Jimmy Butler’s agent trashes another report, this time from LeBron James’ former teammate

Jimmy Butler has been locked in a war of attrition with the Miami Heat for months now. The trade-demand saga has progressively gotten more direct, and most recently, the Heat suspended Butler on the night of Jan. 22 for the second time this season, this time for two games. The news sparked theories as to what could've caused Butler's latest suspension which his agent has staunchly denied.

On an episode of the Road Trippin' podcast which aired Jan. 23, former NBA player and LeBron James' teammate Channing Frye claimed that Jimmy Butler was suspended for two games because he allegedly held up the team for multiple hours on the tarmac, only to notify them that he would meet the team at their destination.

Frye admitted the information might not be true but that there's a reason it's going around. He said it's possible that the story, which paints Butler in a negative light, is exactly what the Heat wants the narrative to be.

"On the flip side to that, if I'm Miami, that's what I want to put out to the media," Frye said.

He continued, "It justifies you fining him more and keeping him at home because he's not really wanting to be an active part of a team. So you are creating leverage to say either get in line and wait for us to either trade you to where you need to get traded— you're not going to disrupt what we've got going on."

Frye suggested it could be a way for the Heat to punish Jimmy Butler for his actions. They could be using methods within their means to penalize Butler and recoup lost assets.

"Pat Riley will find a way to justify to fine you and take away that money if you don't get in line, you're not just going to sit and get paid."

The claims made by Frye prompted a response from Jimmy Butler's agent, Bernard Lee, who called the rumor baseless. Lee plainly states that the situation didn't occur and questioned why the person who claimed it even has a platform. The interaction drew reactions from fans who are angered by the prolonged hostilities and lack of concrete evidence.

Bucks head coach offers take on Jimmy Butler trade situation

The Miami Heat traveled to Milwaukee to face the Bucks on Jan. 23 in a game where Jimmy Butler did not play due to his suspension from the team. The suspension, which is for a period of two games, was announced the night before and stated that it was due to Butler's "continued pattern of disregard of team rules, insubordinate conduct and conduct detrimental to the team."

Following the game, the Bucks' coach, Doc Rivers, was asked to weigh in on the situation.

"I don't know if I'm surprised or not. I just hope they find a way through it", said Rivers.

The coach of the 2008 NBA champion Boston Celtics recalled his time in Philadelphia coaching the 76ers and drew similarities to the Jimmy Butler situation. During his tenure, the organization became engaged in a stalemate with Ben Simmons that resulted in him sitting out the entirety of the 2021-2022 season and being traded to the Brooklyn Nets.

"I was in Philly with Ben Simmons and all that," Rivers said. " It's no fun for anyone. It's not fun really for the player, because their brother is the player, and so they don't want to have to take sides. They don't want to get involved. And anything they say will be construed one way or the other."

Rivers gave his empathy from one coach to another and noted the difficult position the Heat's head coach Erik Spoelstra is in due to the situation.

Rivers said, "I feel terrible for Spo. I mean there's no winning for Spo in this. It's just hard. He's got to try to get his team focused. It's our league at time, and it's no fun to go through."