It Should Deeply Unsettle Knicks Fans How Unbothered Jimmy Butler Appeared To Be Throughout The Heat's Loss In Game 2
I get that New York Knicks fans haven't had much to cheer about for, oh, decades now...and that such raucous behavior comes with the territory when you're an enemy in the confines of Madison Square Garden.
But uhh...if there were ever a top-three list of professional basketball players you do NOT want to piss off or antagonize whatsoever, Miami Heat superstar Jimmy Butler is at the top of said list. This man insists his "Playoff Jimmy" persona isn't a thing, yet every time the playoffs roll around, Butler transforms from a quiet, underrated All-Star to a straight-up big stage assassin who snickers in the face of long odds like Han Solo entering an asteroid field.
The eighth-seeded Heat, without their best player and still without Tyler Herro, damn near took a 2-0 lead back to Miami on Tuesday night. Got some pretty decent contributions from the typical cast of no-name sensations:
Meanwhile, Butler was sitting courtside in street clothes and couldn't look like he gave less of a fuck. Seemingly not at all impressed with what he saw from the Knicks. Dude was mowing down popcorn like he was catching a matinee show with a minimal audience:
I don't know, Knickerbocker lovers. Y'all might be in trouble. This is the same guy who willed an underdog Miami squad past the East regular-season champion Bucks in five games. Butler had a nice 24-11-4-2 line in New York during Game 1's win and played 43 freaking minutes. He may not longer be around Coach Thibs, but Butler doesn't mind racking up the mileage when all the chips are down. Unfortunately, a freak play led to a rolled ankle.
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Game 3 isn't until Saturday. Even after Butler's ugly-looking injury, he was still walking around like this prior to Tuesday's tip-off:
The Heat should be able to get Butler back almost a week out from when he initially got hurt if that bit of footage is any indication. And hell, it took a fourth-quarter surge from the Knicks to even up the series as it is. Miami didn't even have Herro or Victor Oladipo for that matter to rely on for depth in Butler's absence.
So congrats to New York for now. All I'm saying is…don't sleep on Jimmy Buckets/Playoff Jimmy/whichever nickname Jimmy Butler will accept. His demeanor and entire being is the epitome of "built different." Straight-up competitive sicko. He's wired to rally around adversity and getting his teammates to do so with him. This Miami bunch is a band of misfits. Overlooked dudes who've overachieved and self-actualized on the hardwood beyond most of their wildest dreams. Butler is the tone-setter for this whole #HEATCulture movement.
And here he was, in one of the biggest sporting and entertainment venues on the continent, embracing his role as the villain, seated like a Kubrickian antagonist, scarfing down snacks like Brad Pitt — and rising at the end to warn any and all shit talkers to pipe down. Jimmy Butler is coming back. Probably Saturday. Get your fucking popcorn ready.
Twitter @MattFitz_gerald/TikTok