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Heat’s Erik Spoelstra sums up Jimmy Butler drama-led season with ’embarrassment’ take

Originally posted on NBA on ClutchPoints
By Zachary Weinberger | Last updated Apr 30, 2025 4:09 PM ET

MIAMI – As the Miami Heat were swept by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the first round of the playoffs in dreadful fashion, the team now reflects on what has been an endlessly tumultuous season. One of the reasons was the events leading up to the Heat trading Jimmy Butler to the Golden State Warriors, as head coach Erik Spoelstra speaks truthfully on the effect the situation had on the group.

Miami had suspended Butler several times for such reasons as missing a team flight, walking out of shootaround after being told he wouldn’t start, and where it all kicked off, saying he lost his “joy” after the Jan. 2 loss to the Indiana Pacers. During exit interviews on Wednesday, Spoelstra would express that while the team “prides” itself in not making excuses, the drama with Butler “had an impact.”

“It certainly had an impact,” Spoelstra said. “We are an organization that prides ourselves on not making any kind of excuses, and even if we managed it perfectly, there was always second-guessing on what we could have done better, just to right the ship, and it was turbulent waters.”

“I’ll look back on it the same way now as years from now, it was a good five-year run,” Spoelsra continued. “And when things end, oftentimes they end not as loudly as this, but it ends where there’s something, and you go, look at all the other teams out there with players when they change teams, there’s a certain feeling about it, and it’s unfortunate. We don’t feel like it didn’t have to go to that level, but we have clarity now. We’ve turned the page, it’s a different chapter, and we’re moving on.”

Heat’s Erik Spoelstra says they “deserve the embarrassment”

Miami Heat guard Tyler Herro (center) looks on from the bench against the Cleveland Cavaliers in the fourth quarter during game four for the first round of the 2025 NBA Playoffs at Kaseya Center. Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

The Heat’s season ended on a 55-point loss, which was historic in ways that are not positive for the team, including how it’s the largest playoff loss in the franchise’s history. However, there are parts of the season that Spoelstra and Miami look back on fondly.

While the team was 12-25 after the Butler trade, they ended the regular season on a good note, winning eight of their last 12 games and being the first team in play-in tournament history to make the playoffs as a tenth seed. The series against Cleveland put a halt to any momentum, showing how outmatched the Heat were as they were outscored by 122 points in the series, the most lopsided in NBA history.

Spoelstra would say the team deserves the “embarrassment.”

“We were all faced with a very uncomfortable segment of the season,” Spoelstra said Wednesday. “There were some other segments of the season where it was what it was, but during the losing streak, where we’re playing great, we’re making progress, and losing games. I said it so often that you want to get a team that felt like it’s worthy to win, and we were definitely feeling like we were worthy to win.”

“You know, it was during that 10-game losing streak, and then we end up playing our best basketball after that,” Spoelstra continued. “And then we had put ourselves out there. When you put yourselves out there as competitors, you’re going to put yourself out there for everything. And we deserve it. We deserve the criticism. We deserve the embarrassment of those last two games. ”

Miami heads into the offseason, looking to bounce back after finishing tenth in the Eastern Conference with a 37-45 record.

This article first appeared on NBA on ClutchPoints and was syndicated with permission.

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