Presence vs. persona

Jimmy Butler's back, and he knows what we're saying about him.

In a real chyron that ran under an ESPN segment highlighting Jimmy Butler’s return this week after a seven-game suspension, the wording was foreboding: “Sources to ESPN: There is palpable dread about what Butler might do”

Another followed: “Sources to ESPN: There is concern about the chaos Butler might create”

What else might he do, besides play basketball?

Certainly, there’s a chance he could look unhappy on the bench and lacklustre on the floor. He’d already said the thing the Heat suspended him for, that he found no joy playing in his current situation. Could he say something worse? Sure. Like the rest of us, Jimmy Butler is a creature of free will.

It’s professional control, or mitigation, the Heat were after in suspending Butler. In this case, negotiated by two people — Butler and Pat Riley — with undeniable presence, both refusing to swerve.