Jimmy ButlerJesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images
Jimmy Butler has been the star of the Miami Heat throughout the postseason. In fact, he’s been driving for four years, but we know that “Playoff Jimmy” is different, even though he continues to insist that it’s not a thing.
But after a completely dominant 128-102 victory over the Boston Celtics in Game 3, it’s clear that this team is more than their star.
Miami now leads the Eastern Conference Finals 3-0. They led the game on Sunday by 30 points after three quarters. Butler didn’t have to log a second in the fourth quarter, and he finished with just 16 points on 5-of-13 shooting.
His 15.1 game rating (“an average measure of a player’s productivity for a game”) was his lowest this postseason, but the Heat still ran away with the game on 19-of-35 shooting. shooting from three and a grinding, team-wide defensive effort that ran Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown off the floor at the start of the fourth quarter.
Boston’s two leading scorers in the regular and postseason combined for 26 points on 35 shots. They went 1-of-14 from three, bringing their series total from behind the arc to a paltry 7-of-40 (17.5 percent).
And while it’s easy for us to say, “Why not try to attack the rim?”, Miami’s defensive support inside and rotations back to the perimeter are impeccable. The particular aggression when Tatum or Brown were driving almost dared them to make plays that the Heat knew they couldn’t make.
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The overall defensive intensity limited Boston to 107.7 points per game in the series. It put up 117.9 in the regular season and 115.5 in the first two rounds of the playoffs.
But where Butler’s teammates really shine is on the other end of the floor.
Game 3 was over by halftime, thanks to a wave of threes from Caleb Martin (undrafted), Gabe Vincent (undrafted) and Duncan Robinson (you guessed it, undrafted).
Those three combined for seven of Miami’s nine first-half triples. They finished 15-of-23 from deep. Vincent alone had 29 points on 11-of-14 shooting.
And this is not just one time. The Heat are currently shooting 38.8 percent from deep in the playoffs (leading the Denver Nuggets). Vincent, Robinson, Martin, Max Strus and Kevin Love all hit at least 20 triples. Lowry and Butler had 19 and 15, respectively.
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Miami unleashed a postseason-long barrage from deep from across the roster. And that leaves things inside for Butler and Bam Adebayo.
Adebayo does most of his scoring in the paint, while Butler does a lot as well (though his mid-range game is clearly dangerous as well). What makes the two dynamic is the willingness and ability of each to spray the ball on shooters from driving lanes. Butler averaged 5.6 assists. Adebayo’s contribution 3.9.
Well-rounded production from the non-Butler side of the roster has Miami three wins in the Eastern Conference Finals. Nine players contributed at least a third of the win. And some of that may not have come without untimely injuries to Tyler Herro (who has played 19 minutes this postseason) and Victor Oladipo (who has logged 45).
Therein lies one of the (not so secret) secrets of this Miami run.
Like late-dynasty versions of the San Antonio Spurs, the Heat and coach Erik Spoelstra have committed players all over this roster to playing real minutes and roles over the past few years. It doesn’t matter if they are a lottery pick like Bam, a pass-over veteran like Love or Cody Zeller or an undrafted player like Vincent, Robinson, Martin or Strus.
If you show a commitment to your development, the team’s designs on both ends of the floor and #HeatCulture, you will have a chance to play. And when that moment comes in the postseason, you’ll be ready.
That kind of preparation, tenacity and unity around a superstar at the center of it all is unlike any other power in the Western Conference during the 2000s and 2010s.
It took Dirk Nowitzki and the Dallas Mavericks 13 seasons before finding the right mix to surround the offensive brilliance of their star.
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Butler apparently didn’t make it to a team (his first move came in a trade, so you can’t blame him). Instead, he sought the perfect blend of himself. The Heat are his fourth team, and he may have found it with them.
Butler is one win away from its second trip to the Finals in four seasons. And for the second time, it seemed that the West might show him a potential giant to slay.
This time, however, the supporting cast he’s with seem more than willing to help.
Adebayo, Robinson and Herro (who may return some Finals minutes) are more experienced. Love and Lowry bring championship experience. Martin is a three-and-D wing (who can slash a bit) that Miami didn’t have last time.
And Butler somehow hit a higher level. His box plus/minus over the past two postseasons is almost double the mark from 2020.
All of the above came at exactly the right moment. The Milwaukee Bucks, New York Knicks and Celtics are powerless to stop it.
With one more victory against the East, this blueprint will face the final test, which will see Jamal Murray, Nikola Jokić and the Nuggets.
Denver will have home-court advantage. This is probably the favorite bet. It’s a heavy favorite in FiveThirtyEight’s projection system as well.
But all Butler and his perfectly constructed supporting cast have done is shatter expectations at every turn. At this point, five more wins wouldn’t be too surprising.
