Hang with the NBA’s Fittest Players
IT’S JUST AFTER 4AM in downtown Miami and the American Airlines Arena is shrouded in quiet – no cars on Biscayne Boulevard, no boats crossing the bay out front. A black Ford Expedition rolls up and out steps Jimmy Butler, swinging a portable Bose speaker that’s rocking the twangy melodies of Florida Georgia Line. At heart, the four-time NBA All-Star is a small-town Texas boy and this beat puts him in his zone.
Butler needs to be in his zone right now. He’s been in Miami barely a day, hasn’t even unpacked, but he has to get back to business. He’s striding across the carpark to a practice gym with his performance coach, James Scott. If Butler’s going to be the centrepiece of the post–Dwyane Wade Miami Heat, there’s no time for days off. Or, in this case, mornings off.
This is how you achieve success in the new age of NBA fitness: you start work hours before the likes of even LeBron have rolled out of bed. A decade ago, toughness and muscle ruled basketball (remember Ben Wallace?), but today the NBA may be more obsessed with recovery, diet and the science of human performance than any other league.
Butler’s 4am workout puts him at the forefront of this revolution, kicking off an entire day devoted to complete basketball readiness. “It’s a rhythm, it’s a routine, and I don’t skip any of it,” he says. “I don’t skip any steps of the process.” Every hour is mapped out, beginning with the workout, then progressing to cryo-chamber recovery, agility training and time on the court. And when his body is resting, his mind revs up, studying game tape and honing strategic
