Jimmy Butler made his return to Miami on Tuesday night as he and the Golden State Warriors got blown out by the Heat, 112-86.
The 35-year-old guard spent six and half seasons with the Heat before being traded to the Warriors last month after a very contentious final few months with the team that included Butler being suspended.
Butler had a rough game against his former squad, scoring just 11 points on 5-of-12 shooting.
Shaquille O'Neal weighed in on the bad night for Butler and the Warriors, saying on TNT that the team spent too much time in Miami before the game to be ready to play at a high level.
"It’s hard to hold a grudge for five days in a place like Miami," Shaq said. "If I arrive on a Monday and we play on Tuesday, I’m still upset. But you arrive, you chillin, you go to your house, you got Prime 112, you in the boat, Steve [Kerr] is a players coach, he’s gonna give you two days off. Jimmy wanted to play great but obviously they were flat and they had too much fun in Miami. ... Five days in Miami? Concentration is at zero. Period. For any team."
Shaq thinks 5 days in Miami was too much for Jimmy and the Warriors 🏝️😂 https://t.co/6mCpituTnZ pic.twitter.com/H0x3ie6pKN
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) March 26, 2025
The Warriors played the Hawks in Atlanta on Saturday so they were likely only in Miami for three days. That still might have led to their struggles but Candace Parker made a better point about why the Warriors, who were without a banged-up Stephen Curry, played so poorly.
"They have the worst offensive efficiency in the league without Steph Curry on the floor," Parker said on TNT. "So I think Steph not playing impacts it all. They need him to get right and get healthy."
The Warriors are now 41-31 and are in the sixth spot in the Western Conference.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Shaq Had Weird Reason for Why Jimmy Butler, Warriors Got Blown Out By Heat.
