Rumors have circulated in recent years that Miami Heat star forward Jimmy Butler is the son of Chicago Bulls legend Michael Jordan.
The rumors started due to Butler’s physical resemblance to Jordan as well as his similar competitive nature and elevated level of play in the playoffs. During an interview with VladTV last year, four-time NBA champion John Salley had some fun with these rumors.
Salley listed Butler as part of the next wave of NBA legends’ sons who have a chance to be great in the NBA:
“I keep thinking, LeBron’s son is going to be a great player in the NBA, Shaq’s son, Scottie Pippen’s son, Michael Jordan’s son Jerry Butler is playing,” Salley said. “I’m just joking. I said, ‘Jerry,’ I meant Jimmy. When I saw that.’ Jimmy Butler might be Michael Jordan’s son,’ Jimmy Butler is a beast. I would hate to play against him.”
Despite their similarities, Butler has no relation with Jordan, who has five children: Jeffery, Marcus, Jasmine, Victoria and Ysabel. Meanwhile, Butler’s parents are Jimmy Butler II and Londa Butler.
Jimmy Butler got close to Michael Jordan’s playoff scoring record against Milwaukee Bucks
The Michael Jordan-Jimmy Butler father-son rumors picked up once again on Monday night.
That came after Butler led the Miami Heat to a 119-114 comeback win over the Milwaukee Bucks in Game 4 of their first-round series. Butler scored a career-high and franchise playoff-record 56 points on 67.9% shooting.
That marked the fourth-most points scored in playoff history. Butler finished just seven points short of Jordan’s playoff scoring record, which came in Game 2 of the Chicago Bulls’ first-round matchup against the Boston Celtics in the 1986 playoffs.
Meanwhile, after leading the Heat to a 15-point comeback win in Game 4, Butler spoke about the Heat’s underdog status:
“We knew what we were capable of, even if nobody outside of this building, outside of this roster and outside of this organization believed in us,” Butler said. “That’s fine. We just want to continue to do what we know is possible.”
Following their win, Butler and the eighth-seeded Heat are 3-1 up on the first-seeded Bucks. Game 5 takes place on Wednesday, where Miami will have a chance to eliminate Milwaukee.
