Miami Heat News - MinnesotaSportsFan https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/tag/miami-heat/ Minnesota sports, but different Wed, 08 Jan 2025 19:46:54 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9 https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/cdn-cgi/image/width=32,height=32,fit=crop,quality=80,format=auto,onerror=redirect,metadata=none/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/cropped-cropped-MSF-favicon-1.jpg Miami Heat News - MinnesotaSportsFan https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/tag/miami-heat/ 32 32 Former Minnesota Timberwolves Superstar Jimmy Butler is Unhappy Again… https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/minnesota-timberwolves/minnesota-timberwolves-rumors/star-jimmy-butler-is-unhappy-again/ Wed, 08 Jan 2025 00:57:46 +0000 https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/?p=58795 Jimmy Butler is fed up with his situation yet again. The former Minnesota Timberwolves guard and current Miami Heat star, publicly spoke out about his loss of “joy” and his desire to be traded (per ESPN’s Shams Charania and Brian Windhorst) after Thursday night’s loss to the Indiana Pacers.

Reporter: How did you feel about your performance and focus tonight?

Butler: I felt great. I was focused. Felt like I did my job well. At least what my job is now.

Reporter: When you say what your job is now, we’re not used to seeing you stand in the corner for extended periods like that. Is that a change in the team approach that has cast you that way? And for you to be your best version of yourself, can that be your role and can you thrive to the best of your ability?

Butler: It can be my role here. But that’s not what I’m used to. I haven’t been that since my first, second, third year in the league where I just went out there and just played defense. I competed. I guarded. I tried not to let my man score. That’s what I’m doing now.

Reporter: [Heat] Coach [Eric Spoelstra] was in here saying he wants to get you more at the point and get you more activated, is that something that you’re amenable to? Is that something that might be necessary to get you back closer to the top of your game and your form?

Butler: That ain’t gonna fix it. […]

Reporter: What will fix it? What do you want to see happen to fix it?

Butler: I want to see me get my joy back for playing basketball. Wherever that may be, we’ll find out here pretty soon. But I want to get my joy back. I’m happy here … off the court. But I want to be back to somewhere dominant. I want to hoop. I want to help this team win and right now I’m not doing that.

Reporter: Can you get your joy back [in Miami] on the court?

Butler: Probably not.

Related: The Minnesota Timberwolves Need to Make Another Blockbuster Trade

Butler does not shy away from speaking his heart, which has caused him to receive heat from the media in the past. We’ve seen this type of behavior from Butler when he wants to push his way out of a team.

In the 2017-18 NBA season, Jimmy Butler was an MVP-caliber player when he first arrived in Minnesota. The then-28-year-old dynamic guard averaged 22.2 points, 5.3 rebounds, 4.9 assists and 2.0 steals all while shooting a 47.4 percent clip from the field — taking the Timberwolves to their first playoff appearance in 14 years.

Remember when Jimmy Butler ensued chaos within the Minnesota Timberwolves organization?

Butler seemed like a cornerstone piece alongside Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins, but a blow-up in the following season ended Jimmy’s time with the Timberwolves.

The former No. 30th overall pick was said to be “fed up” with KAT’s “nonchalant attitude” and wanted out of Minnesota. In an act of rebellion, Butler refused to sign an extension and missed the majority of the Timberwolves’ offseason. In a dramatic return to his first practice, Jimmy Butler completely lashed out.

Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN reported that Butler was “vociferous and intense” throughout the entirety of practice. He aimed to send a message to the Timberwolves’ players, coaches and front office. To do so, Butler led the team’s third-stringers to a scrimmage win over the starters and directed an explicit message to general manager Scott Layden: “You f—ing need me, Scott. You can’t win without me.”

After completely dominating the infamous practice, the win-hungry guard stayed in town for only a month longer before being dealt to the Philadelphia 76ers.

Related: Rob Dillingham Injury Update: Minnesota Timberwolves Top Pick Out for a While

Minnesota Timberwolves, Jimmy Butler
Credit: Bruce Kluckhohn-Imagn Images

Should the Timberwolves engage in a Butler Reunion?

Fast-forward to today. Butler is still unsettled, wants out of Miami, and is causing more media drama.

The highly talented forward will be in search of a new destination, and the Minnesota Timberwolves have been rumored to be active ahead of the Feb. 6 trade deadline.

Neither Wiggins, Towns nor Layden are part of the organization, so a deal to bring Butler back to the Western Conference could be something to monitor. A trade centered around Julius Randle and Butler could be in both teams’ interest, however, finding a solution to deal with salaries could pose an issue.

On the season, Butler is averaging 17.6 points — his lowest output since his third year — alongside 5.5 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 1.2 steals per game. The numbers may be concerning, but it’s important to note that Jimmy Butler hasn’t been aided to play his brand of basketball and a fresh start in a new city could be what it takes to revive his “joy”. But until then, lets remind ourselves of how we felt when we were still dealing with Jimmy.

Until any moves are made, the 18-17 Minnesota Timberwolves are slated for a Saturday matchup on the road against the 15-18 Detroit Pistons.

Related: Does a Jerami Grant for Julius Randle Trade Make Sense for the Minnesota Timberwolves?

]]> Wed, 08 Jan 2025 13:46:54 +0000 Minnesota Timberwolves Rumors Minnesota Timberwolves Jimmy Butler Rocks Emo Look for Miami Heat Media Day https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/minnesota-timberwolves/jimmy-butler-hair-emo-look-miami-heat/ Mon, 02 Oct 2023 18:29:03 +0000 https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/?p=44182 It’s difficult sometimes, in the beginning of October, to turn your sports fan attention to winter sports like basketball and hockey. That’s especially true if your favorite baseball team is in the playoffs. Combine postseason baseball with NFL and college football, the average sports fan has more on their sports loving plate than what they can eat.

Related: It’s Twins vs Blue Jays in 1st Round of MLB Playoffs After Chaotic Season Finale in AL

Jimmy Butler rocks emo look at Miami Heat media day

But when former Minnesota Timberwolves disrupter and current Miami Heat leader, Jimmy Butler, rocks a full-fledged “emo” look for the team’s media day, anyone with even the smallest sense of humor needs to stop and appreciate it.

Butler straightened his hair and combed it over his face. He added rings in his eyebrow and lip to top off the look. Remember, pictures from today will be used all season long for 2023-24 national and local broadcasts, highlight reels and news stories.

Jimmy Butler finds new narrative in Miami

Jimmy Butler may not have worked in Minnesota, but since leaving, it’s become clear as to just how much of those issues had to do with personalities clashing between him and Karl-Anthony Towns, at the time. Not to mention, how little then coach Tom Thibodeau did to try and mend/foster that relationship.

Related: Minnesota Timberwolves schedule 2023: TV, channel, and more

Oh well, at least we got Anthony Edwards out of the entire debacle. And now, we can sit back and enjoy Jimmy Butler for who he is — a Miami Heat team leader who plays harder than anyone else on the floor most nights and a locker room troll who wants nothing more than a good laugh out of his teammates — not for the locker room debacle he orchestrated while with the Timberwolves.

Eric Strack | Minnesota Sports Fan

]]> Mon, 02 Oct 2023 13:29:08 +0000 Minnesota Timberwolves Anthony Edwards is Quitting Fast/Fried Food https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/minnesota-timberwolves/anthony-edwards-is-quitting-fast-fried-food-minnesota-timberwolves/ Wed, 05 Oct 2022 18:08:08 +0000 https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/?p=40630 Anthony Edwards was the only Minnesota Timberwolves star, who played in the team’s preseason opener vs Miami on Tuesday night, and he shined. The Heat played Bam Adebayo, Kyle Lowry and Tyler Herro but it didn’t matter. Ant went 9 of 15 (23 minutes) from the floor, scoring 24 points, grabbing 3 rebounds and dishing an equal 3 assists.

Preseason games, especially the opener, aren’t the best barometer for regular season success. Still, Edwards just looked different last night.

Ant Doubles Down on Commitment Level

He looks bigger, stronger and more confident. And that’s for a reason. According to reports, Anthony Edwards put 10 pounds of good weight on during the offseason. He re-dedicated himself to his workouts and, even, gave up fried/fast food during the week.

Now that the season is starting up, Ant is quitting his weekend fast food binges too. This is a big deal, given how much he loves those fried guilty pleasures. But when you get to the NBA, and everybody around you exudes talent too, it’s the little things that set you apart from the pack. Food is fuel, after all.

Edwards credited Timberwolves Vice President of Sports Science and Performance Javair Gillett with pushing him through a rigorous weight training program this summer. Gillett would sometimes move all of the equipment outside of the gym in the thick Atlanta heat to bring a new challenge to the 21-year-old.

He made it a point to get in better shape and make some adjustments to his diet — he cut out fried foods during the week this summer and plans to eliminate them altogether now that the season has started — because he knows so much more is going to be demanded of him this season. Patrick Beverley and Jarred Vanderbilt, two of the Wolves’ best perimeter defenders, were traded to get Gobert, so more of that responsibility will fall on his shoulders.

Jon Krawczynski (The Athletic)

Ant Has No Ceiling

If Anthony Edwards really is dedicated to greatness, his ceiling doesn’t exist. He has enough talent to be the best player in the NBA. But talent only takes you so far. Ant was already a hard working youngster, before this offseason began. But everyone in the NBA is hardworking these days.

Once you start maneuvering your diet toward being the highest-graded fuel for your body, you’re reaching a commitment level that goes above and beyond what the average athlete is willing to sacrifice. And if Anthony Edwards becomes a top-10 player over the next year or two, the Minnesota Timberwolves could find themselves playing in the types of games that nobody here has even dreamed of, since Kevin Garnett’s departure.

Eric Strack | Minnesota Sports Fan

]]> Wed, 05 Oct 2022 13:08:13 +0000 Minnesota Timberwolves Timberwolves Fans Are So Desperate, it’s Embarrassing… https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/minnesota-timberwolves/timberwolves-fans-are-so-desperate-its-embarrassing/ https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/minnesota-timberwolves/timberwolves-fans-are-so-desperate-its-embarrassing/#respond Thu, 27 Feb 2020 20:08:01 +0000 https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/?p=22180

Oh no…. I’ve upset Timberwolves fans on Twitter…

It’s been a rough history between the Timberwolves fans on Twitter (and elswhere tbh), that haven’t already blocked me. Nobody likes the guy who claims to be the “Real MN Sports Fan”, according to his handle, then repeatedly runs your favorite Minnesota team into the ground.

What Wolves fans don’t realize, is that my actions (hit blogs and capitalized tweets) are born out of love and that my hostility comes from a place of sacrifice. I act this way for you… the fellow fan

I know, that it is very difficult for fans to see the long term picture clearly. I struggle with it too. It’s unnatural to cheer for your favorite teams to lose… but someone has to LOUDLY let the Timberwolves brass (clearly Gersson has heard myself and others) know that we are also smart enough to realize that losing/tanking is better for the team’s future, than winning meaningless games that won’t result in playoff appearances. Someone in the fanbase has to call for the tank so they know there won’t be anarchy if they keep losing.

I am ok with being that hated, loud figure, if that’s what it will take. Nail me to that cross, so I can die for you Wolves fans. You have bigger lives to live. You want to sit down and relax, when you get home from work or, for younger kids, home from school and activities. Maybe your job sucks or you deal with bullies all day at school…

I was living the adult hustle and bustle life with a kid and a cubicle job until last year. I get it. Now I just get called stupid on the internet for being smarter than everyone else. I know, I know… but someone has to carry this cross so just thank me with a follow and let’s move on.

Fans don’t want to root for their team to lose. You want to sit back in your recliner or on your favorite couch, grab that beer, glass of wine, or other semi-illegal recreational activity…. and you want to cheer for your favorite teams to win.

For sports fans, that’s natural. When your team loses, you want to be mad about it. When they win, you want to celebrate…. (especially when you beat the guy who strolled into town as the savior, but then left it as nothing more than a radiation-poisoned wasteland left by nothing short of the NBA player version of a nuclear bomb)

But my tweets on the subject (and their expected and associated aftermath) are not a reflection of last night’s win. Sure, I want us to lose every game possible so we can get better, because I am willing to be the sacrificial lamb of this fanbase, but I can’t expect others to be happy about it.

Like I said in my tweet above, it’s the fanbase going at Jimmy (publicly), as if last night’s win meant anything to the storyline of our broken narrative or anything to either party’s future…

Again, it is one thing to feel good about a win as a fan. It also feels good to talk shit, as a fan. That is natural too. Some might argue (I wouldn’t but others might) that I talk too much shit, especially given my 5-9, 140 lb frame, so I understand the urge to throw anything possible back in Jimmy’s face.

But sometimes, if you talk shit, you look like a fucking idiot…. and this is one of those times, Wolves fans.

The Minnesota Timberwolves have been a disaster of a franchise for almost all of its existence. Kevin Garnett saved us for 10 years so we avoided being a complete shit stain on the underwear of the NBA for our entire existence. When you pull back the curtain though, like many former players and employees from that era have done, it was ugly behind the scenes throughout KG’s tenure too.

Yes, I am starting to trust in what Gersson Rosas is doing and I am comforted by the fact that other trusted names around the league continue to praise him as a hire, and what he’s done since. But our redemption day on Jimmy Butler wasn’t last night.

Jimmy has built his career on playoff games and massive matchups that have raised him into one of the biggest stars in the NBA. He has played in 55 playoff games during his 8 seasons in the NBA.

The Timberwolves, over their 32 year existence, have played in 52 playoff games. Jimmy also has more wins than the Wolves over his 8 years (compared to our 32), with 22 victories to our 18.

This season, Jimmy will add more games and more wins to his playoff total. The Wolves will not. Who knows what that ratio will look like when Butler retires, but what I do know now, is this is not the time to be talking shit to him. We may never get a good chance. He might get away with all of his terrible transgressions, free of charge. That’s up for KAT, Saunders, Rosas and Co. to decide.

It’s the Timberwolves’ fault that their fanbase is this desperate… that they would stoop this low to throw some shade back at someone who deserves it so badly… Fans having nothing else left but to put such weight into a pitiful regular season win (WHEN WE ARE TRYING TO TANK), is the saddest part of this whole tragedy.

But, at least everyone is finally in agreement on Rosas being the right guy for the job, if there is one…. he even hides his agenda and fights rumors better than his peers already.

Eric Strack | Minnesota Sports Fan

]]> https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/minnesota-timberwolves/timberwolves-fans-are-so-desperate-its-embarrassing/feed/ 0 Thu, 27 Feb 2020 14:09:38 +0000 Minnesota Timberwolves Nobody Cares About Timberwolves vs. Jimmy Butler https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/minnesota-timberwolves/nobody-cares-about-timberwolves-vs-jimmy-butler/ https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/minnesota-timberwolves/nobody-cares-about-timberwolves-vs-jimmy-butler/#respond Wed, 14 Aug 2019 19:33:43 +0000 https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/?p=17581 Think back to your dating days… or if you are still dating then answer me this question: which ex-partner(s) do/did you miss the most when relationships ended?

Was it the girl/guy who kept calling, texting, and annoying you OR was it the one who left and was posting party selfies to the ‘gram hours later?

It’s the ladder. You want what you can’t have. You want what doesn’t want you.

So, Jimmy Butler must really miss me because I couldn’t care less about him. I’ve unfollowed him on Instagram and Twitter (oh the horror). I don’t even look twice when he comes up on a push notifications anymore. I literally wouldn’t care if he walked off the face of this flat earth tomorrow, hand-in-hand with his friend, Kyrie Irving.

Now, I thought others in Minnesota felt the same way about Jimmy as I did, until the NBA schedule was released yesterday, via CBS Sports, and Jimmy Butler happened to on the docket for home game number one… because of course.

Look, I get it. Timberwolves writers need something to write about right now and the schedule drop, via ESPN, doesn’t bring in clicks all by itself so you need to find storylines… but this was everywhere and does anybody really care?

Jimmy Butler did his best to torpedo the Minnesota Timberwolves franchise and may have succeeded. According to 888sport, the Wolves are around +25000 to win the NBA Finals in 2019-20…. yeah, I had to triple-check that number too. That usually ranks ahead of just Cleveland, Charlotte, and Phoenix, — END OF LIST.

Jimmy should feel like shit for for leaving the franchise in ruins, like he did. He doesn’t though, because he is a terrible person. But, I’ve said my piece on Jimmy Butler and haven’t thought about him in a Wolves uniform since.

Don’t make Jimmy Butler feel anymore important than he already believes he is. Fraudulently important…

Eric Strack | Minnesota Sports Fan

]]> https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/minnesota-timberwolves/nobody-cares-about-timberwolves-vs-jimmy-butler/feed/ 0 Mon, 19 Jun 2023 07:16:25 +0000 Minnesota Timberwolves