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Miami Heat fans were up in arms after the franchise was denied a game on Christmas Day, the marquee date for contending teams to showcase themselves. The decision seems to stem from the Heat getting bounced in the first round of the NBA playoffs, although it’s a bit unfair when you look at their rebuilt roster.
Jimmy Butler inked a $184 million contract extension this offseason. The Heat added Kyle Lowry in a sign-and-trade, then brought in P.J. Tucker and Markieff Morris. They also re-upped Duncan Robinson and kept Tyler Herro in two moves that confirmed team president Pat Riley’s promise to keep his young nucleus intact. No Christmas Day game, though. That stings.
Butler’s agent, Bernard Lee, took to Twitter to express frustration at the holiday snub. He wrote that his client was more concerned about playing on Memorial Day than Christmas Day, a feeling shared throughout the Heat echo chamber. And Lee used the staggeringly effective Michael Jordan “Last Dance” meme to further the point.
Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald pointed to a first-round playoff exit as the deciding factor for Butler’s squad not being showcased on Christmas Day. In fact, the Heat have no nationally-televised games to start the 2021-22 season. The Brooklyn Nets and Milwaukee Bucks kick the NBA slate off on Oct. 19 at 7:30 p.m. on TNT, followed by the Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Lakers at 10 p.m. Wait, why the Warriors? Exactly.
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