Miami Heat star player Jimmy Butler is enjoying his off-season rest at home after his team got eliminated in the first round of playoffs. Amid various trade rumors going on in the NBA community, Butler seems chill about it all. The 34-year-old is optimizing his vacation by watching soccer and tennis. Recently, the Heat forward uploaded an Instagram story watching one of his friends and tennis player, Carlos Alcaraz Garfia, competing at the French Open. Butler was showering his support for Alcaraz as he uploaded two stories.

Luckily, Butler did not face the same problems as other Americans while watching Alcaraz. Notably, the American audience could not watch Emma Navarro and Novak Djokovic‘s match from yesterday as tennis broadcasting channels were running old Barcelona Open clips on their channels. But Butler got luck on his side this time. Interestingly, 20-year-old Coco Gauff is also a good friend of Butler, but the Heat player did not show up on Instagram to show her support. Gauff made it to the round of 16, while Alcaraz moved to the fourth round with his stellar performance.

Well, it is not the first time that Butler has posted supporting stories for tennis players. Even the Heat forward has a daughter and loves to teach her tennis. “I’m now teaching my daughter to hit a tennis ball, which is very important in my household. I’m teaching her to compete and never accept losing, “ Butler confessed to Rolling Stone candidly in October 2023. So it’s not just about his love but a legacy that he is passing on to her child. However, this inspiration for Butler came from young gun Coco Gauff, his well-known acquaintance.

Why did Jimmy Butler not support Gauff despite a strong relationship?

The genesis of the Miami Heat and Coco Gauff’s friendship started at the Miami Open last year in March. A bond sprouted, and Butler soon offered to give Gauff tickets for the NBA finals if his team would make it to the finals. Unfortunately, Gauff could not manage to attend it due to her schedule. Yet, the mutual respect remained as Gauff got inspired by Butler while performing at the French Open in May 2023. When the Heat were up by 3 in the Eastern Conference Finals against the Celtics, it seemed to be a smooth sail, but the Celtics carved it to 3-all.

Apparently, Gauff took inspiration from it and stayed focused when she was down by a set in the first round. Eventually, she emerged victorious, just like her inspiration figure made it to the Finals after winning Game 7. Both the athletes from different sports have praised each other on different occasions, the most important of them being the U.S. Open. “I want her to win every single time, “ Butler hoped while giving an interview to ESPNW in August last year.

It is unthinkable how Butler did not share to support the player whom he adores so much. There can be any other reason, but the intentional mistake of not supporting Gauff is almost impossible. Yet the fans are awaiting when the Heat forward will post something to bring her friend’s morale! What do you all think? Let us know in the comments, and make sure to watch out for what Shaq’s ex-agent, Leonard Armato, shared about the marketing genius in the following video.