South Florida Local News

MIAMI — Erik Spoelstra began the night by insisting the night had to be about his team, not the sideshow of a former disgruntled player being back in town.

So the Miami Heat made it about both.

Combining stifling defense with stout 3-point shooting, the Heat further distanced themselves from the 10-game losing streak that was snapped Sunday, with a second consecutive victory.

The fact that the 112-86 decision Tuesday night at Kaseya Center came over the Golden State Warriors and Jimmy Butler made it all the more satisfying.

“I mean the energy in the building was great,” Spoelstra said. “If you’re a competitor, you love this type of environment. We didn’t do any extra motivational speech.”

Taking advantage of the absence of sidelined Warriors guard Stephen Curry, the Heat placed their defensive focus on Butler and turned to team captain Bam Adebayo to orchestrate one of the most satisfying moments of an otherwise unfulfilling season.

“Defensively,” Spoelstra said, “it was probably one of our more consistent efforts all the way through.

“We kind of had it all together tonight.”

Jeered on practically every touch after mostly receiving tepid applause during a pregame video tribute, Butler closed with 11 points on 5-of-12 shooting.

Given the keys to both the defense and offense, Adebayo contributed 27 points and eight rebounds, shooting 2 of 3 on 3-pointers as part of the Heat’s overall 17 of 25 from beyond the arc.

“At this point, we’re scrapping for wins,” Adebayo said. “It doesn’t matter who we play against.”

The Heat also got 20 points from Tyler Herro, 17 from Alec Burks and 14 points and 10 rebounds from Kel’el Ware.

“Hopefully we’re getting there,” Spoelstra said, “and we’ve got to keep on going.”

In addition, former Warriors forward Andrew Wiggins added 10 points, five rebounds, five assists, three blocked shots and two steals.

“It felt good,” Wiggins said. “It was friendly competition at the highest level.”

The Warriors were led by the 15 points of Jonathan Kuminga.

“Obviously, it’s a big difference when Curry is not playing, no question about that,” Spoelstra said. “He is an offense unto himself.”

The Heat, still in 10th place in the Eastern Conference, close out their five-game homestand Thursday night against the Atlanta Hawks, before leaving for a three-game trip to Philadelphia, Washington and Boston.

“At this point of the season,” Herro said, “regardless of who it is, we’ve got to play with that energy, that effort.”

Five Degrees of Heat from Tuesday night’s game:

1. Game flow: The Heat led 28-22 after the first quarter and then went into halftime with a 57-40 lead after Herro converted a 3-pointer just before the second-quarter buzzer.

No Warriors starter had more than one basket in the first half, the lowest-scoring first half by Warriors starters since 2004.

The Heat then went up 20 in the third period, saw the deficit trimmed to eight, before going into the fourth up 83-70.

From there, the Heat again made it a 20-point game, going up 95-75 with 7:06 to play on a 29-foot Herro 3-pointer, with the Warriors shortly thereafter pulling their starters.

“I thought we had an inspiring balance tonight,” Spoelstra said.

2. Bam v. Butler: There was no pretense about the Heat’s defensive focus, especially with Curry sidelined.

So from the outset, it was Adebayo defensively on Butler.

“I think it’s a part of my versatility,” Adebayo said. “I think that adds value to me.

“The guy’s been through the trenches with us, so the utmost respect. I’m just glad we got the win.”

That had Butler 1 of 5 through his first two stints, with Haywood Highsmith also taking a turn on Butler. Butler stood 1 of 6 for two points at halftime.

“When we’re starring Kel’el, Bam guards whoever the best big wing is,” Spoelstra said. “He’s been taking on these challenges.

“He made some inspiring plays right out of the gate.”

Adebayo closed 9 of 18 from the field, quarterbacking the Heat defense when not shutting down Butler.

Butler closed with six rebounds and two assists.

For his part, Warriors coach Steve Kerr downplayed the Butler element of the night.

“Miami is a great place to live,” Kerr said. “People don’t ever seem too amped up around here. So it really wasn’t that rabid an environment. Typical Miami. The main part of Jimmy’s return is that the Heat were ready.”

Of the overall defense that limited the Warriors .398 shooting, Herro said, “We were on a string, covering for each other.”

• Winderman’s view: Heat dig in defensively, show Warriors the bite, bark still there
• Jimmy Butler’s return to Miami draws mix of cheers, boos from crowd
• The Jimmy Butler Statue Committee? One man’s crusade to honor the ex-Heat star
• Dwyane Wade says Jimmy Butler shift from Heat to Warriors a simple case of gaining ‘the upper hand’
• After Heat trade, Butler delights in joy of isolation as Warriors get him in his comfort zone

3. Short again: Out of the mix for the Heat was Duncan Robinson, who had started five of the previous six games.

Robinson was downgraded pregame from his listing of questionable, dealing with lower-back pain.

Asked if it was similar to a previous back issue that had sidelined Robinson, Spoelstra said, “He feels better today. I’m not going to go there mentally. I’m sure he doesn’t want to.”

The Heat also announced before the game that forward Nikola Jovic has resumed court work a month removed from his broken hand. No timetable was offered regarding a return.

Jovic no longer is wearing a brace or any protection on the hand.

4. Rotation revision: Even with Robinson out, Jaime Jaquez Jr. was shuffled out of the Heat mix and Terry Rozier remained out of the mix.

Jaquez had started four of the previous six games, but played only six minutes in Sunday night’s victory over the Hornets. He then entered only for the final four minutes Tuesday night.

Rozier has now been held out of the past four games and five of the past seven.

Instead, minutes went to Kyle Anderson, who had been held out of the previous three games and five of the previous seven.

5. Contributing factors: With Robinson out, Spoelstra turned to Burks, who already had tied season highs of five 3-pointers and 17 points by the midpoint of the third period, not needed thereafter.

In addition, even with the Warriors opening with a small lineup that had Draymond Green, Spoelstra stayed with size, with Ware closing with his fourth double-double in the past six games.

“It was good to see those kind of inspiring efforts from multiple guys,” Spoelstra said.

MIAMI — Heat coach Erik Spoelstra cracked a joke, asking if his pregame press conference Tuesday night was full of media members because the Heat were on a one-game winning streak.

No, it was not because Miami snapped its 10-game skid. It was for the awkward reunion between Spoelstra’s team and estranged superstar Jimmy Butler, who the Heat dealt to the visiting Golden State Warriors after a highly publicized dispute between Butler and the front office, which suspended Butler three times before trading him.

“Obviously, there’s a great storyline for everybody out there,” Spoelstra said. “We’re trying to focus on everything we’ve been dealing with for the last three weeks. I think all the emotions were late December, early January, to be frank. They’re trying to do what they’re trying to do. This is the NBA, so there’s a lot of things that’ll happen. There’s a lot of change in the NBA. I think we’re pretty far removed from that kind of emotion.”

The Heat are not about to give Butler a statue outside the Kaseya Center, but they did honor Butler’s Miami tenure with a tribute video before the game.

Kevin Love was shown hugging his former teammate on TV, but the reception from the crowd was frostier. The Heat played a short tribute video, which featured Butler’s highlights during his Heat years, before he was introduced to a mix of cheers and boos.

“It took me back some good times when I was wearing a Miami Heat jersey,” Butler said. “I’m very appreciative of those times. They helped me become the player that I am in this league, the individual that I am in this league, the teammate, the leader. All of those things.”

Fans booed him whenever he touched the ball, though Butler accepted that fans in Miami might not feel like cheering him.

“It’s going to happen plenty of places,” Butler said. “I guess it’s going to happen here now, too. You get used to it.”

• Winderman’s view: Heat dig in defensively, show Warriors the bite, bark still there
• Adebayo, Heat roll to 112-86 rout, as Warriors, Butler go bust
• The Jimmy Butler Statue Committee? One man’s crusade to honor the ex-Heat star
• Dwyane Wade says Jimmy Butler shift from Heat to Warriors a simple case of gaining ‘the upper hand’
• After Heat trade, Butler delights in joy of isolation as Warriors get him in his comfort zone

Butler got off to a slow start, ending his return to Miami with 11 points and six rebounds in the Warriors’ loss. Heat captain Bam Adebayo, who played defense against Butler Tuesday night, had an early dunk past his former teammate.

Although Butler received a tribute video, he and Heat president Pat Riley do not appear to be on great terms. TNT’s Taylor Rooks said Butler told her he had “nothing to say to Pat.”

“And Pat better have nothing to say to me,” Butler told Rooks.

The two franchises have been on opposite paths since the trade. Golden State is 16-6 since the trade, and the Warriors are in sixth place in the Western Conference. Miami is 6-17 since dealing Butler and in the mix for the play-in round to see whether they can advance to the postseason.

“He fits stylistically because he’s kind of an opposite of (Steph) Curry,” Spoelstra said. “But his IQ and his competitive spirit fits with their philosophy. He always finds a way to be an add-on value one way or the other.”

All told, Spoelstra said he will remember Butler’s time with the Heat well.

“That was a pretty long chapter,” Spoelstra said. There were a lot of different highs and lows with that. But I’ll look back on it fondly.”

“Those were extraordinary times,” he added.

The Jimmy Butler intro video as he’s met with.…well, you decide pic.twitter.com/f1jBrosk97

— jeremy taché (@jeremytache) March 25, 2025

By HANNAH SCHOENBAUM

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Utah on Tuesday added new protections for the children of online content creators following the child abuse conviction of Ruby Franke, a mother of six who dispensed parenting advice to millions on YouTube before her arrest in 2023.

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Gov. Spencer Cox signed a law under the encouragement of Franke’s now ex-husband that gives adults a path to scrub from all platforms the digital content they were featured in as minors and requires parents to set aside money for kids featured in content. Kevin Franke told lawmakers in February that he wished he had never let his ex-wife post their children’s lives online and use them for profit.

“Children cannot give informed consent to be filmed on social media, period,” he said. “Vlogging my family, putting my children into public social media, was wrong, and I regret it every day.”

The Frankes launched the now-defunct “8 Passengers” channel on YouTube in 2015 and began chronicling daily life as a seemingly tight-knit Mormon family in Springville, Utah. With its large nuclear families and religious lifestyles, the state is a hotbed for the lucrative family blogging industry. The reality show “The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives” brought widespread attention to a group of Utah-based Mormon mothers and TikTok creators known as “MomTok” who create content about their families and faith.

The content-creation industry is largely unregulated, but several states are considering protections for the earnings of young creators. Laws in Illinois and Minnesota allow children to sue parents who do not set aside money for them. Utah’s law goes further, allowing content featuring minors to be taken down.

The Franke children were featured prominently in videos posted up to five times a week to an audience of 2.5 million in 2010. Two years later, Ruby Franke stopped posting to the family channel and began creating parenting content with therapist Jodi Hildebrandt, who encouraged her to cut contact with Kevin Franke and move her two youngest children into Hildebrandt’s southern Utah home.

The women were arrested on child abuse charges after Ruby Franke’s emaciated 12-year-old son Russell escaped through a window and knocked on a neighbor’s door. The neighbors noticed his ankles wrapped in bloody duct tape and called 911. Officers then found 9-year-old Eve, the youngest Franke child, sitting cross-legged in a dark closet in Hildebrandt’s house with her hair buzzed off.

The women were each sentenced to up to 30 years in prison.

In handwritten journal entries, Ruby Franke insists repeatedly that her son is possessed by the devil and describes months of daily abuse that included starving her children and forcing them to work for hours in the summer heat without protection. The boy told investigators that Hildebrandt had used rope to bind his limbs to weights on the ground and dressed his wounds with cayenne pepper and honey, according to the police report.

In a memoir published after her mother’s arrest, Shari, the eldest child, described how Ruby Franke’s obsession with “striking content gold” and chasing views led her to view her children as employees who needed to be disciplined, rather than children who needed to be loved. Shari wrote that her mother directed the children “like a Hollywood producer” and subjected them to constant video surveillance. She has called herself a “victim of family vlogging” and alluded in her book to early signs of abuse from her mother, including being slapped for disobedience when the now 22-year-old was 6.

Under the Utah law, online creators who make more than $150,000 a year from content featuring children will be required to set aside 15% of those earnings into a trust fund that the kids can access when they turn 18. Parents of child actors appearing in TV or film projects will also be required to place a portion of their earnings in a trust.

As the Utah Legislature was considering the legislation, a new Hulu documentary titled “Devil in the Family: The Fall of Ruby Franke” reignited interest in the case.

At a hearing last month, Kevin Franke read statements in support of the bill written by two of his daughters, ages 16 and 11. He filed for divorce shortly after his wife’s arrest and petitioned to regain custody of his children from the state. His lawyer, Randy Kester, did not respond to email and phone messages over the past week seeking to confirm whether Kevin Franke had regained custody in the sealed case.

Eve Franke, the youngest child who police found emaciated with her head shaved, wrote in a statement to lawmakers that they had power to protect other kids from exploitation.

“I’m not saying YouTube is a bad thing. Sometimes it brings us together,” she wrote. “But kids deserve to be loved, not used by the ones that are supposed to love them the most.”

After a successful afternoon of spearfishing in Fort Lauderdale, David Labrador surfaced. But he saw a boat moving directly toward his head and dived back underwater.

Not quickly enough.

The boat’s propeller struck his upper left thigh and his rear end, leaving two deep lacerations that were 12 inches and 8 inches long.

“I just kept saying, ‘Save my leg, save my leg,’” Labrador said.

Labrador, of Miami Lakes, appeared at a Fort Lauderdale fire rescue station on Tuesday to meet with his rescuers, able to walk without the aid of crutches or a wheelchair, only weeks after the March 1 accident.

“This is an example of everybody working together between the 911 system, early notification bystanders helping, our crews working together previously with law enforcement, and then bringing (Labrador) into a trauma facility,” said Fort Lauderdale Deputy Fire Chief Garrett Pingol.

A tourist, who happened to be an off-duty firefighter, was visiting Fort Lauderdale beach near Northeast 21st Street where the accident occurred and created a tourniquet with a belt to stop Labrador’s bleeding.

“I initially thought as soon as I take (the makeshift tourniquet) off, it was going to start bleeding a lot, but it didn’t,” firefighter paramedic Charles Stevenson said on Tuesday. “Even then, I still put our (combat) tourniquet on just to make sure it didn’t bleed anymore.”

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According to Labrador, the time between being struck by the boat and being brought inside of Broward Health for treatment was under 20 minutes.

“Applying all my training, I had to make sure that he was okay and to get to the truck, get off the scene and get him to the trauma hospital immediately,” Stevenson said. Stevenson was one of the primary faces Labrador remembered as he was recovering.

Labrador received 40 staples and multiple antibiotics. He started physical therapy on March 4 and began walking 50 feet with a walker. He was released two days later and returned to work as a machinery dealer on Monday.

“I love how there’s good people in this world who want to help, and as soon as we got onto the beach, they saw what was wrong and they helped me out of the boat,” Labrador said. “One was applying pressure, the other one was tying a tourniquet on me, and they were just there coaching me through it, (telling me) it’s going to be okay.”

Stevenson handed Labrador a gift bag on Tuesday with a Fort Lauderdale fire rescue baseball cap and a firefighter challenge coin, a special token that has to be earned.

Last week, Labrador and his father celebrated Labrador’s recovery by filleting and eating the frozen mutton snapper, lobster and yellow jack that was caught on the day of his injury.

“One step of facing your fears, you know? Eating your catch and knowing that this could happen to anyone at any time. So don’t live in fear,” Labrador said.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is still searching for the boat that hit Labrador. The vessel had outboard motors and was between 30 to 40 feet long. It was last seen heading north with two people on board. Anyone with information is encouraged to call the FWC at 888-404-FWCC.

By LISA MASCARO

WASHINGTON (AP) — Angry over the crush of court rulings against the Trump administration, Republicans in Congress are trying to slap back at the federal judiciary with proposals to limit the reach of its rulings, cut funding and even impeach judges, tightening the GOP’s grip on government.

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House GOP leaders say all options are under consideration as they rush to rein in judges who are halting President Donald Trump’s actions at a rapid pace. In many cases, the courts are questioning whether the firings of federal workers, freezing of federal funds and shuttering of long-running federal offices are unlawful actions by the executive branch and Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency.

In perhaps the most high-profile case, Judge James E. Boasberg ordered planeloads of deported immigrants to be turned around, raising the ire of Trump, who called for his impeachment, and billionaire Musk, who is funneling campaign cash to House Republicans backing impeachment efforts. The president calls the judges “lunatics.”

House Speaker Mike Johnson said Tuesday that “desperate times call for desperate measures” without mentioning impeachment.

“We do have authority over the federal courts, as you know,” the Republican speaker said. “We can eliminate an entire district court. We have power of funding over the courts, and all these other things.”

Not yet 100 days into the new administration, the unusual attack on the federal judiciary is the start of what is expected to be a protracted battle between the co-equal branches of government, unmatched in modern memory. As the White House tests the judiciary, trying to bend it to Trump’s demands, the Congress, controlled by the president’s own Republican Party, appears ready to back him up.

It all comes as the Supreme Court last summer granted the executive broad immunity from prosecution, setting the stage for the challenges to come. But Chief Justice John Roberts warned more recently that “impeachment is not an appropriate response to disagreement concerning a judicial decision.”

Democrats are warning against what they view as an assault on the judicial branch, which so far has been the only check against Trump and DOGE’s far-reaching federal actions. Threats against the federal judges, already on the rise, remain of high concern.

“It is outrageous to even think of defunding the courts,” said Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer, reacting to the House speaker’s claims. “The courts are the bulwark against Trump, and the Republicans can’t stand it.”

House GOP leaders met Tuesday with Rep. Jim Jordan, the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, which will hold a hearing on the issue next week. The House is also expected to vote on a bill from Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., that would limit the geographic reach of certain federal rulings, to prevent temporary restraining orders from being enacted nationwide.

Jordan said he also spoke Saturday with Trump during college wrestling championships in Philadelphia.

“All options are on the table,” Jordan said late Monday. “We want to get the facts. Gather the facts.”

Since Trump took office, and with Musk, on a mission to dramatically reduce the size and scope of the federal government, the administration’s tech-inspired move-fast-and-break-things ethos has run up against the constraints of federal law.

An onslaught of court cases has been filed by employee groups, democracy organizations and advocacy groups trying to keep federal programs — from the U.S. Agency for International Development to the Education Department — from being dismantled.

Judges have issued various types of restraints on Trump’s actions. Trump’s first administration alone accounted for 66 percent of all the injunctions issued on presidential actions between 2001 and 2023, according to data from a Harvard Law Review piece circulated by Republicans.

The legislation from Issa had no support from Democrats when it was approved by the Judiciary Committee last month. A similar bill was introduced Monday by GOP Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri.

Rep. Jamie Raskin, of Maryland, the top Democrat on the Judiciary panel, said Trump is being hit with injunctions because he is “engaged in terrible, irresponsible and lawless violations of people’s rights.“

“We are winning in court,” Raskin said in a video address. “We’ve got make sure we defend the integrity of the judiciary.”

When it comes to actually impeaching the judges, however, top Republicans have stopped short of backing what would be a severe action.

Impeachments are rare in Congress, particularly of judges, but several rank-and-file House Republicans have proposed legislation to launch impeachment proceedings against various federal judges who have ruled in ways unfavorable to the Trump administration.

Musk has rewarded House Republicans who signed onto impeachment legislation with political donations, according to a person familiar with information first reported by the New York Times. The person was granted anonymity to discuss the matter.

Republicans are particularly focused on Boasberg, the chief judge of the district court in Washington, D.C., who Jordan said is in a “somewhat unique in that, you know, his decision was crazy.”

The judge is weighing whether the Trump administration defied his order after the planes of migrants landed in El Salvador, turned over to that country’s notorious mega-prison system. The Trump administration had invoked the Alien Enemies Act, a war-time authority used during World War II against Japanese Americans, for the deportations the judge said lacked due process.

Any impeachment effort would also require backing from the Senate, where GOP leaders also panned the effort.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., echoed the advice of Roberts in allowing normal legal procedures to play out.

“At the end of the day, there is a process, and there’s an appeals process, and you know, I suspect that’s ultimately how this will get handled,” Thune said.

Associated Press writers Leah Askarinam and Kevin Freking contributed to this report.

By MICHAEL PHILLIS, ALEXA ST. JOHN and MATTHEW DALY

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Environmental Protection Agency illegally canceled grants worth more than $1.5 billion focused on improving the environment in minority communities hit hard by pollution, Senate Democrats say.

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Hundreds of grants were awarded by former President Joe Biden’s administration under a 2022 law that directed the EPA to spend $3 billion on grants to help low-income and minority communities improve their air, water and protect against climate change. Those environmental justice efforts were a major priority under Biden.

President Donald Trump’s administration, however, has cut funding, grants and people focused on environmental justice. EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin announced March 10 that that he was canceling more than 400 “DEI and Environmental Justice grants” totaling $1.7 billion. In a post on X, Zeldin said the cuts were the fourth — and biggest — round of EPA/Department of Government Efficiency cuts.

All nine Democrats on the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works signed the letter to Zeldin dated Monday. It demands information from the EPA about the terminated grants and eliminated environmental justice employees, and asks the agency to explain its plans to “combat pollution specifically in marginalized communities.”

“The vast majority of the targeted grant awards were made using funds appropriated by Congress with a statutory mandate that they be distributed to disadvantaged communities,” according to the senators’ letter.

The senators also accused the EPA of violating court orders and rules for terminating grants.

An EPA statement said the terminations will not stop.

“We have received the letter and will respond through appropriate channels. As the Trump administration reins in wasteful spending of taxpayer dollars, EPA will continue terminating assistance agreements in line with terms and conditions,” the statement said.

An internal EPA list of the roughly 400 grantees that was shared with The Associated Press detailed the cuts.

They included a wide swath of recipients for clean air and water initiatives. The Childhood Lead Action Project was granted $500,000 for a lead poisoning prevention program. Detroiters Working for Environmental Justice was granted $474,000 for a community air quality system, while the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection was granted $1 million for a pilot project in communities affected by PFAS contamination in drinking water, as examples.

To carry out the spending in the Inflation Reduction Act, the agency funded several environmental justice grant programs during the Biden administration. Community Change Grants, for example, focused on community-driven projects for places “facing legacy pollution, climate change, and persistent disinvestment,” per the EPA.

“Unsurprisingly, the illegal termination of these grants puts communities at risk and does nothing to lower costs for families,” said Delaware Sen. Lisa Blunt Rochester, a Democrat.

Trump signed an executive order overturning decades worth of environmental justice policies and purging DEI efforts from the government. Zeldin has in turn dismantled the Biden administration’s climate program and environmental justice work.

“EPA continues to work diligently to implement President Trump’s executive orders,” Zeldin has said.

For example, the agency directed a bank to freeze $14 billion in funding spent during the Biden administration on a green bank to finance climate-friendly projects — a program authorized by Congress. Zeldin accused the nonprofits administering the program of mismanagement and self-dealing and terminated the grants. That move was paused by a federal judge who said the government’s accusations of fraud were “vague and unsubstantiated.”

Senate Democrats are pushing back against the Trump administration’s effort to withhold congressionally authorized spending, called impoundment. They argue Zeldin is violating a promise he made during his Senate confirmation hearing to follow the law.

“The illegal termination of these EPA grants not only violates congressional appropriations law, contractual agreements, and multiple court orders, but it also undermines essential programs aimed at eliminating childhood lead poisoning, reducing toxic air pollution, and mitigating health risks from heat and wildfires,” said Rhode Island Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, the top Democrat on the committee.

The Washington Post was first to report on the letter.

Last year, the EPA changed the terms and conditions for its grants, eliminating its ability to do policy-based cancellations. An internal EPA Office of General Counsel email obtained by Senate Democrats and provided to The AP says that even though EPA officials knew some grants had this updated language, they were terminated anyway.

Phillis reported from St. Louis and St. John reported from Detroit.

The Associated Press receives support from the Walton Family Foundation for coverage of water and environmental policy. The AP is solely responsible for all content. For all of AP’s environmental coverage, visit https://apnews.com/hub/climate-and-environment

Cam Ward was the story of the Miami Hurricanes’ Pro Day on Monday, but another lingering conversation surrounded the quarterback’s top target, Xavier Restrepo.

Restrepo is considered an NFL draft prospect after a stellar Miami career, but he ran a surprisingly slow 40-yard dash. No official time was released, but NFL Network’s Cameron Wolfe posted on X (formerly Twitter) that Restrepo ran the 40 in 4.83 seconds — a poor showing for the UM star.

Restrepo took to social media to address his slow time, saying an injury during warm-ups slowed him down.

“Don’t usually do this but I feel like it’s necessary due to the circumstances,” Restrepo wrote on X. “During warm ups yesterday before the 40, my right hamstring tightened up on me and prohibited me to opening up and running my fastest. The reason I still ran is because for two straight weeks I consistently hit 4.53-4.58 laser (timed) in training and thought I could still pull it off.

“I did everything just because it’s in my blood to compete. With that being said, I am now focusing on getting back to 100 percent healthy and getting ready to play football! Ready to let God take over!”

Restrepo’s statistics at UM do not reflect a wide receiver who runs a 4.8 40-yard dash. He is Miami’s all-time leader in catches and receiving yards, and he is the only Hurricanes wide receiver to notch back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons. Restrepo was an AP All-American last season.

MIAMI — Does Jimmy Butler deserve a statue outside the Kaseya Center?

Most Heat fans would likely say no, considering the way the star’s five-and-a-half-year Miami tenure ended. But Akbar Domestique, an artist from Khartoum, Sudan, says yes, and he set up a tent outside the arena before Butler’s return to Miami with the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday to advocate for his cause.

“Jimmy Butler (is a) great Miami Heat player,” Domestique said. “He wins very much. He (did) great things for the organization.”

Domestique had several design ideas for a potential Butler statue, centered around iconic images of Butler’s Heat years. Butler, exhausted, bent over the scorer’s table. Butler with an emo haircut at Heat media day. Butler mocking Al Horford calling a timeout during the 2023 Eastern Conference finals.

But a statue? Dwyane Wade has a statue outside the arena, and that’s it. Greats who spent most or all of their careers with one team, like Larry Bird, Kobe Bryant and Tim Duncan have statues.

Butler spent just over five seasons in Miami and won two conference titles but no NBA championships. But that’s enough for Domestique.

“Five years, six years — win, win, win, win with guys that are OK, not Hall of Famers,” Domestique said. “No Hall of Famers. Only Jimmy. … Jimmy’s the best, (a) winner.”