Miami Heat president Pat Riley comments on Jimmy Butler saying the Heat would have beaten the Celtics in the playoffs if he were healthy.
Miami Heat president Pat Riley didn't take kindly to Jimmy Butler's controversial comments about the Boston Celtics over the weekend.
Butler, unable to play due to an MCL injury, watched the C's beat the Heat in five games to advance to the Eastern Conference semifinals. After the first-round series, he called out both Boston and the New York Knicks during an interview with Rock The Bells.
"If I was playing, Boston would be at home. New York damn sure would be (expletive) at home," he said.
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WATCH HEREAsked about Butler's remarks on Monday, Riley made it clear he wasn't amused.
"For him to say that, I thought, 'Is that Jimmy trolling, or is that Jimmy serious?'" Riley said during his end-of-season press conference. "If you're not on the court playing against Boston or on the court playing against the New York Knicks, you should keep your mouth shut."
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SIGN UP Butler's bold post-series comments may have been the straw that broke the camel's back. The six-time All-Star trash-talked the Celtics throughout the series despite not playing a single minute. He trolled Boston with a social media post after Miami's Game 2 win and guaranteed a victory during Game 3, which the C's won handily.
It's understandable that Butler is supremely confident in his ability to carry his team through the playoffs. He did exactly that with a heroic Eastern Conference finals performance against Boston last year. However, it wasn't wise to give the Celtics -- the best regular-season team in the league -- bulletin board material while he couldn't back up his talk on the court.
NBA
Butler will watch from the couch as the Celtics welcome the Cleveland Cavaliers to TD Garden for Game 1 of their East semifinals series Tuesday night. Coverage of the matchup begins at 6 p.m. ET with "Celtics Pregame Live" on NBC Sports Boston.
