“The plan was to try to position ourselves to be better than we were, and have a legitimate chance to be relevant at the top of the West. We have a lot of work to do,” said Stephen Curry, after Jimmy Butler was traded to the Golden State Warriors. Despite Curry’s initial reported hesitance at playing alongside the former Heat star, there is no denying that the partnership has proven beneficial. After all, the Bay Area franchise has won 3 of its last 4 games and has a chance of improving its position to secure a playoff qualifying seed. However, Jimmy Butler himself isn’t leaving anything to chance. Therefore, even with a few days away from the next Warriors matchup, the 35-year-old is putting in the work.

With the All-Star Break still going on, Jimmy Butler made his way to the Middle East. The player is currently in Dubai as he works to promote and launch his ‘BIGFACE’ Coffee Brand to a new place, and demographic. In between promotional events, Butler also got the chance to engage in some practice sessions. He recently took to his official Instagram account to highlight his workout at a training facility. Butler was not alone, as training specialist James Scott and footballer Nathan van Kooperen accompanied him. With a pair of his Li-Ning brand shoes on his feet, Butler dominated throughout the session with his back-to-back three-pointers, and layups that were made while he was being guarded.

Several players and NBA coaches had set different priorities amidst the All-Star Break. After all, it’s not every day that players get a major respite period during an 82-game season. JJ Redick revealed that he searched for a new home after his house was destroyed in the California Wildfires, caught up on some sleep, and spent time with his family. Paul George went on vacation with his wife to St Barts. This wasn’t met well by fans, given how the player is currently averaging his lowest points-per-game total since 2011-12. In fact, in his last game before the break, George only made 2 points! That too against a team like the Brooklyn Nets!

Therefore, it was satisfying to see Jimmy Butler as being a complete contrast to players like Paul George. He has averaged 21.3 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 5.3 assists in his 4 games with the Warriors. Despite this, the player is not shunning away his training. There is no better way to strike fear into the hearts of all other 29 teams while still being 8,078 miles (13,000 km) away from San Francisco. Furthermore, there are very few better ways to provide the Warriors franchise with some positive press. Given Draymond Green’s recent remarks, they certainly could use some positive press.

Oscar Robertson and Pelicans star criticized Draymond Green over his “boring” take

Draymond Green is someone who often finds himself on the short end of a controversy. However, he recently made the headlines over not a physical action, but a verbal one. In an interview with the Associated Press, the player stated, “Every possession is some type of chess move. You don’t get that today in the NBA, often. … You don’t just get that on a regular basis. It’s just who can run faster, who can hit more 3s, it’s no substance. I think it’s very boring.” Through his remarks, Green echoed the same sentiment that many felt has led to a decline in viewership of NBA games, and criticism over excessive three-point shooting. Despite this, it didn’t take long for the Warriors power forward to face backlash. Some of the criticism came within the NBA’s inner circle.

Amongst the first people to respond to Draymond Green’s claim was 1971 NBA champion Oscar Robertson. During an interview on SiriusXM NBA Radio, the 86-year-old went on a rant by stating, “Draymond says so much. Who cares what Draymond says? The game is what it is. People either like the game or they don’t. And I think people enjoy the game, especially if their team can win.” Robertson also took a dig at Green by implying that, most of the time, the player only passes to Stephen Curry. “It might be boring to him at times because of what he’s doing, Maybe it is boring when he’s out there. He’s not shooting a lot, and he’s not guarding a lot. So it’s boring.”

Another critic was New Orleans Pelicans small forward Trey Murphy III. When discussing the controversial take, he stated, “I don’t agree with that. I think the game’s fun. I still have fun watching basketball; I have fun playing basketball. The trade deadline made ratings go up a lot, so people are more intrigued and tuned in. The last two weeks before All-Star might be a little boring — everybody’s just trying to make All-Star — but the NBA being boring in general? I don’t know about that for sure.” Draymond Green will not live down his recent controversy anytime soon. Therefore, all one can hope is that Jimmy Butler’s positive updates help the Bay Area fanbase to continue holding on to some hope.