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The rise of legal sports betting means it’s only natural that fans will do everything in their power to get their wager to hit, which includes plenty of spectators who will personally plead with players to help them out. However, one man who attempted to get an assist from Jimmy Butler ended up getting shut down in brutal fashion.
As someone who’s been more than happy to take advantage of the normalization of sports betting, one of the most annoying aspects of that pastime entering the mainstream is the number of people who not only feel obligated to share their slate with the world but are under the impression everyone else in the world has an obligation to care about what they stand to win or lose.
I can understand why you might feel the urge to raise that particular topic with a player if you end up in a situation where you’re able to have a conversation with someone who actually has a say in whether or not your bet is going to hit, but I feel like I’m stating the obvious when I say athletes could not care less about the action you decided to take.
One man who was sitting courtside when the Memphis Grizzlies hosted the Miami Heat on Wednesday learned that was the case courtesy of Jimmy Butler, who made the decision to engage with the guy who informed him he needed the guard to score 20 points to win a bet.
The spectator harnessed the “appeal to emotion” strategy by telling Butler he needed the money in order to pay his mortgage only to get hit with a fantastic flex when the six-time All-Star told him he couldn’t sympathize because he paid for his house in cash.
@bowmanjonbowman When keeping it real goes wrong. #fyp #foryoupage #foryourpage #foryourpages #nba #jimmybutler #cash
The best part of the exchange is the fact that it partially transpired when Butler was technically involved in the play, as you can see the clock was running when he hit him with the comeback. The second-best part? Butler finished the game with 15 points, which I’m going to tell myself was out of spite until proven otherwise.