Coach Tells Team to ‘Get Over’ Jimmy Butler-Miami Heat Drama
Coach Tells Team to ‘Get Over’ Jimmy Butler-Miami Heat Drama
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On Wednesday, the Miami Heat announced they suspended Jimmy Butler for the second time in three weeks.
“We have suspended Jimmy Butler for two games for continued pattern of disregard of team rules, insubordinate conduct and conduct detrimental to the team, including missing today’s team flight to Milwaukee,” the Heat posted on X.
Butler returned to the Heat’s lineup on Friday (in a 133-113 loss to the Denver Nuggets) for the first time since he was suspended following Miami’s 128-115 loss to the Indiana Pacers on Jan. 2. Miami cited “multiple instances of conduct detrimental to the team” as a reason for the first suspension.
The Heat plan to shop the 35-year-old forward before the trade deadline on Feb. 6 based on Butler’s wishes.
Per ESPN’s Jamal Collier, Miami head coach Erik Spoelstra told the team Thursday morning that they needed to “get over” the drama between the Heat and Butler regarding the two-game suspension.
“The point that I made to our team is get used to it,” Spoelstra said. “Get over it. This is the NBA life; this is the life we chose. If you think it’s going to be predictable, you’re really mistaken.”
Spoelstra argued that the Heat needed to focus on their matchup Thursday night on the road against the Milwaukee Bucks.
It takes a mental fortitude and commitment in terms of the task at hand,” Spoelstra said. “Nothing changes in terms of the task at hand. We have a game tonight, we have enough continuity, we know what our identity is at this point. You can make any excuse you want to, but we get to do what we love.
“We’ve had this happen all season long, so we know the exercise and what we need to do to make those adjustments.”
The Heat enter their contest Thursday night against the Bucks at Fiserv Forum with a 21-21 record. Miami is in ninth place in the Eastern Conference.
