Miami Heat forward Jimmy Butler, and former NBA player Lance Stephenson have been throwing jabs at each other through the media.
Butler recently made comments about Stephenson in an interview on Vince Carter’s Winging It podcast.
Butler stated that he knew he could make it in the NBA if a player like Stephenson could.
“I was watching guys play, and I was like, ‘I know I’m not that good of a basketball player, but I know I can make it if this guy can make it,'” Butler reminisced. “I always saw Lance Stephenson. I saw him, and I was like, ‘Nah man, if he in the league then I can be in the league. He is a talented-a– player, don’t get me wrong, but if he can do it, I can do it.”
Stephenson, who now plays for the Liaoning Flying Leopards of the Chinese Basketball Association, responded to Butler’s comments on his Twitter account.
https://twitter.com/StephensonLance/status/1191488284775477248
After initially attempting to blow off the tweet, Butler eventually responded to the Stephenson by challenging him.
“I’m not worried about him,” Butler said. “They asked me a question, I answered the question. Take it for how you want to take it. If he wants a one-on-one battle, I’m all for it. I don’t think at this point, this is just me being honest, right now, me in my career, he in his, he’s not better than me. So, I’m willing to play one-on-one if that’s what, I don’t know, he wants to see, the world wants to see, whatever.
“I’m not intimidated by his tweet. I don’t think it was so much personal, that’s just how I thought back then. I don’t think the same way now, only because I know that I’m a better player.”
Butler has started the season averaging 14.7 points, 7.3 assists, and 7.0 rebounds for the Heat and has played in three of Miami’s six games.
