Jimmy Butler has his hair ready for games at media day. In the last two seasons, Jimmy Butler has come to media day in a light mood. There was “Rasta Jimmy” with no mustache. Then there was “Emo Jimmy.” The Heat did pretty good — they went to the Eastern Conference Finals, the NBA Finals, upset the NBA’s top teams. After the light prank, Jimmy would put in his regular braids. A regular formula.
Jimmy Butler and the NBA regular season
Look at this article here from ESPN. They reported this gesture casually. So did NBA.com in this article here Jimmy Butler said to reporters that he was done with pranks, i.e. “No Shenanigans.” Does this mean that Jimmy Butler is going to play well in the regular season and be the league MVP? No.
Look at this article here from Fadeaway World last season. This quote is telling about how Jimmy Butler views the regular season and qualifying for All-Star Games and off-season awards.
“What you think? You think I’m worried about some reward? The only reward I give a damn about is those banners over there. That’s all I told Spo [Erik Spoelstra], I told Pat [Riley]… I’m going to help us get that.”
Jimmy Butler and Pat Riley
This message is to the rest of the team that he is here to lead. Is this move purely out of a sense of purpose? No. Pat Riley put him “on notice,” with an milquetoast comment to a extending Jimmy Butler with the Heat. Pat Riley scolded Butler during the playoffs when he made that ridiculous video talking smack about the teams (Celtics, Knicks) still in the playoffs. Game recognizes Game — Jimmy Butler knows he needs to go out and perform.
The Heat welcome competition
The Eastern Conference’s top 5 teams are very tough. Also, the Heat haven’t done well against the elite teams in the East. Look at my article here on the Heat season preview on our site. Every team in the East smells blood. They are positioning themselves to compete against the Celtics for the Eastern Conference title. When a reporter asked Coach Spoelstra about the competition, he scoffed. This will become a hashtag, “You sound scared.”
