Jimmy Butler has done whatever he has wanted on the floor in the Eastern Conference finals against the Boston Celtics to lift the Miami Heat to a 3-0 series lead.
But the NBA showed more resistance to the Heat star than the Celtics have as the league didn’t let Butler get away with skipping out on a required media session following Miami’s lopsided Game 3 victory.
The NBA punished Butler for the violation by dipping into his pockets as he was fined $25,000 on Tuesday for not complying with league rules regarding media availability.
Butler probably isn’t all that concerned about the hit to his wallet with the Heat on the precipice of advancing to the NBA Finals. Butler has owned the Celtics in the series, averaging 26 points, seven rebounds, 6.3 assists and 3.7 steals per game.
Butler hasn’t been afraid to mix it up on the court with the Celtics, either, getting into it with Grant Williams in the fourth quarter of Game 2, which fueled a dominant run by Butler to close the game. Then in Game 3, Butler taunted Al Horford midway through the third quarter with the timeout sign Horford made in Game 1.
Needing just one more win to get back to the Finals for the first time since 2020, it wouldn’t be a surprise if Butler uses the fine levied on him as a source of motivation in Game 4 on Tuesday night at Kaseya Center.
