SF position, re-signs Wright and if KLove and JRich opt in, would the team be better in 2024-2025 than they were in 2023-2024? I think it could be both younger and better. The questions are, what players are available via trade, free agency and the draft and is Riley willing to pull the trigger(s)?
On the other hand, if Riley insists on “running it back” the easiest “fixes” are:
Starters: Rozier, Herro, Butler, Bam, Stewart
2nd Unit: Wright, JRich, Jaquez, Jovic, Love/15th pick
Reserves: Williams, Swider, Cain, 2nd Rd pick, Thomas (if he opts in)
See how things are going by January 2025, then decide how to proceed/who to trade.
Yes, the Heat would be better either way. But in the first scenario, they would be better longer.
I think so. I don’t know what Riley is thinking. He may just run it back with a little frontcourt help and defer the big decision(s) until the trade deadline. That could be a brilliant move or a disastrous one, depending on how Jimmy/team does in November, December and January. Time will tell. I’ve re-thought the draft, if Topic is available at #15, it would be crazy not to take him. Otherwise, Heat should take the best available C/PF.
REPORT: Jimmy Butler doesn’t want to play anywhere but Miami.
This report sent red flags to me. History tells me when this occurs the player ends up moving on from the Heat We shall see if this holds tone true.
He doesn’t want to play anywhere but Miami AND he wants a MAX contract extension (free of state taxes).
The only states with no state taxes are: Alaska, Florida, Nevada, New Hampshire, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington, and Wyoming. That leaves his choices FLORIDA, TEXAS AND TENNESSEE! If Miami decides to trade him, it looks like there are TWO logical states to trade him to. I can see a trade with Houston or Memphis on the horizon. Besides the tax benefits, both also fit in nicely with his country music plans.
Did teams get equal value trading Lillard, Gobert, Mitchell, Jae Crowder? Let me help answer that – ABSOLUTELY YES. Why someone thinks Butler wouldn’t bring reasonable value back is weird considering it can be based not on speculation, but on facts with the above mentioned players! And, oh yeah, here’s another great suggestion to improve the team – bring in another aging 34 year old player who has won nothing and missed an average of 29 games (35%) per season the last 5 years??? Gtfoh!
As for the game earlier, I am convinced that Boston deliberately dogged it because they want to win the title in front of their own fans.
Can’t wait for the next 2 weeks to go by so we can start to get a real handle on what moves management will make.
Ppl who say the heat won’t get much for Jimmy are the doom and gloomers round here I’ve noticed. “W/o Jimmy Mia is a playin team” like they haven’t been these last 2 years with Jimmy. A damn shame
First they insist over and over that Butler is the best player on the team (hey, I agree!). Then, in the next sentence, they say we won’t get much if we trade him! What? If the BEST player on your team will not bring in a reasonable return in a trade, then your team must totally suck!
give me a specific team and specific players and picks jimmy can get us specific
Plus, if your best player has no trade value, how can you expect to compete with teams with multiple players who do have trade value? Does not compute.
Exactly. Keep extolling his value to the Heat, but not believing he would be valued by other teams??? Not surprisingly, makes no sense.
Also, remember when he first got here and it was reported that he was in the gym at 5am? It was inspiring and admirable. It was leadership by example. Other players began joining him. More recently, he stays up late watching tennis and then calls in sick the next day. Times have changed. Of course he’d like to stay here. He’s making around $50 million a year to party, play dominoes in Little Havana, sell coffee, and make commercials, including a promo for Bad Boys. He’s missed one third of the season on average the last 5 years. Despite this, he’s been mostly wonderful for the team and made them relevant again. But there are times when a split is beneficial to both sides.
If someone wants to know what we can get for Butler, they need only look at the numerous proposals on the internet. Or, they can just read proposals by our own SunMan and others on HHH.
Excellent point. Can easily go to espn or fanspo site and play around to his hearts desire, most of if not all the trades of Jimmy going to another team works. Through in another team and squared away
I wont happen much, Butler will stay. But I do expect other moves, maybe Dunc and Herro would be involved, and everybody else but JJJ and Jovic.
I don’t think any whale will be available, so that’s that.
healthy jim and terry dam vs jt and jb oh what might have been .can jim be trusted get in good shape and ballout.100 million$question
Make that $214 million question.
witness dallas defense tonight another evidence of why dunc and ty better not be on this team.if they are i will agree with everything rc posts .except when he says defends dunc fastest to 1000(every shot was a 3 just about) and tys 20pt scorer on 20-25 shots a night.i have not seen one player in the nba defend luka btw.
when jalen brown is the best player in the finals thats a joke.nba watered down to many teams.jordan lebron steph magic kareem shaq kobe jalen frgn brown
kendrick perkins makes joel look small.lol.big perk
joel embid on nba pre game show sitting right next to pg 13 with all that cap space talking about winning a champ come to miami paul we have good weather bam spo no tax .phil is cold nurse as a coach injured ss,
what helped boston.lebron steph kd got little father time in them,denver lost 2 key role players.luka ant sga ss but still to young.east all injured.weve witnessed what good defenders like dipo and jimmy could do to jt and jb.not buying boston winning another ring .porz always hurt horford prob retires.we’re not that far away from any contenders,keep jimmy hope he dedicates himself to becoming the best he can be,
Hope in one hand and s*** in the other. $200+M is a lot to gamble on hope. I say play the odds and transition to a younger, more athletic team with two way players who meet Bam’s timeline.Mitchell, Kuzma, Stewart, Murray, Collins, etc., and use draft, G League and free agency to fill out roster.
who does cleve want on our roster for mitchell answer nobody.who does atl want for murray nobody.kuzma collins stewart prob could be had.what does that do for us
back in the day guys wanted to play with d wade.name a reason to play for the heat now unless they like the city.
Bam, Spo, Tax benefit, future potential, get away from losing culture, get out of cold, get away from “less lively” city. Need more?
we are not the only team in nba trying to get better .we dont have wade to lure the whales.i hope im wrong i see mediocrity for a while.lots of other warm weather cities and teams with brighter futures.just keeping it real sunman
After up close exposure to Spo and Bam beginning in training camp July 6th through the Olympics August 4th, I think there may be a few “whales” who may be interested in playing in Miami. I’m sure word will also get around to other players. Bam is a serious, unselfish, hard working, two-way athlete who wants to win. Spo is a very experienced coach with a winning track record who knows how to develop players. Miami culture is real, no state tax, and the winters are warm. If you were a player, would you prefer Miami or Cleveland or some other hell hole? Is that real enough for you?
Kemosabe, stranger speaks with forked tongue!
On the one hand, he keeps saying that Butler is our best player. On the other hand, he keeps suggesting that we won’t get much of anything if we trade Butler. On the one hand, he relentlessly maligned him all season long. On the other hand, he now insists we should keep him and “Hope“ that he plays with more commitment.
I have no doubt another team would want Butler. Taking into account what was received for Gobert, Lillard, Mitchell, even Crowder, I have no doubt that we would get players plus picks that we could add to Rozier or other players, and flip them into a high quality, younger player.
However, to avoid some future, silly, ‘I told you so’ comment, I again say I don’t think they trade him unless he demands a trade.
I can’t remember which team’s blog writer I read recently (maybe Rockets?) that described how excited the fan base would be if they were to get Butler.
he is our best player.u wont get equal value back more than likely
i want jim here for life.heat for life
If Jimmy Butler is your best player, you ain’t winning a championship. Sorry to burst your bubble.
In the recent past, arguably the best player on the Knicks was Randle. They weren’t going to win with him as the best player. Now, you can argue that there are at least 2 or 3 players who are better. If Butler was 3rd option on the Heat, the team would be better.
whales are hunting rings if a whale can come here w/o giving up jimmy id be so happy.but unfort mitchell murray pg 13 prob not coming here ,dont have enough cap room or players to get a whale.sunman
I’m not expecting a whale. Maybe a couple of Great Whites + draft picks.
derek ?
Shiddd I would be happy even with a mako, tigershark, and a hammerhead.
who realistically can we get .were not getting mitchell pg murray trae young etc.second tier dudes
2nd tier guys maybe like lavine, demar,Ingram. If we can’t get Mitchell or Murray. Along with 2 way pf/c or trade butler and herro for players and picks.
For Butler, Herro, Duncan, future pick(s) we can get someone.
Absolutely
Those who want Mia to keep Jimmy all say the same thing……hope this hope that hope hope hope. Hoping a guy who hasn’t played 70 games in 8 years is gonna magically do it at the young tender (pause) age of 35. It’s not about who wants something from Miami as he can be packaged to a team who then sends the assets for Jimmy to a cle or a atl
there a reason why we were competing for champ the last 3 -4 years.that reason not here mediocrity will follow for at least 2-3 years maybe more
Mia was mediocre with Jimmy last year and this year. Did you not watch the games? They have been a playin team teen picking draft picks team. Don’t give me that bs about last years finals run wouldn’t be made possible if strus didn’t go nuclear in the playin. Just skimmed right over my point about getting flipped for assets they would then use to get Mitchell or Murray etc. just so stuck on if Jimmy is here or not. Just hope lmao
Also that Martin should have been the mvp of the ecf. Without him, we don’t even get to the finals. Butler didn’t have the decency to share that spotlight with Martin. And in the finals, Butler was a major no show and insisted he was not injured. He guaranteed he and the Heat would beat the Pelicans in the rematch. Didn’t happen. Said if he were available, the Heat would have beaten the Knicks and Boston. Ridiculous! And the shenanigans with his hairdos that serve no purpose but to draw attention to himself.
It’s just time to move on, trade him and be done with it, been a fun and great experience with him as the leader but now it’s time to “catch up” and or move in the direction the league is…. Youth/ss/consistent 25 ppg scorer. Moving Jimmy along with others can get us there up too pat and co to realize this and make the tough decision
2024 NBA Mock Draft: Top-5 Shakeup, Plus Full 2-Round Predictions with 2 Weeks to Go
15. Miami Heat: Nikola Topićhttps://bleacherreport.com/articles/10124239-2024-nba-mock-draft-top-5-shakeup-plus-full-2-round-predictions-with-2-weeks-to-go
https://www.si.com/nba/heat/miami-heat-trade-rumors-jimmy-butler-to-golden-state-warriors-heating-up-01j09pk73c6q
Ummm what’s going on?
pj wash airplane have come down to earth.u put jim on dallas theyd be fav for ring i believe.
Luka and Kyrie great offense but poor defense. You can hide one on defense but not both. Luke needs a two-way player next to him in backcourt. They can’t afford three max players and a bunch of role players.
kyries a fake ss old now small bad d doesnt do anything well except get to the rim but not like he use to.lukas d makes him unplayable just jason kidding.its worse than u know who.a healthy heat team with a center and a pf can compete with anybody for next few years.lets make a run for2-3 more years.then build it up with another gm
Question for everyone. If Jimmy stays is there any way in hell Miami will be better than the current Boston team? If your answer is no, then the solution should be obvious. Time to re-group, re-tool, evolve.
No, if Jimmy is here next year and beyond kiss contention goodbye. Ofc your gonna say all the right things when it comes to 50+ mill a year in Mia
Make that $113M for two years ($56.5M per year average).
yes bam jim stone jt jb mount edey swallows up slow injured porz,jjj on white.small terry would have a hard time with holiday.like dorrel wright brother and jrich on holiday.were close coolio add j collins im good to go
Boston is going to lose Derrick White and they will still be good, but that dude has been key to their run. They will still be good, and will make a move to solidy his departure, but back to back is brutally tough to do.
They not going b2b last time it happened was with the warriors. For as good as Tatum and brown have been they aren’t Steph and KD. Like Jeff Teague said you knew you weren’t winning against them
Boston will keep evolving and improving. They were the best team out of the gate and remained consistent all year. No other team came close. OKC, T’Wolves, Denver might be ready next year with a few tweaks. OKC with all it’s assets is in the best position to compete with them.
phily nyk milw when healthy as good as boston we are close
Philly is down to cap space, free agents, Embiid, Maxey, Reed and squat. Milwaukee missed thee boat. Should have kept Jrue and upgraded elsewhere. NY is the real threat. Defense, depth and work ethic.
I agree about the Knicks. They have a solid athletic roster, and I think they’ll resign HartensHtein. They have the #24, 25, 38 picks plus whatever they get for Randle, who I think they’ll trade. They could package him up with the picks for a high level player or to move way up in the draft.
Also don’t forget Boston played nothing but injured teams in the east, so next season won’t be such a cake walk.
think healthy ny beats them big
Idk they beat them, but they would come close to doing it, and give a better effort then the mavs.
Top 2 team in offense AND defense is hard for anybody to beat, unless they have injuries.
Even if they didn’t get beat, teams would gave them a hard out, and made it exponentially tougher. Miami would take them to 6 or 7 games at least, cavs would of took it to 6, Mitchell didn’t get hurt and Allen too. Pacers coach lost them 2 games, and Haliburton was hurt. If knicks was full healthy, they would take Boston to 7 with a chance to win.
theyll resign him wont be good only on cs average player until a celtic.didnt look up his #s but traded for jrich says it all
Like every year it depends on how healthy we are, if our youngin’s improve.
Next season it’ll also be about replacing two key rotation players in Caleb and Haywood.
It’s certainly doable if not a certainty.
Without a very good frontcourt starter and more scoring and defense out of PG and/or SG spot, it ain’t going to happen.
It’ll be interesting to see what the guys work on over the off-season and what the offense looks like come the season.
It’s just the nature of the league at this point. After last season I thought we were entering the Denver Era (even though I still hold that series would have been a lot more competitive had Jimmy been healthy). Jokic just looked so uniquely unstoppable–like Lebron did his second year in Miami.
Boston will be probably be a top team, conference and finals favorite again. We’ll probably be “that team no one wants to see in a series”. Pat will be a year older. And we’ll all be surprised by exactly *how* the post season shakes out.
It’s too earlier in the off-season to full on commit to the most dramatic storyline. Let’s work our way there.
TBD (first day after NBA Finals)
Based on the above, and the inevitable outcome of the finals, I now hope the Celtics sweep. This way, we can begin negotiating with our free agents sooner rather than later.
yeah im rooting for a sweep
whos our fa that we want back
caleb hh?theyre replaceable like to keep hh between the 2
Gotta be locksmith, he’ll be cheaper with still some room to grow offensively.
I hope so, but the market’s been crazy. Remember, Strus got $16 million per, Vincent $11 million. Unbelievable.
Well we’ll be fine, if we don’t get either back. We still have Cain and alondes, waiting in the wings.
Free agents? Maybe Wright, G leaguers, JRich and Love on minimum contracts. Miami can’t afford Highsmith or Martin. They, like Strus and Vincent last season, can do better elsewhere.
With the projected salary cap for the 2024-25 season set at $141 million and the projected luxury tax set at $171.3 million, that means the Heat is already a luxury tax team, above the punitive first apron of $178.7 million and not far from crossing the ultra-punitive second apron of $189.5 million.
Miami needs to dump salary, if anything. That’s why the Philadelphia trade sounds so enticing. 5 draft picks plus a buttload of cap space. Riley can get pretty creative with those assets with rebuilding teams like Atlanta, Washington, Utah and others.
The Houston trade doesn’t sound too bad either if #3 pick is included and Miami can keep #15 pick. Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks,Tyler Herro and draft picks gives Riley some ammo to work with. If there’s a will, there’s a way.
Well, that’s pretty much the end for Dallas. Only thing to play for is pride and hope to get one. Interestingly, the only teams to win a game against the Celtics these playoffs are Miami and Indy.
Anyway, we are planning to be in Boston for several days in October. Maybe we should wear Panthers shirts. 😀
great city rc brother lives there been there quite a bit.great sports town,little cold in oct i only go summer time.maybe dunc and ty will be on the celts and we have tillman and hauser
2qbn run never fails
dang, mavs bout to be down 0-3 lol. luka needs to find better way to involve his teammates
ok then, we prolly gonna run back the same team. im fine with it, just hope Jimmy dont miss out too many games
Yup instead of trading him now we gotta hope he doesn’t miss games, something he’s never not done
like this tillman dude sunman what u got on him celts dont need him wasnt he pretty good with memphis
Tillman is a band-aid on a gunshot wound. Ain’t gonna help.
kleeber is dunc unplayable had to get that in
I hope you feel better
cant believe rc thought dunc was a good player feel even better
luka might be worse than dunc on d 2q
Kyrie also isn’t good at D
yes too tyler small
Once an idiot, always an idiot.
rc thats not nice u know better than that .i need to teach u some bball one day at my house.
playing kleeber not good idea kidd
we need bill zito type as gm.pats been great but father time got him.i believe he could of had kyrie but didnt want to give up ty.gave all that $$ to dunc.great great career pat we luv u its time though.sunman gets my vote.hed def be the coolest looking gm
how bout a team of holiday white pj porzingis gafford better than our current team?
What you smokin? Got any more?
I don’t want him to leave either got to see it through.
lively looks like he forgot how to play bball dude looks lost out there
It’s the finals diff kinda pressure on that stage.
yeah he was so good for them until the finals.hard to believe the way he looks now.
He’s a young rookie. He’ll only get better.
Along with Jaquez, one of the bright spots in the league this season.
dallas wins tonight
That comment aged well.
jimmy loves tennis,so fla tennis capitol of the world lots of them train down here. and move here.at my tennis club i have seen ana kournikova and a few other ones forget their names.jims prob waiting for the right european one to hit on lol.im not sure what jimmy we get .but i believe ss jimmy is in the past.the 2023 jimmy was borderline all star.so he should be paid accordingly.if hes looking for luka type $$$ forget it.hes not on brown or tatums level either.just doesnt have the legs anymore.id compare his level to derozan.so what about demars worth believe jimmy falls in there
Basketball mourns the loss of ‘Mr. Clutch
‘West’s journey to basketball greatness began in rural West Virginia, where he used sports as an escape from a turbulent home life. Growing up with a reclusive mother and an abusive father, he found solace in basketball, practicing tirelessly to hone his skills. His dedication paid off, leading to an illustrious career with the Lakers, where he averaged 27 points per game and became a 14-time All-Star.
His defensive prowess and competitive spirit earned him respect across the league. Bill Simmons, a sports journalist, noted in “The Book of Basketball,” “Watching him forty-plus years later is like watching a human basketball camp. His jumper is perfect. His defensive technique is perfect. His dribbling is right out of an infomercial.”
Growing up in Arizona in the 60’s, we had no professional sports teams. The closest teams were in Los Angeles. I grew up watching the Lakers. Jerry West, Elgin Baylor, Wilt Chamberlin, Dick Barnett, Happy Hairston and so many others. It was frustrating to watch them lose every year to the greatest basketball dynasty in NBA history, the Bill Russell led Boston Celtics. Nonetheless, watching “The Logo” glide across the floor was a thing of beauty. I will never forget those early years or the many contributions Jerry West has made to today’s NBA.
Rest in Peace Mr. Clutch. You are gone but will not be forgotten.
“Zeek from Cabin Creak” Chick Hearn used to exclaim after West did something magical
Jerry West was the king of 3-point plays late in games, with his uncanny ability to draw fouls on long range jumpers. I can only imagine what he could of done with our modern 3-pointers.
I am shocked, I tell you!
The only way Miami should consider keeping Butler is IF:
If he does not meet condition #1 or 2, he should be traded this summer for the best possible package.
If he agrees to 1 & 2, but 3, 4 AND 5 are not met, he should still be traded for the best possible package before the deadline (with the understanding that whatever package he brings then will be far less than what Miami can receive for him this summer).
Logic:
West on Spo:
”On Sirius/XM radio last July, shortly after the Heat fell 4-1 to the Denver Nuggets in the NBA Finals, West said of Spoelstra, “Erik Spoelstra, I’ve never seen a better coach than him, I have not. He’s just an unbelievable coach. He and Pat, I think they have a good working relationship there. And he can take players that are pretty good and make them better. They have a system there and they believe in it.””
Man, first Walton, now the Icon. RIP.
West on Riley:
”A year ago, during the Heat’s run through the 2023 NBA Finals, West told USA Today of Riley’s stewardship of the Heat, “Just look at what he’s done in his career, and it’s damn remarkable. You can see his fingerprints over all the stuff they’re doing down there. I mean, they’re never going to quit, and they’re never going to die.””
Many, including me, would disagree about this article. No player is above the team.
I would like to keep Butler, but max. extension is right now out of the question.
If Heat would be at 1st or 2nd place in eastern conference around new year because of strong Butler performance, things could change.