Miami Heat: Jimmy Butler’s late-game heroics have been exceptional

The Miami Heat are a perfect 7-0 in the 2020 NBA Playoffs, and Jimmy Butler’s late-game heroics are a significant reason for that.

Since Jimmy Butler showed up the Miami Heat’s first day of training camp at 3:30 a.m., six hours before practice started, the organization knew they had their franchise player. Butler fits right at home in South Beach and has done nothing but produce for the Heat all season long, particularly in the postseason.

After a clean 4-0 sweep of the Indiana Pacers in the first round, Butler and the Heat currently sit with a surprising 3-0 record against the top-seeded Milwaukee Bucks in round two. In Miami’s flawless 7-0 start, Jimmy Butler has been a man on a mission. In those seven games, the forward is averaging 23.1 points per game. He’s shooting 47.8 percent from the field, and a much-improved 50.0 percent from 3-point territory after he hit a mere 24.4 percent from deep in the regular season.

Where Butler has been the most impressive, however, is the final twelve minutes of the game. In the fourth quarter of these playoffs, the five-time All-Star has been dominant, averaging 8.4 points per game on 59.3 percent field goal shooting. He’s connecting on 50.0 percent of his shots from behind the arc and 85.2 percent of his free-throw attempts, stepping up when it matters most.

This fourth-quarter onslaught was on full display down the stretch entering the final period in a critical Game 3. Heading into the quarter down 87-75, it appeared that Milwaukee had finally regained their footing and would go on to win a pivotal Game 3. If the Heat were going to avoid that, they needed a stellar closing effort from Butler, and he delivered. In the final 12 minutes, Butler outscored the Milwaukee Bucks by himself 17-to-13, which propelled a 40-point quarter for Miami and eventually a 115-100 victory.

Miami big man Meyers Leonard made a bold claim afterward, stating that the Heat have the best player in this series in Jimmy Butler after his heroic performance Friday night.

Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Milwaukee Bucks typically would have something to say about that, given that he is about to be the back-to-back league MVP and Defensive Player of the Year. However, taking a look at the numbers, Leonard might not be too far off with his claim in terms of this series.

Antetokounmpo is averaging 22.7 points per game in Milwaukee’s 0-3 start, shooting 45.1 percent from the field and connecting on a vile 15.4 percent of his 3-point attempts. The Greek Freak is also hauling in 13.3 rebounds and dishing out 7.0 assists per game, but his inability to score on Miami’s defense has plagued him. One of Antetokounmpo’s more telling stats is his numbers in the fourth quarter of this series, where they are on the other side of the spectrum compared to Butler.

The reigning league MVP is averaging 6.0 points per game on 41.0 percent field goal shooting and an abysmal 44.0 percent from the charity stripe. Antetokounmpo and the rest of the Bucks have undoubtedly been a shell of their regular-season selves in this series as the Heat have looked like the far superior team with Butler at the helm.

Despite having a 3-0 series lead and clearly in the driver’s seat for Game 4, Jimmy Butler has no plans to take his foot off of the gas anytime soon. Butler told reporters after Game 3, “We’re not comfortable, we’re not complacent. We know we’re gonna have to earn this last one as well.”

Jimmy Butler and the Miami Heat are one victory from making NBA history, but their aspirations go beyond the semi-finals, locked in on securing the Larry O’Brien Trophy. If Butler can continue this phenomenal run and hot fourth-quarter shooting, the Heat could potentially finish as the 2020 NBA champions when it is all said and done.