OKC Thunder vs. Miami Heat, 2019-20 team preview
Which Jimmy Butler will the Heat get?
Whether you’re a fan of Jimmy Buckets or not the reality is he doesn’t suffer fools nor does he keep his feelings to himself. The reputation he’s developed isn’t just an offshoot of what happened in Minnesota. There were issues in Chicago after Coach Thibodeau left as Butler never took to Fred Hoiberg. And, for as much as things seemed to improve in Philly, the reality is Jimmy didn’t want to stay there in spite of Philly being willing to give him the bigger contract with more years. That in itself negates all the comments that were made where he implied the relationship with Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons was good.
However, in fairness to Jimmy, he wasn’t the only one who exited the 76ers as JJ Redick also bolted to join another young squad and we’re only one summer removed from other free agents not being interested in joining the 76ers youngsters. As noted in the previous slide, if there was ever a player perfectly suited for the Heat culture it’s Jimmy with his commitment to hard work and his gritty two-way effort. Therefore, this is likely a moot point but if other members of the Heat become disenchanted let’s keep an eye on how Butler deals with any drama that arises.
Fallout from players who were shopped and remain:
As far back as July the word on the street was the Heat were still going to work with Goran Dragic to find a suitable trade partner for him. Flash forward to season start and he’s still in a Heat jersey. Presumably, any deal Riley makes to get another point guard will include Dragic.
The Heat is still working on options to complete the Jimmy Butler sign and trade with Philadelphia, according to a league source. Out of respect for Goran Dragic, the Heat are working with him and his representatives to find a trade partner by July 6.
— Ramona Shelburne (@ramonashelburne) July 1, 2019
The question is how this affects the point guard and by association his teammates. Let’s not forget a season after Dragic won the 2014 Most Improved Player Phoenix he dropped a bomb before the 2015 trade deadline stating he no longer trusted the front office and therefore would not re-sign in the summer.
At the time the Suns boasted an impressive embarrassment of point guard riches with Dragic, Eric Bledsoe, and Isaiah Thomas. The latter was acquired in case the Suns were unable to re-sign Dragic but the move ironically resulted in his disenchantment. So, how will Dragic feel about Miami now, knowing he was on the block?
In addition, how does this affect Olynyk and Jones Jr.? Spoelstra and Riley have a good grasp on the team and don’t allow drama to seep into the locker room. They rule with an iron fist as evidenced by James Johnson being suspended until the hit the team’s required fitness level and Dion Waiters was suspended a game for actions considered detrimental to the team.
✍️ pic.twitter.com/XoYWfcioLG
— Brendan Tobin (@Brendan_Tobin) October 20, 2019
To that end, just as this article was about to post I see Dion has taken to social media to take shots at Spo and the rook Herro. Don’t be surprised if he never plays for the Heat again as they don’t tolerate this type of insubordinate behavior. I’d post the other tweets but there is NSFW wording in it — so trust me and just pull it up on Twitter.