The Miami Heat and Jimmy Butler are finally moving on after an unhappy few months in 2024-25 so far.
The whispers over the Miami Heat and Jimmy Butler’s unhappiness turned into the NBA’s worst kept secret and then exploded over the past month.
Butler was suspended three times by the Heat, before the team finally relented and made him available for trade.
Miami ended up trading Butler to the Golden State Warriors, a trade which one former NBA star has described as a better deal for the Heat.
Heat coach Erik Spoelstra paid tribute to his Miami Heat players for the way they have dealt with the turmoil of the past few weeks.
And while it has not been an easy period, there is still an admiration among the Heat players for Butler’s abilities.
Heat star Duncan Robinson told The Young Man And The Three that while there have been ‘challenging moments’, this is a tribute to Butler’s full-on attitude, and feels he has benefited from playing alongside him.
Robinson said: “Anybody would say that Jimmy had an incredible stint in Miami. I mean, if it wasn’t the best basketball of his career, it was damn near.
“I feel like I’ve been a beneficiary of being his teammate. There have been great moments, there have been challenging moments.
“That’s sort of what you get when you get somebody that’s as competitive and spirited as he is. He’s a ruthless competitor, for sure.”
Robinson said that when people ask him about Jimmy Butler, his response is always led towards the Warriors star’s competitiveness.
He said: “That was always my takeaway. Whenever someone asked me like, ‘Jimmy, what’s his game like? Or what makes him so good?’
“Like he’s the only player that that I’ve seen, or the player who does it the most, where he’s just like competitive spirit and will, is what separates him.
“You look at his games like, yeah, he has skill, obviously, he’s got good footwork, he’s athletic, but he’s not like, there’s nothing that’s extraordinary about anything that he does other than that, like his competitive spirit and will.”
Duncan Robinson feels a tinge of sadness to see Jimmy Butler leave Miami, and believes his own career has certainly been helped by the two-time finalist.
“I think I learned a lot just from being in the locker room with them and competing with him. I’ve also been able to play in some really exciting environments and fun stages because of him, what he’s been able to build the playoffs.
“So obviously, sad to see him go, happy to see him go, if that’s where he wants to be. Obviously [he] didn’t want to be in Miami any longer. So, you know, end of an era.”
