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Jimmy Butler recently went viral for his comments about where the Miami Heat would be if he was able to play in the playoffs, but it appears his team's president, Pat Riley, isn’t too happy with his comments.
Butler was seen in a video that circulated on social media talking about how the Boston Celtics and the New York Knicks would be "at home" if he were playing, implying that his presence on the court with the Heat would’ve resulted in them not losing in the first round. Butler sprained his MCL during the Play-In Tournament, which led to him missing the first round.
Riley spoke to media on Monday, where he was asked his thoughts on Butler’s comments.
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Pat Riley looks on during Udonis Haslem's jersey retirement on Jan. 19 at Kaseya Center in Miami. (Issac Baldizon/NBAE via Getty Images)
"For him to say that, I thought is that Jimmy trolling, or is that Jimmy serious?" Riley said. "If you’re not on the court playing against Boston, if you’re not on the court playing against the New York Knicks, you should keep your mouth shut and your criticism of those teams."
The message from Riley is pretty clear here, as the Heat are not, in fact, playing anymore in the playoffs, while the Celtics and Knicks both moved on to the second round.
In the video, Butler can be heard saying, "If I was playing, Boston would at home, New York damn sure would be at home. Josh Hart? C’mon, man."
He also jokingly said that he wanted to beat Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau to a pulp on the court, to which the veteran coach responded by saying the exact same thing to reporters ahead of the Knicks’ first round matchup with the Indiana Pacers on Monday.
Jimmy Butler of the Miami Heat prepares to shoot a free throw during the game against the Washington Wizards at Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 2. (Kenny Giarla/NBAE via Getty Images)
"Who?" Thibodeau said on Sunday. "I don’t know him. But I’ll beat him to a pulp."
Riley also has a strong connection to the Knicks, having been their head coach from 1991-95 before he joined the Heat. He led the Knicks to the NBA Finals during the 1993-94 campaign, when the team went 57-25.
Riley’s Heat made a Finals run last season, shocking everyone as they defeated the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round and continued to vanquish the Eastern Conference competition before losing to the Denver Nuggets in the final series of the season. Butler was a key piece in making that happen.
Pat Riley looks on before Game 5 of the 2023 NBA Finals between the Miami Heat and the Denver Nuggets at the Ball Arena in Denver on June 12, 2023. (Issac Baldizon/NBAE via Getty Images)
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But Riley doesn’t want to hear hypotheticals from Butler, whether he was "trolling" or not. The two teams he mentioned still have a chance to hoist the Larry O'Brien Trophy, while the Heat are already looking ahead to the 2024-25 season.
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