The Miami Heat are set to battle the Indiana Pacers in the first round of the 2020 Eastern Conference playoffs.
Although Jimmy Butler’s matchup with T.J. Warren appears to be the most appealing part of the series, the Heat alpha claims the beef between both stars is behind him.
Jimmy Butler on matchup vs. T.J. Warren: "Look, I just play basketball. I'm going to go out there and be the best player on the floor. That's what Miami has me here to do. I'm not worried about nobody's matchup. We can kill that. That's dead. That's something of the past."
— Anthony Chiang (@Anthony_Chiang) August 16, 2020
The drama between Butler and Warren started during a matchup in early January. Both players got into an ugly altercation, which led to Warren getting ejected.
Recently, Warren has turned into one of the league’s most popular rising stars. The 6-foot-8 pro stole headlines in the resumption of the 2019-20 regular season in the NBA bubble in Orlando, Fla.
Warren, 26, put up a whopping 31.0 points per game during the seeding games in the bubble.
However, he had his worst contest in the bubble against Butler and the Heat. The Pacers forward was limited to just 12 points and five boards in a 114-92 loss to the Heat on Aug. 10.
As for Butler, the 30-year-old led the Heat with 19 points, 11 rebounds, five assists and four steals in the dominant affair.
The Heat won the season series against the Pacers, 3-1.