Some fans cheered when he came out, while many others booed. Every time he got the ball during the game, there was a lot of booing from all corners of the arena.
In the end, Jimmy Butler’s return to Miami was a success for the Heat.
Before the game on Tuesday night, the Heat honored Butler’s 5½ years with the team by showing a tribute video in the arena as part of the Golden State Warriors’ starting lineup introduction. That was one of the few highlights for the Warriors, as Butler scored 11 points in a 112-86 defeat.
“I got a lot of love for this city, for the fanbase here,” Butler said after the game. “The video was nice. I won’t say there was a lot of emotions, though.”
Butler seemed to watch the 40-second video as he said he would, though he added that it didn’t matter to him whether the Heat made one or not. He received a warm welcome from Heat public-address announcer Michael Baiamonte, who introduced him the same way as when Butler played for Miami, and Butler waved to acknowledge the crowd’s reaction.
It was a little unusual for him, though. When he got to the arena, Butler took a few extra moments to figure out where to go.
“I was confused,” Butler said. “Haven’t been on this side in a minute.”
He says there are no hard feelings between him and the Heat, even though he was traded to the Warriors about a month and a half ago after a difficult ending to his time with Miami, which included being suspended by the team three times in his final weeks there.
The tribute video featured many of Butler’s memorable moments from his time with the Heat, including the famous image of him looking tired and slumped over a courtside barrier during a game in the 2020 NBA bubble.
“The energy in the building was great,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. “If you’re a competitor, you love this kind of environment. We didn’t do any kind of extra motivational speech.”
Warriors coach Steve Kerr might not fully agree with that
“I think the main part of Jimmy’s return was the Heat were ready, and Spo had them ready,” Kerr said.
This was an important game for the Heat, who are working to make up for the losses from a 10-game losing streak that ended earlier this week. It was one of their best performances of the season, as they never trailed, held the Warriors to 40% shooting, and made an impressive 68% of their 3-point shots.
“Was this like a regular game? Yeah, I think so,” Heat guard Tyler Herro said. “The circumstances, who was coming in here, we were ready a little more. But for me, it was a regular game.”
Butler was unhappy with the Heat for not offering him a contract extension and had problems with his role in the last few weeks of his time with the team. The Heat weren’t pleased with how Butler missed about 25% of their games and how he aired his complaints publicly in his final months.
Butler got his extension — two years, $111 million — from the Warriors, and Golden State is now 16-4 in his first 20 games. To be fair, two of those four losses, including Tuesday’s, came when Stephen Curry was out of the lineup.
“We definitely need 30 back,” Butler said, referring to Curry by his jersey number. “We want him to be right. We’re still expected to put up a better effort than we put up the last two games. But if he’s back, I think it’s going to be different.”
Fans, as they often do when a top player leaves their team, have been vocal with their anger towards Butler on social media. Butler knows his time in Miami didn’t end well, but he believes both sides share responsibility for the messy departure.
“I wonder if they look at the Heat the same way,” Butler said. “It ain’t like I was the one who was doing everything. It’s got to be 50-50, maybe 51-49 — 49 towards them, 51 towards me. But there’s no way that I was the cause of all of this.”
Butler was suspended for a total of 14 games with the Heat before being traded. However, the Heat have a tradition of welcoming back players who were All-Stars or champions with the team. Butler was an All-Star in Miami and helped the team reach three Eastern Conference Finals and two NBA Finals.
He was booed when he touched the ball after the game started, although there were some cheers when he scored the first basket for the Warriors. Not much else went his way, and when the game ended, he greeted a few friends courtside before heading to the Warriors’ locker room.
The Warriors have a day off in Miami on Wednesday, allowing Butler to spend another day with his kids, who are still in South Florida, before the team leaves for New Orleans on Thursday.
“This one’s over with,” Butler said. “Put it behind us, go eat some food and enjoy the sunshine tomorrow.”
