TENNIS
French Open tennis sensation Carlos Alcaraz’s role as Miami Heat star Jimmy Butler prepares for the NBA Finals
The latest chapter in the Butler-Alcaraz bromance as the Heat small forward gets ready to take on the Denver Nuggets.
Jimmy Butler is going to be a busy man over the next little while. After the Miami Heat won the deciding Game 7 against the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference Finals, the small forward will be hoping to get his hands on his first NBA championship ring when his team take on Nikola Jokić and the Denver Nuggets. The Heat’s Playoff route has been one to remember so far but the icing is still missing from the top of the cake. The first game of the Finals is just around the corner on Thursday, yet Butler has been focusing plenty of his recent attention on French Open tennis star Carlos Alcaraz.
The 33-year-old posted a video on social media of him cheering the Spaniard on as he played his second round match at Roland Garros against Japanese Taro Daniel. Butler’s relationship with Alcaraz goes back a long way, with the six-time NBA All-Star courtside as the 2022 US Open champion defeated Dusan Lajovic at the Miami Masters in March. Later that same week, Alcaraz returned the favour, attending a Miami Heat game.
Butler and Alcaraz’s mutual admiration
That wasn’t, however, the first time Butler had seen the 20-year-old in action. A month earlier, the Heat player was in Buenos Aires and took in Alcaraz’s Argentina Open win over compatriot Bernabé Zapata, which the tennis star was rather pleased about: “I’ve seen him play several times. I have a lot of respect for him, he is a legend of his sport and for him to come and see me is an honour”, said the world number one.
Heat star and world number one exchange compliments
Since then, the pair have exchanged compliments on a number of occasions. “He is always ready. He never looks nervous and, more than anything else, he seems to always have fun”, said Butler of the Spaniard.
“It feels great that celebrities come to watch my matches. It’s incredible. It makes me a little nervous when I someone like Jimmy, a big star, like what happened at the US Open. In a way, I can’t believe that these people enjoy watching my matches because of me. It’s crazy”, responded Alcaraz.