Neymar Jr. congratulates Jimmy Butler on winning NBA Eastern Conference finals MVP
Jimmy Butler's close friend, Neymar Jr., congratulated him after the Miami Heat clinched a spot in the NBA Finals with Monday night's win over the Boston Celtics. After jumping out to a 3-0 lead in the series, the Heat then dropped three straight losses to the Celtics, who were able to force a Game 7.
With the chance to make NBA history, the Celtics hoped to capture a series-clinching win on their home court, however, the Heat got the job done, winning 103-84.
After the game, Jimmy Butler, the ECF MVP, who has his eyes firmly focused on an NBA title, notably declined Bam Adebayo's offer to hoist the Bob Cousy Trophy. As Butler told his teammate, he'll hoist the next one: the Larry O'Brien Trophy.
Meanwhile, social media was abuzz with discussions regarding the game. In the mix was none other than Neymar Jr. The famous soccer player tweeted a message of support for his friend:
"MVP ... Congratulations brother Jimmy Butler ... 4 left"
MVP …
Parabéns irmão ♥️
@JimmyButler
Faltam 4 … 🔥🏆 https://t.co/Hb49zkp0WA
Looking at Jimmy Butler and Neymar Jr.'s friendship
In 2016, Jimmy Butler joined Team USA in Rio de Janeiro with the hope of capturing a gold medal. The day before the team's championship game, Butler took some time to watch Neymar Jr. compete at Brazil's Maracanã stadium.
After seeing Neymar secure gold for his country, Butler became a superfan. He told reporters, as quoted by the NY Times:
“I watched the greatest soccer player of all time win gold as well,” Butler said. “You know who I’m talking about, right? He won gold in his own country, which is even better. It was the first time I really paid attention to it, and he was killin’ — look at 10 go. And the crowd was just going nuts. I went that one time, and that was it.”
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Since then, the two have struck up quite the friendship, with the pair hanging out often during the offseason. In addition, the pair have appeared in plenty of photos and videos alongside one another both in casual settings, and working out together.
In addition, Jimmy Butler has also become a big soccer fan since seeing Neymar play. While in Africa, Butler linked up with star player Paul Pogba's mom, who put him in touch with her son. Since then, Butler and Pogba have also struck up a friendship, with the Miami Heat star traveling to see Manchester United play.
With Butler advancing to the NBA Finals, fans could very well wind up seeing Neymar Jr. make the trip to Miami to see the team play at home.
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