The honeymoon phase for Jimmy Butler with the Golden State Warriors may be over. And for some Miami Heat fans, it's something they've been waiting to see ever since the moment he was traded there a few months ago.
According to recent reporting, Jimmy has "reached out" to the Warriors' front office to try and get an insight into what their plan is moving forward. Without much activity this offseason, it's not all that surprising that Jimmy wants to get caught up, but this is one of those situations that could get bad very quickly.
Even though I wouldn't call Jimmy desiring some clarity on Golden State's future an issue, it does demand some attention. If we've learned anything from the Jimmy experience over the course of his career, most recently with the Heat, it's that he demands a lot.
And if he doesn't believe that the team or teammates are meeting his expectations, that's when the issues begin to arise.
I'm not sure if Jimmy has already lost faith in what the Warriors are building, but it wouldn't be that surprising if things were already beginning to trend in that direction.
Jimmy is going to be Jimmy
After a certain point, it's perfectly fine to say that Jimmy is who he is. He's a highly demanding player who is generally worth the headache. In many ways, he's worth the headache until he's not.
It's then, at that moment, when teams get ahead of the issue and trade him, or he begins to force the issue. The latter is what we saw play out this past season in Miami. It wasn't a pretty ending, but one that needed to happen.
At that point, both the Heat and Jimmy needed a divorce. It was a little ugly, but it certainly was probably for the best.
What hurt Heat fans the most was how Jimmy seemed to "get his joy back" during his time with the Warriors. It hurt Heat fans because that's the Jimmy they had for the first few years of their tenure together. Seeing it all fall apart during the last two seasons with a joyless Jimmy, and then seeing him gain it all back so quickly in Golden State, was admittedly difficult to digest.
But at least some fans will get a good laugh with this most recent report.
Jimmy wants answers regarding the Warriors' inactivity this offseason. At this point, even as the Warriors continue to play this game of high-stakes chicken with Jonathan Kuminga, how can you blame him? Golden State has been pretty complacent this offseason, and for a team that is expected to compete for a championship, that's not the best sign.
Still, it's at least somewhat assuring to see that Jimmy is still Jimmy. Both in the good and in the bad.