Butler sees Heat constructed to ‘win it all’ in 2021
Jimmy Butler didn’t play in the preseason, but the forward is ‘ready to go.’ He’s also excited about the Heat’s new additions and is high on KZ Okpala’s progress.
Jimmy Butler hasn’t played in live action in more than two months, but the All-Star said he’s “ready to go” when theHeat opens the regular season Wednesday against the Orlando Magic.
In the meantime, the 31-year-old has been acclimating himself to his new teammates and he’s impressed by what he saw in the Heat’s two preseason games and throughout practice in Miami.
“I’ve seen their will to win. I think that’s the only thing that matters. We know what they bring to the table talent-wise, what they’ve done in the league for a certain amount of years,” Butler said, “and they’re coming in here, they’re working, doing whatever you ask them to do toward that one common goal to win, so, for me, that’s what I pay attention to: What are you doing to affect winning? How can you help us win it all? I think they’re giving that their all in practice.”
The forward saved his most lofty praise, though, for a player who’s not technically a new addition. KZ Okpala was one of the Heat’s breakout stars of the preseason after he scored 24 points while
shooting 9 of 15 and 6 of 10 from three-point range in Miami’s 117-105 win against the Toronto Raptors. Butler believes “he’s going to be a really great
player.”
Butler, however, is most excited about what the small forward can do on the other side of the floor. Okpala also had five rebounds, a steal and a block Friday in Tampa, and Butler sees some similarities between himself and the Heat’s second-round pick in the 2019 NBA draft.
“He has his own unique skill set and I think he’s carving it up in practice. He’s constantly learning, trying to get better on both ends of the floor,” Butler said. “That’s my favorite part about him. He cares probably more about getting the stop than he does about getting the bucket. For me, that’s how I started off in the league, so a lot of what I see in him is kind of like what I was whenever I was a young guy in the league.”
With the Heat slated to open the 2020-21 season Wednesday in Orlando, Miami is at least likely to start the year with the roster as it is currently constructed. The Heat has inquired with the Houston Rockets about potentially trading for James Harden, but time is running out to make a deal before the season begins this week.
In November, president Pat Riley said he’d “like to run this thing back” after Miami reached the 2020 NBA Finals in Butler’s first season with the Heat. For the most part, Miami is doing just that, and those new additions — plus internal improvement — are the Heat’s best chance to improve on last year.
Last month, Miami took Precious Achiuwa with its first-round pick in the NBA draft to be a backup forward to All-Star post player Bam Adebayo, then the Heat signed wing Avery Bradley and forward Moe Harkless as replacements for Derrick Jones Jr., Jae Crowder and Solomon Hill, who all departed in free agency. Throw in Okpala’s growth from nonfactor as a rookie to potential rotation player this season, and Miami has reconstructed a group of reserves and role players to ideally complement its core even better.
“We’re championship caliber,” Butler said. “The group that Coach Pat, and [coach Eric Spoelstra and general manager Andy Ellsburg] have put together is to get over the hump that we couldn’t reach last year. I think everybody’s locked in. We’re going to continually grow, we’re going to continually get better each and every day, and continually learn each other’s strengths, but I think our goal is to win it all.”
The Heat has yet to test out its new combination in an actual game. Butler didn’t play in either of Miami’s preseason games last week — he said “it was a mutual decision” with the Heat — so his impressions are based entirely off watching from the bench and practicing with the newcomers.
Spoelstra isn’t concerned about whether Butler will be ready to go Wednesday at the Amway Center. The Heat’s behind-the-scenes work at AmericanAirlines Arena has Butler ready to play in Miami’s new-look lineups.
“The guys look real comfortable and that’s all that I would like for them to do is continue to play,” Butler said. “Even whenever I get back, play the same way. That’s what’s going to get us over the hump, that’s what’s going to help us win — us doing this thing as a team — so I like what I was seeing and I’m excited to get back out there on Wednesday.”