Jayson Tatum and Jimmy ButlerJesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images
With three seconds left in the fourth quarter of Game 6 on Saturday between the Boston Celtics and the Miami Heat, Al Horford fouled Jimmy Butler on a stepback three-point attempt.
Butler stepped to the line, with this team down by two and facing the prospect of a Game 7 in Boston, where Miami would become the first team in NBA history to lose a series after 3 -0.
Playoff Jimmy Butler made all three free throws.
In Miami’s lead, 103-102, Marcus Smart made a three-pointer that went in and out. Derrick White, who had free access to the rim after inbounding the ball, drove it in for the win. The last time the ball touched his fingerprints was a tenth of a second.
In one of the most brutal twists ever made by the basketball gods, Butler’s three clutch free throws meant nothing.
Like the last four minutes of the game, where Butler scored 13 of his 24 points. For the twelfth of their third consecutive shutout opportunity, Butler is Playoff Jimmy.
If he had been able to activate that version of himself earlier, Miami likely wouldn’t have been on the wrong end of one of the worst losses in NBA history.
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DERRICK WHITE BUZZER BEATER FOR MORE 🔥🔥🔥
CELTICS WILL SEND IT TO GAME 7. pic.twitter.com/F8bw9aYpme
During the first 44 minutes of Saturday’s game, Butler was 3-of-19 from the field for 11 points.
He made his impact felt in other ways. At the same time, he had 10 boards and eight assists, but he didn’t Playoffs Jimmy.
The jumper is missing. Boston’s ability to close down the paint on his drives has troubled him in a way we haven’t seen this postseason. In some attacks, the toughness that helped Miami upset the Milwaukee Bucks and New York Knicks fizzled before he could get to the rim.
Especially in the second half, maybe because he realized he wasn’t moving, Butler seemed almost shy inside. Instead of challenging Al Horford or Robert Williams III, he jumps to a stop, pivots and eventually kicks it to someone like Kyle Lowry or Duncan Robinson.
Again, that approach helped him tally eight assists for the game, but the Heat are at their best this postseason when Butler dominates as a scorer. The Celtics neutralized that long enough to get the win and force a Game 7 (and I mean only long enough).
Of course, it would be unfair to pin this loss entirely on Butler. Basketball is a team sport. It’s usually played five-on-five, and many other Heat players probably repeat it with some regret.
Robinson made several big plays, including some dribbling forays into the paint and a couple of backdoor cuts. He was 3-of-6 from deep and a team-high plus-eight in just 20 minutes. But he missed two open threes that could have changed the result.
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Duncan Robinson of the pair missed open 3s. Says he’s “juiced up” and misses them for a long time. pic.twitter.com/T4qo7belxB
Gabe Vincent, who recently missed Game 5 due to a sprained ankle, scored 15 points on 18 shots, five fouls and missed an assist.
And perhaps just as meaningful as Butler’s 44-minute scrimmage session, Bam Adebayo finished 4-of-16 from the field. He had 13 rebounds, five assists and a crucial late block, but that’s a level of inefficiency that’s hard to come by. For most of the game, his post-ups felt pointless from the moment they started.
Those players are all secondary (at best), though. The Heat are as far as they can go because of Butler. And the series is now tied in large part because of him as well.
In the first three games of the Eastern Conference Finals, he averaged 26.0 points, 7.0 rebounds, 6.3 assists and 3.7 steals, while shooting 46.0 percent from the field.
In the last three, he has 22.3 points, 8.3 rebounds, 6.0 assists and 1.3 steals, while shooting 36.5 percent from the field.
Butler needs to be better. And you can bet no one understands that like he does.
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“If I play better, we wouldn’t be in this position.”
Jimmy Butler after the Heat’s Game 6 loss at the buzzer pic .twitter.com/1ezytKDKWb
Of course, this is not the funeral in Miami (although it may prove to be the funeral). There is one more game in this series. And the Heat have already won two in Boston. They lost by just one point on Saturday, despite all the issues detailed above.
But the biggest reason Miami started this series with a road winning streak was Jimmy’s Playoff performance.
If he doesn’t return for all 48 minutes this Monday, the Heat may be the first team in NBA history to lose a playoff series that they led 3-0.
