Kevin Love's Troll Of Jimmy Butler Gets Stamp Of Approval From LeBron James

Miami Heat forward Kevin Love continues to win on social media.

He had perhaps the post of the night following ex-teammate Jimmy Butler's return to Miami Tuesday as a member of the Golden State Warriors. Butler was relatively short with his former co-workers before leaving the arena.

So Love used a Forrest Gump reference to describe the scene.

This is what Love posted on his Instagram: "Jimmy when it came time to see his former teammates and coaching staff after the game…🏃🏿‍♂️‍➡️✌🏻"

The post drew a couple thousand comments, including from LeBron James, who posted a series of crying emojis.

Here's the full story:

Following the loss, Butler calmly revealed to reporters his desire to go into his return to Miami’s Kaseya Center “level-headed.”

So maybe his decision not to participate in any post-game pleasantries with former teammates was planned. Maybe he would've headed straight for the locker room if the Warriors had won, but the disappointment probably didn't help to put him in a mood to chop it up or reminisce.

This ended up being a revenge game in name only, unless you're of the believe the Heat got some retribution for all the strife he caused in order to get himself moved. Butler, whose scoring total at multiple betting sites who post props was set at 21.5 or 22.5 depending on the shop, finished with 11 points on 5-for-12 shooting. At halftime, he had just two more points than anyone else in the building who hadn’t gotten in the game, having missed five of six shots.

Butler called the tribute video he received “nice.” It was. Heat fans didn’t boo him until the game started and those that arrived early enough for introductions applauded loudly and showed him affection.

Although it ended about as sourly as a marriage between star and organization can in professional sports, Butler said he was appreciative of his time with the Heat for shaping him into the player and leader he is today.

Judging by his reaction towards former teammates, he wasn’t as appreciative of their contributions as one would’ve expected. There were no post-game hugs, daps or handshakes exchanged between Butler and his former teammates.

Pre-game, there was love. In fact, most of it came with Love, who he hugged from behind before sharing a lengthy exchange. The two veterans eventually came face-to-face, Butler patted Love on the back, then returned for more pleasantries. Butler shook Love’s hand again before another hug, then ran off towards the locker room, stopping only to greet some fans he apparently knew along the way.

Love had posted on Instagram that his meeting with Butler would probably be similar to a famous greeting shared between Michael Jordan and Larry Bird, where Jordan pulls him close and drops some playful expletives as both grin at each other.

Butler also stated that he chatted with Terry Rozier some, too. Saw “T-Ro.”

Didn’t spend much time with Tyler Herro, though. Or Bam Adebayo.

The prevailing theme around Jimmy Butler’s departure from Miami is that he felt Pat Riley didn’t get him enough help to win a championship after making the 2023 NBA Finals despite finishing as the East’s seventh seed. The Heat also reached the championship round in the NBA Bubble in 2020.

Adebayo averaged a double-double for the first time that year and has only improved. Herro was a rookie who has blossomed into an All-Star. Miami chose them over him. Whether that’s as black and white as it sounds, that’s how he saw not getting the extension he coveted, leading to his displeasure with Pat Riley, and ultimately, after a messy few months of tug-of-war, his departure.

There was no “making nice” post-game. Butler didn’t stick around to hand out any congratulations. He’s on to the next city. New Orleans, to be exact.

No one will be paying as much attention to see how he greets the guys he used to play with in South Florida the next time he rolls through town. Outside of Love and Rozier, it appears the guys on this Heat squad were simply run-of-the-mill ex-teammates on the fourth of five teams Butler has played with as a pro.

Shandel Richardson is the publisher of Miami Heat On SI. He can be reached at shandelrich@gmail.com

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