Five winners of the NBA’s 2020 bubble postseason

2. Heat Culture and Jimmy Butler

It’s a phrase that’s been used ad nauseam in these playoffs but for good reason. Heat Culture could be seen throughout the Miami Heat’s unexpected run to the NBA Finals, pushing the Lakers to six games.

Tyler Herro’s 37 points to give Miami a 3-1 lead in the conference finals. Duncan Robinson’s seven 3-pointers to avoid elimination in Game 5 of the Finals. Those types of performances don’t typically manifest from guys like that because most teams would never think to position the reigning 13th pick and an undrafted sophomore in those high-stakes moments.

Leading the way was a man whose bets have paid out an astonishing amount of good, especially in these last few months.

Jimmy Butler has long been Miami’s type of player. This playoff run showed why. His play at both ends paved the way for upsets against the Milwaukee Bucks and Boston Celtics. He kept the Heat alive in the Finals far longer than they should’ve lasted down two of their best players, combining for 75 points, 24 assists, 23 rebounds and seven steals in the two victories.

26.2 points on 55.2 percent shooting with 9.8 assists, 8.3 rebounds and 2.2 steals per game are LeBron-level contributions. Butler produced them while taking on the challenge of slowing James more than any other teammate.

The team that had previously floated adrift in mediocrity over the last few years has set itself up thanks to a structure built to extract the most from all who come through it. They’re led by a previously-maligned superstar who showed all he could do in an organization that would match his mindset.

And with large sights set on the free-agent class of 2021, this is probably just the beginning of what they can accomplish together.