[Stein] “Max Strus, Gabe Vincent & Caleb Martin—Those were [Butler's] guys," said a source familiar with the Heat's thinking. Several people who knew that edition of the Heat well cited Strus as an instrumental figure in keeping Butler steady within the greater team dynamic”
The original source is Stein’s pay-walled site, and I’m not sure if I’m allowed to share the link. Here’s a small excerpt from a Twitter user:
“Max Strus, Gabe Vincent & Caleb Martin—Those were [Butler's] guys," said a source familiar with the Heat's thinking. Several people who knew that edition of the Heat well cited Strus as an instrumental figure in keeping Butler steady within the greater team dynamic”
"A lot of the reason for the success of the Miami Heat was the chemistry they had," said one league figure with knowledge of that team's inner-workings. "Those were [Butler's] guys," said another NBA source familiar with the Heat's thinking. Butler is said to have viewed Strus as a brother - someone who could match the All-Star's sarcastic (some call it abrasive) sense of humor. They hatched a celebrated handshake routine, featured often in Instagram posts and punctuated by the players flipping each other off with shared tongue-in-cheek zeal. Several people who knew that edition of the Heat well cited Strus as an instrumental figure in keeping Butler steady within the greater team dynamic.