Getty Kyle Lowry #7, Jimmy Butler #22, Udonis Haslem #40 and P.J. Tucker #17 of the Miami Heat react from the bench against the Boston Celtics during the fourth quarter in Game Four of the 2022 NBA Playoffs Eastern Conference Finals
Udonis Haslem is back to lead the Miami Heat and enforce Heat Culture for another season. The return of Haslem was a priority for the Heat this offseason. They sent a team official to offer Haslem a new contract at midnight when the clock hit midnight, and they could offer him a deal. Haslem was so surprised by the deal that it was almost a dangerous spot for the Heat official.
Haslem accepted the offer and fulfilled a goal he made with his father to play 20 NBA seasons. It’s unknown if this is Haslem’s last season or not in Miami, but he has shared who he expects to be his successor as the bearer of Heat culture. On Friday, Haslem commented on another Heat teammate this season.
Udonis Haslem on Jimmy Butler
Haslem was asked by ESPN’s Malika Andrews what he has tasked Heat star Jimmy Butler with for the upcoming season, and Haslem took the opportunity to share his relationship with Butler and that despite them bumping heads the two have a bond.
“I see so much of myself in Jimmy. We play the game with a controlled rage, and every now and then that controlled rage gets uncontrolled. But, we made coffee together. You know, we really bonded. I have barista passes, so you know I’m a pretty good coffee guy… But you know, we’re so similar. We play one on one every day before every game. That’s what people don’t know. Like, what people don’t know that night, that’s just every Tuesday in Miami. Like, we bump heads every day. It’s competition at the highest, highest level. That’s another way I know I can stick around. If I can go out there and compete with Jimmy Butler, which people see what he’s able to do in the finals, then I know I can still stick around and play this game,” Haslem told Malika Andrews on the October 14, episode of ESPN’s NBA Today.
Haslem even made mention to his argument with Butler that happened last April during a game and noted that those happen with those two all the time, but it’s because of their similarities. The two bonded over coffee after Butler started his iconic Big Face Coffee company during the NBA bubble. He even shared that the two play one on one regularly, and from the sound of it the veteran holds his own against Butler.
Haslem on the Next in Line for Heat Culture
When sharing who he hopes to pass the torch of Heat Culture to when he leaves the Heat, he named Bam Adebayo as the ideal candidate.
“I want to pass the torch to Bam [Adebayo] as the next bearer of the culture,” Haslem says. “I want to continue to mold and help Jimmy be the champion that he deserves to be. And I just want to leave this locker room headed in the right direction.”
Whenever Haslem does choose to retire, he has made it clear that he hopes to find a spot in the Heat’s ownership group as his next chapter.
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