Kevin Love Channels Al Pacino in Addressing Latest Jimmy Butler Suspension

Miami Heat veteran Kevin Love wants to find humor in teammate Jimmy Butler’s latest suspension.

The Heat reportedly suspended Butler for two games Wednesday after he missed a flight. While Heat fans shared their anger and outrage on social media, Love—who repeatedly cracked jokes during Butler’s seven-game suspension earlier this month—again opted for comedy.

Love shared a Scarface clip on Instagram featuring Tony Montana (Al Pacino) angrily cursing in a restaurant. The five-time All-Star captioned the post, “Jimmy dining out in Miami this evening…”

“You all a bunch of f***in’ a**holes,” Montana says in the clip. “You know why? You don’t have the guts to be what you wanna be. You need people like me.

“You need people like me so you can point your f***in’ fingers and say, ‘That’s the bad guy,’” Montana continues.

Love has poked fun at teammates Duncan Robinson and Tyler Herro recently. However, neither was serving a suspension when Love turned his social media attention to them.

Butler said last week he approved of Love’s humor, even if it came at his expense.

“I like Kev, but [he’s] not more petty than I am,” Butler told reporters, “and he’s giving me a run for my money.”

BUTLER TRADE UPDATE

ESPN NBA insider Shams Charania reported Tuesday the Heat are having “productive conversations” and moving closer to dealing Butler.

“Jimmy Butler has tripled down on his trade request,” Charania told NBA Today.

“Earlier this month, he did it to [Heat president] Pat Riley’s face,” Charania continued, “and last week, he did it to Micky Arison, the team owner, and the CEO, Nick Arison.”

The Phoenix Suns are widely expected to make a play for Butler. Charania reported Tuesday night the Suns will acquire the least favorable firsts in 2025 of Cleveland/Minnesota, 2027 of Cleveland/Minnesota/Utah and 2029 of Cleveland/Minnesota/Utah.

Phoenix can trade those picks immediately. Charania said the Suns will likely receive the Cavaliers’ 2025 first-round pick.

The Suns would likely need to include veteran guard Bradley Beal in any potential Butler deal to make salaries work.

Charania said it’s unclear if a Heat-Suns trade would only feature those two teams or if other teams would get involved.

“Really, everything is a possibility,” Charania said.

The trade deadline is Feb. 6.

IS NBA AGAINST BUTLER JOINING SUNS?

According to longtime Phoenix radio host John Gambadoro, the NBA is strongly rooting against Butler joining the Suns.

“Spoke with an NBA player tonight who said the league does not want Butler in Phoenix,” Gambadoro reported on X (formerly Twitter) early Wednesday morning.

Gambadoro said a Butler trade makes the Suns an “instant contender,” a point we don’t necessarily disagree with. Butler would join Devin Booker and Kevin Durant on a Suns team needing a third superstar to break through in the Western Conference.

Although the 35-year-old Butler brings plenty of mileage and baggage, Gambadoro is focusing on the positives. He called Butler an “alpha male” and “culture setter” who can guard several West standouts, including LeBron James, Kawhi Leonard, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and Luka Dončić.

“Posts up, Gets to FT line, will do dirty work KD and Book don’t do, will get 6-7 assists and rebounds per game,” Gambadoro added. “Hi IQ, winner at highest level, can win you a series, big time in playoffs, will be motivated!”

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Jake Elman works as a contributing writer to Miami Heat on SI. He can be reached at jakeelman97@gmail.com or follow him on X @JakeElman97.