Inside The Heat

Jimmy Butler, Neymar Make Appearance In Poker Event At Hustler Live Casino

Shandel Richardson

Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports

Miami Heat star Jimmy Butler always finds interesting places to hang in the summers, sometimes even during the regular season.

On Friday, he chose playing poker at a casino in Los Angeles. Not just any casino. The Hustler Casino Live, which livestreams poker during the week. Butler made an appearance with close friend Neymar, the Brazilian soccer star.

The list of stars participating in the event included boxers Ryan Garcia and Chris Eubank Jr, professional poker player Dan Bilzerian and others. The event was billed, "Legends Of The Felt."

Butler and Neymar have linked often after Heat games during the season. It's no secret Butler is a hardcore soccer fan, but he's rarely been associated with poker. According to the website, Hustler Casino Live says "close to a million dollars was spent transforming the casino’s high-limit poker room, the Crystal Room, into the set of this new state-of-the-art live show. HUSTLER Casino Live is not a traditional livestream poker show; it will look more like coverage of a TV broadcast sporting event and appeal to those beyond the gaming community."

Butler had more time for fun this offseason after the Heat were eliminated by the eventual champion Boston Celtics in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs. He has a week before things get real regarding his future in Miami.

Butler has reportedly asked for a two-year extension to his contract. The Heat have yet to agree so there could be plenty fireworks once July hits.

Eventually, we'll find out if Butler or Pat Riley is bluffing.

Shandel Richardson is the publisher of Inside The Heat. He can be reached at shandelrich@gmail.com

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Shandel Richardson
SHANDEL RICHARDSON

Shandel has covered the NBA since 2010, with previous stops at The Athletic and South Florida Sun-Sentinel.  He has covered six NBA Finals, one Super Bowl, the NCAA basketball tournament. He has also been a beat writer for the Miami Hurricanes and contributed on every major beat in South Florida since 2003, including the Miami Dolphins and Miami Marlins. He can also be read in the Sportsbook Review for gambling coverage from around the NBA. A native of Bloomington, Illinois, Shandel attended Southern Illinois University in Carbondale. He's also worked for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and Kansas City Star.  TWITTER: @ShandelRich EMAIL: shandelrich@gmail.com You can subscribe to our YouTube channel here Follow all of our Miami Heat coverage on Facebook here