NBA media day is, for the most part, a relatively quiet affair. Everyone talks, but few say or make much of a note. We hear about how everyone is in the best shape of their life, how well their offseason went and how excited they are for what’s to come. But on balance, it’s among the looser dates on the standard NBA calendar. That’s what made Jimmy Butler’s ongoing hairstyle so funny.
Butler typically wears his hair in standard, short braids. By the time he got to media day in 2022, however, he had grown his hair into much longer dreadlocks. A year later, he arrived as Emo Jimmy, with straightened hair and eyebrow piercing.
Butler didn’t maintain these looks in the season, but he didn’t need to. The pictures players take during media day are used for promotional pictures throughout the season. Those pictures were effectively Butler’s picture for the season in which they were taken, and became a joke that fans looked forward to leading into each media day. What would Butler do in 2024? A mohawk? A mullet? Some internet sites even offered odds with answers as crazy as Jimmy Neutron’s hairdo.
On Monday, the moment of truth finally arrived and … Butler looked like his normal self.
While fans are certainly disappointed with Butler’s relatively tame choice, it makes sense why he would take the safe route. Butler is in a contract year, as he can become a free agent next summer via draft pick. Heat president Pat Riley has spoken publicly about Butler needing to be more available if he’s going to get a contract extension, and while he didn’t specifically comment on Butler’s hair, showing up to media day looking normal is a sign that he’s all business . season “I’m here,” Butler said. “No jokes.” He added that his travel plans — Butler’s flight from Paris to Miami on Monday was delayed — complicated matters.
While it’s not quite the same, we got at least one other fun hard decision to help us get over Butler’s more traditional look. Golden State Warriors forward Jonathan Kuminga showed up to media day with bleached blonde hair:
Perhaps the torch was passed from one wing to the other, but either way, Butler’s decision not to continue the trend was a disappointment for fans who expected it.
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