Let's face facts, the Miami Heat surprised a lot of the NBA this year as they made their run to the NBA Finals. With the team upsetting big-time favorites in the Milwaukee Bucks, the New York Knick, and the Boston Celtics, they submitted a run that every number eight seed wishes they could do. One player who stood out to us as the guy who helped during this playoff run was Jimmy Butler.
Butler, who was named Eastern Conference Finals MVP, helped this team with reached the NBA Finals with not only his style of play, but by being a leader that this Miami Heat hasn't really had since the big three days with Dwayne Wade, Lebron James, and Chris Bosh. He would average 26.9 points per game, 6.5 rebounds per game, 5.9 assists per game, and he would make an impact on either end of the court when it came down the stretch of a lot of close games.
The one series where Butler would take over would have to be when the Miami Heat would meet Jayson Tatum and the Boston Celtics in an Eastern Conference Finals rematch from last season. This series would come down to a game-seven winner advances situation, as Jimmy Butler would score 28 points, seven rebounds, and six assists to help the Miami Heat defeated the Boston Celtics, 103-84, at TD Garden.
Jimmy Butler may not have won the big one yet, as the Miami Heat would fall to the Denver Nuggets in game five of the NBA Finals this past season. Still, after seeing the run that this Miami Heat team from coming in as an eighth seed from the play-in series to making it to the NBA Finals, we can say that Jimmy Butler's playoff legacy is submitted as one of the greats of all time. His will to help this Heat franchise win, his effort on both ends of the court, and his will to keep fighting to get better is a real testament to not only him but to the whole Heat franchise in general.
Will he carry this team back to the promised land next year? I guess we will have to wait and see.
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