Jimmy Butler vs. Tom Thibodeau - Inside an obscenity-filled, hilarious rivalry - ESPN

IF THERE IS a basketball love language Tom Thibodeau and Jimmy Butler share, it centers on a single word: a four-letter one that starts with F. And it is said between them almost always as a sign of respect.

A few minutes after blasting — and singing every word to — a series of Nickelback songs from his portable speaker after a tough 126-114 overtime loss to the Orlando Magic in early March, 50 days before a showdown between the Miami Heat and the New York Knicks in the Eastern Conference semifinals that only the two of them could have predicted, Butler is standing in the corner of the visitors locker room inside Amway Center. As Heat staffers consume a nearby postgame pizza spread, Butler is asked to share some of his favorite Thibodeau memories. He listens to a few ideas; he seems interested in the subject matter, but then declines to offer up any anecdotes of his own.

«F--- Thibs,» he said, a smile cracking across his face. «F--- your article. And I like Thibs.»

To those who know both men well, dating back to their time together a decade earlier with the Chicago Bulls, this is the type of response that defines their relationship.

Thibodeau and Butler are inextricably linked.

It was Thibodeau who coached the Bulls when they selected Butler, then a skinny swingman out of Marquette, with the 30th pick in the 2011 draft. It was Butler who poured himself into his craft to become the kind of two-way player who earned Thibodeau's trust, ultimately earning a max contract from the Bulls that the organization never envisioned needing to offer. It was Thibodeau, after getting fired by the Bulls, who traded for Butler as the new coach and president of basketball operations of the Minnesota Timberwolves, building around a player