For the second straight year, Jimmy Butler caused a stir with his hairstyle when the Miami Heat gathered for Media Day festivities on Monday. Butler went with an emo look in 2023, which came on the heels of getting extensions a year prior. As far as more consequential on-court topics are concerned, though, Butler and the Heat have been in the news for what the team has not done this summer.
Miami lost both Gabe Vincent and Max Strus in free agency and, with Damian Lillard in Milwaukee and Jrue Holiday in Boston, the Heat are left with a potentially weakened roster. That did not stop Butler from making a pretty bold proclamation on Monday, however, as he told Taylor Rooks of NBA TV that he and the Heat are “gonna go beat Dame, Giannis, and Adrian Griffin on our way to a title.”
“I am happy for Dame … but I’m still gonna be me. I’m gonna go beat Dame, Giannis, and Adrian Griffin on our way to a title.”@JimmyButler sits down with @TaylorRooks to discuss the Damian Lillard trade and expectations for this upcoming season pic.twitter.com/VkJSDRBGhm
— NBA TV (@NBATV) October 2, 2023
The Heat infamously went from the Play-In Tournament to the NBA Finals last season, winning only 44 regular season games and even falling to the Atlanta Hawks in a postseason scenario. Still, Miami’s playoff bonafides are established at this point, and Butler is perhaps the clearest example of a current player that raises his game under the brightest lights. In addition, players on upper-tier teams are almost expected to view the upcoming season with championship urgency, so there is an argument that this is nothing out of the ordinary.
At the same time, Butler is particularly aggressive with his stance here, and he even named Milwaukee’s new head coach in Adrian Griffin. There is a bit of extra sodium coming from the city of Miami after the Lillard trade, but Butler is at least saying the right things and, of course, the Heat could still make a splash to add another top-tier talent between now and February.