Jimmy Butler is one of the few NBA stars who follow soccer with a passion. When asked what team he would want to play for, the Heat forward named Paris-Saint Germain.
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The NBA is one of the most entertaining sporting leagues in the world, bearing some of the most talented athletes. Several players in the league, excelled at different sports apart from basketball – Michael Jordan played at the Minor League Baseball after winning a three-peat with the Chicago Bulls, Jalen Suggs was named Mr. Football and Mr. Basketball in his high school senior year, Tim Duncan was a professional swimmer before making it into the league, LeBron James, having a freakish athleticism, was offered contracts from 2 NFL teams during the 2011 NBA lockout, among many other multi-sport athletes our association has witnessed.
On the other hand, Jimmy Butler is a huge soccer fan but didn’t follow the various soccer leagues growing up. It was during the 2016 Rio Games, when Jimmy “Buckets” became an avid fan, following the sport religiously.
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Today, apart from the European players in the NBA, the Heat forward is one of the only few stars in the league who keeps up with the soccer world on a regular basis. And early on this year, the 5-time All-Star even disclosed the one soccer club he would want to play for.
“Mbappe and Neymar Jr are gonna make me look like I know what I’m doing on the pitch”: Jimmy Butler
Back in January of 2021, after the conclusion of the NBA Bubble season, Jimmy made an appearance on GQ Sports’ “Actually Me”, where he went undercover to answer a few fan questions from Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, among many other social media platforms.
On one of his tweets, where he posted photos of himself playing soccer, a user asked – “What club would you want to play for?”
To which, the 2015 Most Improved Player picked Paris Saint-Germain. He further explained why:
“I would definitely have to say PSG, I think if I’m alongside Mbappe, the greatest to ever do it in Neymar Jr. I feel like they’re gonna make me look like I really know what I’m doing out there on the pitch. It’d be a battle. I mean, me and Neymar going head to head for who’s gonna wear 10. I don’t know. But PSG! That’s the way I’m going.”
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In the same video, the two-way superstar termed the Brazilian sensation, Neymar Jr., as his GOAT.
When asked – “Jimmy, who is the GOAT to you?”, he responded:
“If we’re talking about sports, we’re talking about GOATs. I’m picking Neymar. As everybody knows. I don’t even like to talk about basketball. I think I’m a footballer now. So my GOAT? Neymar Jr.”
