There have been dramatic changes since Jimmy Butler was traded a day before the deadline to the Golden State Warriors, and they fear it may hurt the city’s most successful franchise.
With game two against the Cleveland Cavaliers set for Wednesday night at 7:30 p.m and down 1-0 to the number one seed in the East, that loss has been particularly felt.
Fans and sports experts alike are worried about the team’s future and what can be done in the offseason to improve the roster. Some wonder whether the team will return to the promised land of the NBA Finals.
“I’m a little worried about May and June,” said Ethan Skolnick, CEO of the Five Reasons Sports Network. “I don’t think there’s any chance of a run.”
The Heat finished the regular season 12-21 after the six-time All-Star was dealt out West. Before, they were the seventh seed in the standings but finished tenth. Andrew Wiggins, the Warriors forward who came to the Heat in the deal, only appeared in 17 games before the regular season finished. He averaged 19 points, 4.2 rebounds, and 3.3 assists. He had solid production, but the Heat felt lost due to his lack of availability.
Nick Dupont, a 22-year-old Heat fan who’s been a fan since 2008, believes both Butler and the Heat franchise are at fault for how things ended.
“Both sides treated each other with minimal respect and showed too much pettiness,” he said. “Butler deserves his respect, but I also don’t believe in paying a player a ridiculous amount of money for someone who plays half the games in the regular season and will not try until the playoffs come around.” Dupont remains loyal to the Heat franchise to this very day.
Lifelong Heat fan Raul Pagan grew up watching the franchise, even before the team won a championship.He describes the Butler saga as a “mental battle” for the rest of the team.
“All the tension between Pat Riley and him took a toll on Bam, Tyler, and the rest of the guys all season,” he said.
Pagan says the team won’t be the same without Butler.
“We haven’t had a key player like Jimmy that can defend in clutch moments,” Pagan said. “There you’ve seen all the buzzer beaters and clutch shots, resulting in losses.”
After the trade, Butler was on the opposite coast, saving the Warriors’ season. Before his arrival, that team was tenth in the Western Conference standings. They ended up seventh and had a record of 23-7 with Butler in the lineup.
Alex Toledo, producer and host of the “Five on the Floor” podcast about the Heat, emphasized that without Butler, he’s concerned that the team may not go on a deep run.
“That playoff bump isn’t coming where they go on a long run,” he says. “It’s amazing, then everybody’s interested.”
Skolnick’s Five Reasons Sports’ coverage of the club changed after the trade. The focus became about the games and the new arrivals, not the Jimmy drama. Downloads dropped from 4000 per episode to 3000.
“Fans just don’t want to talk about basketball,” Skolnick says. “They want to talk transactions.”
So far in the playoffs, the Heat has beat the Chicago Bulls – behind a stunning 38 points by Tyler Herro – and then the Hawks.
The Warriors won their play-in match-up against the Memphis Grizzlies, with a final score of 121-116, punching their ticket to play the Houston Rockets. They and are heavy favorites to win the series.
The Heat meanwhile, is unlikely to beat the loaded Cavaliers and has already been mentioned in offseason rumors for the Phoenix Suns Kevin Durant and the Sacramento Kings DeMar DeRozan.
“They’ve gone after DeRozan multiple times,” Five Reasons’ Toledo says. “I’m sure there’d be some interest there because he’s on a decent contract.”
FIU Sports Manager Kolya Zabler says some sort of trade is vital.
“Short term, there’s a great impact because Andrew Wiggins has missed more games than he’s played” he said. “Long term, the goal is to find another star to pair up with Tyler, which they failed to do with Butler.”
Skolnick, the CEO of the Five Reasons Sports Network, which is well known for its coverage of the Heat, said he has seen a dip in viewership and podcast downloads since Butler was traded.
“People want to listen to good news or controversy,” Skolnick says. “There’s nothing in between.”
