Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Butler offers color, candor with Rapinoe and Bird on Instagram
Jimmy Butler long has been known for zigging while others zag.
So who isn’t watching “The Last Dance,” the Michael Jordan documentary that has the idle NBA abuzz?
That would be the Miami Heat’s All-Star forward.
“I haven’t seen this MJ doc,” Butler told U.S. Women’s National Team soccer star Megan Rapinoe and WNBA star Sue Bird on their Instagram Live program, “A Touch More.”
“I’m just like, ‘Everybody’s watching. I’m going to go out and work on my true calling.’ That’s kicking the soccer ball.”
Butler has been sequestering in San Diego amid the NBA shutdown due to the new coronavirus pandemic.
That gave him the honor this weekend of being the first male guest on the Rapinoe-Bird show, with Butler joining in remotely.
“I’m the first fella, for real?” Butler said when informed.
As with many of his interviews this season, Butler stressed finding the perfect landing spot with the Heat, this time while joking about the transition from the rival Chicago Bulls.
That had Butler joking about the mantra of former Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau and what it was like embracing Dwyane Wade as a teammate for a season in Chicago, as well as developing an enduring friendship with the former Heat guard.
“In Chicago,” Butler said, “like Thibs bred us to hate Miami and every player that ever played for them, like crazy. Now [Wade] is like one of my best friends.
“I play for Miami [and] I’m happy. I’ve just bonded with a lot of my teammates on all former teams, but this one, this organization, is special.”
Butler said the Heat’s intensity of purpose matches his own.
“They’re crazy down there,” he said. “There isn’t a better place to be. for me. Miami’s it.
“We’ve got the right young guys [and] we’ve got the right vets.”
The Heat stood 41-24 at the time of the NBA’s March 11 shutdown and were the No. 4 seed in the Eastern Conference.
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver has yet to offer a timetable for a potential return, although Heat players could be cleared to return for individual workouts at AmericanAirlines Arena as soon as Friday.
Butler said his teammates bought into his passion and are eager for more this season.
“They get it,” he said, “and they’re thirsty to get back to hooping.”
Butler touched on a variety of colorful subjects with several colorfully worded responses during his interview with Bird and Rapinoe before moving on to more general topics.
Of teammates struggling to put together the baskets he shipped out amid the current sheltering in place, he said: “I put mine together.”
Of a possible return to the Olympics, where he was listed as a finalist for the since-postponed 2020 Tokyo Games, Butler said he would be particularly enticed if Carmelo Anthony were invited to participate.
“If Melo plays,” he said, “I play.” Along the way, Butler managed to toss shade toward former Minnesota Timberwolves teammate Karl-Anthony Towns and his former Philadelphia 76ers coach Brett Brown.
Butler also reflected on comments he made on the podcast of New Orleans Pelicans guard JJ Redick in March about being offended when a white player is assigned as his defender.
Bird laughed and agreed, with Butler citing a recent conversation with Heat rookie guard Tyler Herro.
“What’s funny,” Butler said, “is I was talking to Tyler the other day. He said the same thing.
“He saw the quote and, ‘Bro, I feel the same way.’ And I was like, ‘Tyler, shut up.’ ”