Jimmy Butler booed heartily in Miami return; Warriors rocked by Heat

March 25, 2025

Jimmy Butler returned to Miami and left without a win. Or even a close game.

Instead, Butler and the Warriors were routed by his former team on Tuesday night by a 112-86 count.

Butler, making his first appearance back in Miami since a trade last month, was booed heartily and was held to just 11 points. Jonathan Kuminga led the Warriors with 15 points, while Brandin Podziemski added 14 and Gui Santos chipped in 13.

Golden State played without star guard Stephen Curry, who missed his second consecutive game due to a pelvic contusion.

For just the fifth time this season, the Warriors never held a lead. The Heat also became the second team to hold a 20-point lead on the Warriors in multiple games this season, joining Cleveland.

And in a rare occurrence, all five Golden State starters — Butler, Gary Payton II, Draymond Green, Moses Moody, and Podziemski — scored exactly two points at halftime. It marked the first time an NBA team had no starter score at least three points in a first half since New Jersey’s game against Orlando on March 16, 2012.

A highlight-reel play by Miami’s Kel’el Ware came in the third quarter when, after having the ball knocked away during a drive, he caught it midair and flicked it off the glass for a basket, extending the Heat’s lead to 78-60.

Butler appeared in 316 games with the Heat. He averaged 21.0 points, 6.0 rebounds, 5.7 assists, 1.7 steals and 0.4 blocks and guided the franchise to the NBA Finals twice.

Miami lost to the Los Angeles Lakers in the 2020 NBA Finals and fell to the Denver Nuggets in the 2023 NBA Finals.

“We were alright,” Butler said about his Heat tenure. “We didn’t win nothing like we were supposed to. So I don’t know. We made some cool runs. We had some fun. I think that’s all we did.”

Nikola Jovic, who has missed Miami’s last 16 games due to a broken bone in his right hand, has received clearance for all basketball activities, putting him on track for a potential return soon. However, Jovic did not play in this game.