Kevin Love is NBA Instagram MVP with his Jimmy Butler meme game
Kevin Love, NBA player, father, husband, fashion model, influencer, pusher of fine goods.
Add this to his list of titles: content creator.
Love is the undisputed king of the Jimmy Butler memes, using his Instagram account to satirize Butler's saga with the Miami Heat. Adding even more enjoyment to Love's antics is that Love also plays for the Heat.
Don't know if the Heat are having a good time and don't know if Butler is having a good time, but Love is enjoying the spectacle while showing off his meme game with an impressive knowledge of pop culture and aptitude for applying it to Butler's situation.
IG is a visual and audio medium so it needs to be consumed as such. But it started on Jan. 3, the day the Heat suspended Butler seven games. Love posted a photo of a person sporting a hairstyle like the one Jimmy Butler wore in his media day photo 2023 with the caption: 'Last 3 hours – 'Emo State' ".
All things Heat: Latest Miami Heat news, schedule, roster, stats, injury updates and more.
The same day, Love posted again with the caption: 'Entering my Winston Wolfe (sic) phase' with a clip from "Pulp Fiction" when the character played by Harvey Keitel rings a doorbell and says, 'You're Jimmie right? This is your house?'
'Sure is.'
'I'm Winston Wolf, I solve problems."
'Good, we got one.'
'So I heard.'
Love followed up with a clip from "The Godfather Part III": 'Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in' with the caption 'Jimmy after yesterdays news.' In the next post, Love wrote, 'LIVE LOOK – Jimmy after his meeting with Micky #getmyjoyback" (Heat owner Micky Arison) and a clip from "The Wolf of Wall Street" when Leonardo DiCaprio's character says, 'I'm not (expletive) leaving! The show goes on! This is my home! They're going to need a (expletive) wrecking ball to take me out of here!'
It is brilliant, and interspersed in Love's Butler memes are photos of Love with Ralph Lauren, both men dapper in tuxedoes; a heartfelt post about the California wildfires; a post of Love, whose uncle is Mike Love of The Beach Boys and whose dad, Stan, was a Beach Boys employee, wearing his dad's Beach Boys jacket; and a tender moment between dad and daughter.
He uses a clip from "Scarface" captioned 'Jimmy dining out in Miami this evening' with Al Pacino's Tony Montana character saying, 'You don't have the guts to be what you want to be. You need people like me. You need people like me so you can point your (expletive) fingers and say, 'That's the bad guy.' '
Love has kept it going throughout three Butler suspensions, including the most recent on Monday when the Heat suspended Butler indefinitely.
The caption: 'Bam (Adebayo) in Spo's office (Heat coach Erik Spoelstra) pouring his heart out over this whole situation …' with a video from "The Green Mile" with Michael Clarke Duncan's character telling Tom Hanks' character: 'I want it to be over and done with. I do. I'm tired boss. Tired of being on the road, lonely as a sparrow in the rain. I'm tired of never having me a buddy to be with or tell me where we's going to or coming from or why.'
Love is on point and never more so than when the caption is 'Pat's response (Heat president Pat Riley) to 'anywhere BUT Memphis' – a reference to potential trade destinations – with a clip of Brian Cox's Logan Roy character from "Succession" saying, '(Expletive) off!' more than 20 times.
Love has taken a situation that has serious components and shed light on the silliness of it all, too. It has resonated with an NBA audience including players. His 10 Butler-memed IG posts have received nearly 350,000 likes and more than 210,000 shares.
After one Butler-related post, LeBron James replied with nine crying laughing emojis. James' agent, Klutch Sports CEO Rich Paul, responded to a post: 'This is so good.'
Channing Frye, Richard Jefferson, Tristan Thompson, DeAndre Jordan, Max Strus, Kevin Hart and Bobby Cannavale have replied. One user wrote: 'Kevin Love's IG is the best TV show of 2025.'
When questioned by another user that Love must want to leave Miami too, Love responded: 'not even a little bit! Love the people I work with.'
Love may no longer be an All-Star on the court, but he's the NBA Instagram MVP in 2025.
Follow NBA reporter Jeff Zillgitt on social media @JeffZillgitt
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New York Post
an hour ago
- New York Post
Jennifer Garner reveals her secrets to being 53, flirty, and thriving in candid interview
Jennifer Garner feels she's 53 going on… 53. The actress got candid on self-love and why at this stage in her life, she's not looking to be any younger. When asked by Harper's Bazzar in an interview published on Friday, what age she feels like in her head, Garner quipped: 'I don't know!' Advertisement 7 Jennifer Garner. 'Part of me is, like, really 53 because I've really earned every minute of every day of every year. I don't want to be younger,' she confessed. 'I'm very grateful to be exactly this age. I'm trying to soak it up. I feel like I'm living in my power. I'm living in my wisdom. I'm living in my joy and my capacity to do and get things done. So I'm just very aware of my luck and the grace that's been shown to me.' Garner, who is mom to kids Violet, 19, Seraphina Rose, 16, and Samuel, 13, with ex-husband Ben Affleck, added that as she's gotten older, there are more aspects of her physical appearance that she loves. Advertisement 'Part of the gift of being my mother's daughter is that I haven't spent a lot of time stressing about my physical appearance,' the '13 Going on 30' alum admitted. 'I don't spend a lot of time in the mirror. Sometimes I could spend more time in the mirror; I'm sure I've had things in my teeth or a bump in my hair.' 7 Jennifer Garner smiles in nature. Instagram/@ 'So there are pluses and minuses to it. If you look through, like, the last 20-plus years of paparazzi pictures of me, you would see images and say, 'You would be best served by spending more time thinking about what you look like.'' As the years go by, Garner, who's been in front of the camera since landing a part on the drama 'Felicity' in 1998, has given herself grace. Advertisement 'But the flip side of that is that I'm not really that stressed about aging or things changing,' she stressed. 'I have my moments, of course, where I'll look in the monitor at work and be like, 'Who is that? Ah, that's me!' But I think less is more, as far as focusing on yourself too much in that way.' 7 Jennifer Garner poses in overalls. Instagram/@ 'What are you going to do?' Garner continued. 'I want to age. I want to live to be 100. I don't expect to look at 100 like I look today. I want to wear every single bit of those 100 years and feel great about them. But what do I like better about myself? Well, I don't know that I used to think about it at all, but I'm more friendly to myself in general.' As for what the 'Family Switch' star swears by, she says: sunscreen. Advertisement 'Sunscreen ages well,' said Garner. 'My dermatologist friend Doris Day says nothing looks better in your 50s than sunscreen in your 20s. And as someone who was not a sunbather in my 20s—I just didn't have that patience—I luckily did wear sunscreen. I can tell you, the products have only gotten better, every single iteration, every single year, and I'm grateful for them now that I'm in my 50s.' 7 Jennifer Garner in a flower field. Instagram/@ One thing Garner isn't diving into for the time being is cosmetic procedures. Instead, she's opting for good skincare – much like products from her longtime partnership with Neutrogena. 'Well, I don't judge whatever makes anyone look or feel their best,' she told the outlet. 'I haven't needed it yet, but I can't say that I haven't said to doctors before, 'Do I need to do this?' And I've had really nice doctors who have just been like, 'No.' So, God only knows 10 years from now what the conversation will be. I'm not there yet.' Garner added, 'But as far as injectables go, I think just find somebody fantastic and proceed with caution. I don't do a ton, and Botox doesn't work very well for me; that's why I wear bangs a lot. I like to be able to move my forehead, and it's such a big part of my face. I have, like, a five-head.' 7 Jennifer Garner swimming in a pool. Instagram/jennifergarner These days, what keeps the 'Alias' vet feeling good in her skin is 'working out with people who are younger and more fit than I am.' And the best part of aging is simple for Garner. As she put it, 'Growing older is the best! It's like you're more confident and you worry less. I had no idea how much I was going to love having teenagers. They're just so smart and funny. They make me laugh, and they're so sweet. ' Advertisement Although sometimes, there are those every day teenage tifs. Last month, in an academic research paper that Violet wrote for Yale University's Global Health Review, the college student detailed some opposing views she has with Garner. 7 Jennifer Garner picks apples. Instagram/@ The mother-daughter duo had different reactions to the Pacific Palisades fires, with Garner being stunned and Violet feeling that due to climate change, it was inevitable. Advertisement 'I spent the January fires in Los Angeles arguing with my mother in a hotel room,' Violet penned. According to the essay, Garner 'was shell-shocked, astonished at the scale of destruction in the neighborhood where she raised myself and my siblings.' 'I was surprised at her surprise: as a lifelong Angelena and climate-literate member of generation Z, my question had not been whether the Palisades would burn but when,' Violet wrote. 7 Jennifer Garner. Instagram/@ Advertisement During the wildfires, Garner volunteered with the World Central Kitchen and revealed that a friend who she knew through church died in the blaze. 'I feel almost guilty walking through my house,' she said at the time.
New York Post
2 hours ago
- New York Post
Sarah Jessica Parker admits she was ‘shocked' the ‘And Just Like That…' audience disliked Che Diaz
And just like that, Sarah Jessica Parker found out what the fandom really thought. The 'Sex and the City' alum, 60, who reprised her role as the iconic Carrie Bradshaw in the show's spinoff 'And Just Like That…' revealed she was 'shocked' to find out the audience didn't like Sara Ramirez's character Che Diaz. 'A friend of mine brought it up to me, and it's like: 'What are you talking about?'' Parker said in an interview with The Guardian on Friday. 'And he said: 'Yeah, there's all this conversation.'' Advertisement 7 Sara Ramirez as Che Diaz and Sarah Jessica Parker as Carrie Bradshaw in 'And Just Like That…' MAX Ramirez, 49, originated the character in 2021 during season one before becoming Miranda's (Cynthia Nixon) love interest in season two. They left the show after the second season wrapped. Parker explained to the outlet that she doesn't listen to backlash against projects she stars in. Advertisement 'I've been an actor for 50 years, and I've almost never paid attention to peripheral chatter,' the 'Hocus Pocus' star added, noting that when it came to Ramirez she 'Ioved working with them.' 7 Sara Ramirez and Sarah Jessica Parker in 'And Just Like That…' During Ramirez's run, fans took to social media to share their dislike of the stand up comedian. One viewer wrote on X, 'Stop subjecting us to che, they are making it really hard to get into and just like that…. Well, them, and all the other annoying things that have ruined a perfectly good cupcake of a show.' Advertisement A second social media user wrote, 'I've started to skip the Che Diaz scenes in And Just Like That but now the episodes are like two minutes long.' 7 The HBO drama 'And Just Like That…' Rounding out the annoyance, a third watcher said: 'Trigger warning for this week's episode of And Just Like That: it opens with Che doing stand up again.' Before Ramirez concluded their run on the spinoff, the 'Grey's Anatomy' alum wrote on Instagram, 'I am not the fictional characters I have played, nor am I responsible for the things that are written for them to say.' Advertisement 'I am a human being, an artist, an actor. And we are living in a world that has become increasingly hostile toward anyone who dares to free themselves from the gender binary, or disrupt the mainstream.' Ramirez also told Entertainment Weekly that they're 'actually nothing like' the person they portrayed on the HBO show. 7 Sara Ramirez and Cynthia Nixon in 'And Just Like That…' Craig Blankenhorn 'It was absolutely exhausting to bring this person to life,' they confessed. 'I had to stay in a bit of an extroverted mode in order to do that. So the efforts that it took to bring this character forth makes me feel really proud of what I've been able to deliver.' Although Ramirez was thrilled to see their character evoke chatter. 'I love that people have passionate opinions, that Che struck a nerve,' they said. 'I think it's really interesting to play a person who elicits such strong reactions and who can start much-needed conversations. If the storylines created major watercooler moments after each episode, then we did our job.' In May, Nixon, 59, divulged that she thinks 'And Just Like That…' works best when the core group of characters aren't in long term romances. 7 Che Diaz and Miranda. Advertisement 'I think our show is always at its most quintessential when as many of us as possible are single and dating and failing at it,' the actress stated in a conversation with Entertainment Weekly at the time. Now, with season three of the drama, which also stars Kristin Davis, Nicole Ari Parker, Sarita Choudhury and John Corbett, in full swing, viewers are in store for a whole new slew of relationships. So far, Rosie O'Donnell guest starred as a virgin nun who slept with Miranda during the premiere episode. 'Rosie and I have known each other for a long time,' Nixon told the outlet. 'I was like, 'Shall I text her?' And [showrunner Michael Patrick King] was like, 'Sure!' And she was wonderfully excited about the prospect, so we had a great time.' Advertisement 7 Sara Ramirez as Che Diaz. Season 3, Episode 1, titled 'Outlook Good,' saw O'Donnell, 63, take on the role of Mary, who meets Miranda a lesbian bar. The two then headed back to Mary's hotel room where they then have sex. 'One of the things that it meant was that Miranda was single again,' Nixon told E! News last month about Miranda's breakup from Che. 'And that the tensions between Miranda and Che—and also Miranda and Steve—had been quelled and quieted.' Advertisement 7 Sara Ramirez and Sarah Jessica Parker. Craig Blankenhorn 'Just speaking for Miranda,' Nixon explained, 'it meant that she was setting out on this new dating world having decided she wanted to date women and nonbinary people, but not really quite knowing how to go about that.' Also set to guest star is 'Law & Order' vet Mehcad Brooks. Advertisement 'The part of my personality that will do anything for a laugh that has no place on 'Law & Order,' I get to do it [on this show],' the 44-year-old gushed to The Post in May. 'One of the highlights of my career is that I get to act across from Nicole Ari Parker,' Brooks added. I've known her for 20 years, we've worked together before – but never in this just a joy to be around, I'm learning so much.'
3 hours ago
Chris Pratt shows off drastic transformation for 'The Terminal List' season 2
Chris Pratt gave fans a behind-the-scenes look at his dramatic transformation for "The Terminal List" season two, sharing a video from set on Friday. The actor appeared nearly unrecognizable with long hair, a full beard and a thick mustache, all part of a detailed prosthetic look for his character. "Isn't this hair and makeup incredible?" Pratt said in the video posted to Instagram. "My team does such an awesome job." Pratt, who plays Navy SEAL James Reece in the Amazon Prime Video series, explained the facial hair is fake, but realistic enough to cause issues during lunch breaks. "The crazy thing about wearing a fake mustache or a fake beard is when you eat, you get hair in your mouth," he said, joking about not knowing where the hair came from. "No. Anyways. I don't care. I'm hungry," he added before eating. Season two of "The Terminal List" is based on "True Believer," the second novel in Jack Carr's book series. The action drama follows a Navy SEAL navigating trauma and conspiracy after a mission goes wrong. Constance Wu, Taylor Kitsch and Riley Keough return as part of the ensemble cast. Pratt's on-set update came days after he paid tribute to "Parks and Recreation" co-star Jonathan Joss, who was shot and killed on June 1. "Damn. RIP Jonathan. Always such a kind dude," Pratt wrote in a post shared to Instagram Stories.
