There was a time when Jimmy Butler and the Miami Heat felt inseparable. He embraced the culture, delivered in big moments, and together, they made deep playoff runs. But as the season unraveled, so did the relationship. Pat Riley and Butler didn’t see eye to eye, and eventually, Butler forced his way to the Golden State Warriors.
Now, both sides are moving forward. Butler gets a fresh start alongside Stephen Curry in Golden State, while Miami shifts toward a new iteration built around Tyler Herro and Andrew Wiggins. But not everyone is on board with how Butler handled his exit.
For one, former Heat star Tim Hardaway Sr. didn’t mince words, straight-up calling the current Warriors star a crybaby for pushing his way out while still under contract and disrupting what Miami had built.
“I didn’t agree with what he was doing,” said Hardaway. “You’re under contract. You’re a baby. You’re a crybaby because they said no to you. We used to get no said to us all the time and we used to know how to take it. It is what it is. It’s a question. You get a yes or a no. You might not like the question but you can’t deviate and mess up the team.”
Tim Hardaway takes aim at Jimmy Butler
“[Jimmy Butler’s] a baby. [He’s] a crybaby”
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— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) February 18, 2025
