Carlos Alcaraz, Coco Gauff, Emma Raducanu & tennis world hail Jimmy Butler's historic feat
Tennis stars have hailed Jimmy Butler for his historic NBA achievement, with Carlos Alcaraz, Emma Raducanu, Coco Gauff, and Alexander Zverev applauding the Miami Heat star. During the Miami Heat's 130-117 win over the Milwaukee Bucks on Sunday night, Butler became just the fourth player ever to record 35 points, 10 assists, and three steals in multiple playoff games.
In doing so, Butler found his name in elite company as only Michael Jordan, Russell Westbrook, and LeBron James have previously recorded such stats.
The tennis world was understandably left in awe after the American basketball star's impressive feat.
Here are some of the reactions (via Instagram stories):
Butler himself is also a tennis enthusiast. At the Miami Open last month, the NBA star was seen in the stands for multiple matches. He met current ATP World No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz soon after witnessing the Spaniard's victory over Dusan Lajovic in the second round. Later, Alcaraz expressed his delight at having the likes of Butler watch him compete from the stands.
Butler was even in the stands for Coco Gauff's second-round match in Miami against Rebecca Marino. Gauff later revealed that she felt nervous after seeing Butler seated courtside during her match.
"Jimmy Butler is here, so I was a little bit nervous when I saw him," Gauff said in her on-court interview after the match.
"He’s always poised, he’s never rattled" - When Jimmy Butler showered praise on Carlos Alcaraz
After watching Carlos Alcaraz's match at the Miami Open, Jimmy Butler showered praise on the Spaniard for his personality on the court. Butler felt that Alcaraz never looked rattled on the court and was particularly impressed that the 19-year-old was enjoying himself on the court.
Butler further lauded the teen's mentality and said that Alcaraz, who was World No. 1 at the time, held the top spot in the rankings for good reason.
“He’s always poised. He’s never rattled and more than anything, it looks like he’s having so much fun out there,” Butler told ATPTour.com. “I think whenever you have fun and you have that mentality that you know you’re the best, you go out there and you play as though you’re the best, results happen and he’s not No. 1 for no reason.”
Alcaraz will be in action at the Barcelona Open this week, where he is the top seed as well as the defending champion. Meanwhile, Emma Raducanu will also compete this week at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart.