In his first season with the Miami Heat, All-Star Jimmy Butler has seemed completely at home.
From very early on in the season, it looked like his ravenous work ethic and dedication to excellence would fit perfectly within the Heat’s vaunted culture.
As it turns out, Butler himself thinks the Heat’s dedication to fitness and hard work sets them apart from every other organization in the NBA.
“No matter if you’re on a minimum contract or a max contract, everybody is running in the conditioning test at the beginning of the year,” Butler said on a recent episode of J.J. Redick’s podcast. “No matter if you’re on a minimum contract or a max contract, everybody is showing up to the plane in Heat gear. It’s the smallest things that just show who that organization is. Come on, coach Pat [Riley] is in every practice, at every home game, he’s going a lot on the road. But it’s like all hands on deck. Everybody is in this thing.”
Even before the season began, Butler turned heads by showing up for training in the wee hours of the morning.
Since then, other reports have indicated that Butler’s teammates look forward to practice specifically because of the five-time All-Star’s approach.
In case there was any doubt, it seems like Butler and the Heat are a match made in the basketball heaven.
Hopefully, that perfect pairing ultimately leads to Butler bringing another title to South Florida.
