Former NBA player Michael Carter-Williams says Miami Heat star Jimmy Butler once got into a “crazy” argument in the locker room with then-Chicago Bulls head coach Fred Hoiberg.
Carter-Williams, who played for the Bulls and Milwaukee Bucks, recounted the argument between Butler and Hoiberg on the “Thanalysis Show” podcast by Bucks forward Thanasis Antetokounmpo, saying it occurred during the “craziest” season he played in.
“You know his personality,” Carter-Williams said of Butler. He described the locker room argument he witnessed between Butler, then a Bulls player, and Hoiberg as “crazy. Nobody knew what to say. They (Butler and Hoiberg) just popped off crazy like that like right away.”
He said Hoiberg started a team meeting by saying, “‘Jimmy, this starts with me and you. What’s going on?'” Carter-Williams said that Butler responded, “One, I think you’re soft. Two, I don’t like you.”
Hoiberg responded, “(Expletive) you, Jimmy,” Carter-Williams said, leading Butler to respond, “Oh, so now it’s (expletive) me. You wanted to know how I felt.”
Hoiberg coached the Bulls for three full seasons, according to the University of Nebraska, where he is now head coach. Today, Butler is a four-time NBA All-Star forward for the Miami Heat after being drafted 30th overall by the Bulls in 2011.
“That was one of the craziest things I’ve ever seen in the locker room,” Carter-Williams said.
Michael Carter-Williams Says Argument Occurred After the Bulls Lost 3 Straight Games
Carter-Williams praised Butler before describing the “crazy” argument.
“I love Jimmy, Jimmy’s a great dude, but this is crazy,” Carter-Williams said on the podcast, speaking at the 1:02 mark, on the interaction between Butler and Hoiberg.
“Our locker room was bad. It was right in the beginning of the year too. It was like our first three games that we lost. Everybody was (expletive) off, upset. Jimmy wasn’t getting along with Coach Hoiberg. We had a team meeting early. We had a team meeting right off the rip. Everyone’s in the locker room. Everyone’s silent.”
Michael Carter-Williams Said Chicago Was the ‘Craziest Season’ He Was Ever Involved In
GettyFred Hoiberg and Jimmy Butler.
Carter-Williams said he had seen some of the “wildest situations,” so many “crazy things” that had happened. Asked about the craziest thing he had ever seen, Carter-Williams said “Chicago” was the “craziest season I’ve ever been a part of.”
“Everybody was (expletive) off. Jimmy wasn’t getting along with Coach Hoiberg. We had a team meeting,” Carter-Williams said.
He said the team meeting included the “whole squad” including all of the coaches. Hoiberg said, “‘What’s going on’ to Butler.”
The previous game the referees were “terrible. Jimmy got attacked,” Carter-Williams said, acknowledging Butler was upset.
Carter-Williams said the Hoiberg-Butler dispute started right at the beginning of the team meeting, and he said he was sitting in the corner because he had never heard such a thing happen before in a locker room. The assistant coaches were saying “Oh, my gosh” in the background, he said.
In three-plus seasons under Hoigerg between 2015 and 2018, the Bulls went 115-155, only making the playoffs once in 2016-17.
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Former Teammate Reveals Jimmy Butler’s ‘Crazy’ Argument With Ex-Bulls Coach