Tough start for Jimmy Butler! All eyes were on Kaseya Center as the Heat played its season opener against the Magic. Unfortunately, the home crowd did not leave the arena happy because their team was absolutely decimated by the visitors. And the Miami side’s best player, Jimmy Buckets, was nowhere to be found. Yes, scoring just three points in the entire game, the viral hooper did not live up to his nickname and, as expected, was forced to face the community’s anger after the blowout loss.

In an abysmal shooting performance, Jimmy Butler made just 1 of his 8 field goal attempts. While he did dish out 5 assists and grabbed 4 rebounds, the team needed their superstar to score more points and keep up with Orlando’s offense.

Sure enough, this is not a good look on the hooper or his team, especially because he has been in trade rumors all summer. Well, he has 2 years left on his current contract. He also has a $52.4 million player option for next season. While he reportedly wants to stay in Miami, no deal’s been inked yet. A report in May suggested that JB was seeking a 2-year $113M max extension to prolong his stay.

However, Pat Riley made it clear that an investment like that would require more trust. “That’s a big decision on our part to commit those kinds of resources unless you have somebody who’s going to be there and available every single night. That’s the truth.”

Butler missed last year’s playoffs because of injury. With that said, the hooper could choose to enter free agency next summer and seek a bigger deal in Miami or somewhere else. That’s why many believe that the franchise’s president might trade him before Jimmy gets that opportunity. But tonight’s performance could hurt the veteran’s market value.

“Washed” Jimmy Butler under the mercy of loyal fanbase, who expected better

After the loss, netizens speculated on several reasons behind Jimmy’s disappointing performance, as one wrote, “All that gambling got to him.” Sure enough, the comment was referring to him making multiple appearances at celebrity poker tournaments over the summer. He even shared the table with renowned names like Neymar Jr. and Dan Bilzerian. However, fans believe that might have shifted his focus away from the hoop.

Meanwhile, one fan claimed, “Pat Riley got to him.” Obviously, the constant trade rumors have made many believe that Butler and Riley do not share a great relationship anymore after last season’s back-and-forth in the playoffs. Miami wasn’t even in them for most of it, but stayed in the headlines for ‘shots’ being fired at the Celtics and the Knicks. That’s when the Heat President, quite frankly, asked his own player to keep his mouth shut. Since then, many think that’s been the reason why he’s hesitant to offer a max contract.

And one fan was so disappointed that he claimed he would never put Jimmy on a parlay again! Surely, no one expected him to have a single-digit performance on opening night, especially because he scored 24 points in his last preseason game. And it is possible that many people lost big bucks by betting on him tonight.

The roast continued. A netizen sarcastically wrote, “He was suppose to stop the Celtics last year.” Yes, Butler could not play the first-round series against the eventual champions last season because of injury. But he boldly claimed, “If I was playing, Boston would be at home. (The) New York (Knicks) damn sure would be f—–g at home.” However, tonight’s performance makes his claim very doubtful.

Seeing the superstar choke on opening night, one netizen simply called him “Washed.” Yes, he is now 35 years old and in the latter stages of his career. So, some fans believe that his days of playing at an elite level might be over.

However, Heat fans should not be too concerned because it’s just one bad game. More importantly, Jimmy Butler has never been a regular-season star. With a career average of 18.3 points, he has never been in MVP conversations, never been considered the best player. But he switches gears in the playoffs and shows his true greatness. So, he’s likely to bounce back from this performance soon.