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Jimmy Butler is no stranger to controversies. At seemingly every destination he's been at throughout his NBA career, it has ended badly. Of course, it's not easy to find a happy ending everywhere, but Butler's exits from multiple teams have been shrouded in bravado and a bit of randomness.
His exits from the Minnesota Timberwolves and Philadelphia 76ers speak for themselves, but the end of his time with the Miami Heat was shocking. Throughout this current season, no one could decipher if Butler was ever injured or just didn't want to play. That led to suspensions by the team, and ultimately a trade to the Golden State Warriors. Butler was clearly upset with the Heat, with many opining it was just because he wanted a new contract.
Jimmy Butler felt undervalued and unwanted by Miami Heat
On Thursday, a report emerged that shed more light on Butler's fallout with the Heat. Plugged-in NBA reporter Marc Spears published a story with quotes from Butler and some information from his own sources. Butler apparently felt undervalued and unwanted by the Heat.
[With the Warriors] "I saw a group that wanted me to be a part of it," Butler said. "That's all you ever wanted to be is wanted in this life, not just in this league. In anything, you want to be wanted"... Butler wanted to be traded because he felt the Heat were moving in a direction without him in mind and he wanted to be more valued, sources said.
No one is quite sure what Butler means by "moving in a direction without him". Perhaps he's talking about teammates Tyler Herro and Bam Adebayo taking on more of a load offensively over the past couple of seasons, but that should have benefited Butler, who at times was a one-man army for the team.
Even after these comments, many fans still believe Butler was only ever angling for a bigger contract. Perhaps the Heat simply didn't want to give it to him due to his age and injury history.
Meanwhile, Butler continues performing in an outstanding manner with the Warriors. Golden State has now won 11 straight games with Butler in the lineup, and are 13-1 when he plays.