Former NBA star and owner of Charlotte Hornets team Michael Jordan (L) looks on as NBA commissioner Adam Silver addresses a press conference ahead of the NBA basketball match between Milwaukee Bucks and Charlotte Hornets at The AccorHotels Arena in Paris on January 24, 2020. (Photo by FRANCK FIFE / AFP) (Photo by FRANCK FIFE/AFP via Getty Images)
NBA fans are roasting Michael Jordan for releasing a player who had a telling impact on the Eastern Conference Finals.
The Miami Heat are returning to the NBA Finals after an incredible seven-game series against the Boston Celtics that ended in a 103-84 win on Monday night. Jimmy Butler was named the conference MVP after leading his team to the final hurdle, but he only beat Caleb Martin out by a single vote.
Butler received five of the nine votes from a media panel covering the Eastern Conference Finals.
The voting results ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/78bBxho5Yh
— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) May 30, 2023
Many have argued that Martin deserved to be MVP given the way he played, and you could make a case that it could have easily been him.
The 27-year-old played lights out all series, scoring 21 points and hauling 15 rebounds in the marginal Game 6 loss on Saturday night before exploding for 26 and 10 in Game 7. He’s now one of several Miami players who have gone on to make a name for themselves in the league after going undrafted.
As it turns out, Martin was released by the Charlotte Hornets in 2021. And, following his breakout in the playoffs, fans have dug up the old team announcement to troll MJ.
— brandon (@yslbodybags) May 30, 2023
Hold that L
— Nick Grate (@gratefulnick) May 30, 2023
One of the worst owners of all time..
— Zachery Titsworth (@ztitsworth) May 30, 2023
MJ watching game 7 pic.twitter.com/lhkNVwoEO0
— c (@Kfucontroller) May 30, 2023
first Michael Jordan L this deep in the playoffs since 1990 https://t.co/aAc85kG7Xp
— Brandon Anderson (@wheatonbrando) May 30, 2023
Martin’s arrival in Miami is also part of a cool story as it’s been reported that it was rapper J. Cole who called Heat assistant coach Caron Butler and asked him to take a look at the player after working out with him.
Cole told Butler the former NC State and Nevada forward would be a perfect fit for the culture. The rest is history.
