Jimmy Butler has proven himself to be one of the most entertaining players in the entire NBA and he is also one of the most intense. Butler has a reputation for wanting to do things his way and sometimes this rubs people the wrong way. Butler has had tension with his teammates in the past but this hasn't made him any less attractive to prospective teams.
During the offseason, Houston Rockets were heavily pursuing Butler although he chose the Miami Heat. According to Tim McMahon of ESPN, the Rockets thought they had a real shot at ending up with Butler but in the end, they were essentially left on read.
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“Look, the Houston Rockets wanted to pay Jimmy Butler the four-year max and he ghosted them,” McMahon explained on Brian Windhorst’s The Hoop Collective Podcast. “They thought they had them and he left them hanging. They had trades lined up, I don’t know the teams (or) the destinations, but they had trades lined up for (Clint) Capela and (Eric) Gordon. They were ready to pay Jimmy Butler. They really liked their chances and then suddenly, Jimmy had other thoughts.
So far, Butler's decision has worked out for both the Rockets and the Heat. The Heat are among the best teams in the Eastern Conference while the Rockets are thriving with Russell Westbrook and James Harden at the helm.