Former Heat Champion, Finals MVP calls out Jimmy Butler for his approach to basketball

The Miami Heat have had a turbulent season. Largely due to controversy between their star player, Jimmy Butler, and Heat’s team president Pat Riley. After Butler didn’t receive an extension, and Riley had some harsh comments about him, Butler all but quit on his team. This forced the Heat to trade Butler to Golden State. Now, after the Warriors have been eliminated from the playoffs, a former Heat player and NBA champion voiced his opinion on Butler’s approach to the game. 

Dwayne Wade took to his podcast to reveal his true opinion on Butler’s departure from Miami and playoff flameout with the Warriors. 

On Wade’s podcast, Time Out with Dwayne Wade, he said, “I think the thing with Jimmy is, I didn't like the way he just approached the game…I know Jimmy is a pass-first guy. I know he's about getting his teammates the ball, and wants to see them shine. But it's a point where, you're getting $60 (million). This ain't working. You gotta go…Getting too close in that paint, and not putting that ball up to that basket, that's bad offense."

Wade also added that Riley’s decision not to extend Butler was likely just as much about his injury history as his recent passive approach to offense. 

This is something that many Warriors fans felt during this year’s playoffs. After Stephen Curry went down, the Warriors were banking on “Playoff Jimmy” to be able to carry their offense in Curry’s absence. 

Unfortunately, Butler did not live up to that expectation. 

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Butler averaged under 20 points per game in these playoffs while only shooting 44.7% from the field. More damning however was that after Curry went down in Game 1 of the Timberwolves series, and Butler only eclipsed 17 points once in the next four games without him. 

So, Wade may have a point, Butler needs to be more aggressive offensively to make an impact. Still, getting called out by a Hall-of-Famer for your approach to the game won’t go over well with Butler. 

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