Jimmy Butler, former Miami Heat franchise player, finished with 38 points, seven rebounds, five assists and three steals for the Golden State Warriors in their Play-In win over the Memphis Grizzlies.
Veteran Udonis Haslem was asked if the performance was bittersweet for him, with the Heat having just traded Butler, who led the team to the Finals twice in five seasons. two months ago.
“[Butler] is one of the most intelligent basketball players that I’ve ever played against, and I had this conversation with Dwyane Wade last night, and I told him to his face,” Haslem said. “You are talented as hell, LeBron has been talented as hell, but Jimmy’s way smarter than y’all.”
Haslem, who of course played several seasons with all three of the Heat’s most successful star players, explained why he holds that opinion despite James and Wade being considered some of the highest IQ players of all time.
“He is very smart. It is true. He is an extremely smart basketball player. I mean, to the point where I used to go home after practice and just think about ways to stop him because the way he scored on me that night.”
Takeaways From Miami Heat’s Play-In Win Over The Chicago Bulls
Despite looking outmatched against the Chicago Bulls this season, the Miami Heat convincingly eliminated them 109-90 in the Play-In Tournament Wednesday.
The Heat play another win-or-go-home game on Friday against the Atlanta Hawks for the chance to play the Cleveland Cavaliers in the first round.
Here are some takeaways:
Executing the defensive gameplan
With the Bulls having averaged 122 points against the Heat in the regular season, there was an emphasis on sticking to the Heat’s defensive identity. They held the Bulls to 76.5 points per 100 possessions in the halfcourt and 88.3 offensive rating overall, both ranking in the zero percentile.
The Heat started with Bam Adebayo on Josh Giddey, who was averaging 26 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists in the season series. Although the Bulls’ offense was better with him playing, Giddey was less effective as a playmaker. He finished with four assists to three turnovers.
Andrew Wiggins started as the primary defender on Coby White, who averaged 23 points, four rebounds and four assists since the Bulls traded Zach LaVine. Wiggins and Davion Mitchell held White to 5 of 20 shooting with seven turnovers.
Controlling the ball/pace
The Bulls ranked seventh in transition points added per 100 possessions and seventh in transition frequency since trading Lavine. Although their halfcourt defense is putrid, the Bulls’ transition defense was the best in the league in that period.
The Heat neutralized it, holding them to a 0th percentile transition points added per 100 possessions, and a 14th percentile transition efficiency. The Heat finished in the 100th percentile in transition points added per 100 possessions, 86th percentile in transition efficiency.
The Heat did this by leaning into their defensive identity, forcing more turnovers than assists allowed and had twice the amount of secondn-chance points.
Tyler Herro, once again
Tyler Herro put it all together as a scorer, finishing with 38 points (same amount that Jimmy Butler finished with in his Play-In game, funny enough), on 68 percent shooting.
Herro continued to show he is effective when teams run him off the three-point line. The Heat’s offensive rating last night was about 34 points better when he was on the floor.
Miami Heat legend Udonis Haslem thinks the Golden State Warriors are one of the most dangerous teams in the Play-In Tournament.
Aside from future Hall of Famers Steph Curry and Draymond Green, the Warriors now have former Heat forward Jimmy Butler.
“Jimmy Butler is one of the smartest basketball players that I’ve ever been around,” Haslem said on ESPN’s NBA Today. “How you guard him in the regular season and how you guard him in one game, you’re not going to be able to guard him like that the second one.”
The Warriors opens postseason play Tuesday against the Memphis Grizzlies. Haslem said Butler thrives in these situations.
“Jimmy Butler, to me, raises his game in the playoffs,” Haslem said. “Because whatever he does in the regular season, he’s going to look at the film, he’s going to make sure the weaknesses and the way you play him, he’s going to make those his strengths in the playoffs. He’s the ultimate competitor when his back is against the wall.”
WARRIORS GET MOTIVATION FROM 2023 HEAT
The Heat had one of the greatest runs in NBA playoffs history in 2023.
The Heat became just the second No. 8 seed to make the Finals behind All-Star Jimmy Butler. Now with the Warriors, Butler is hoping to lead a similar run.
The Warriors are the No. 7 seed entering Tuesday’s game against Ja Morant and the Memphis Grizzlies in the Play-In Tournament. Golden State has already discussed what the Heat did two postseasons ago.
“We joked about that I think last week that he [Butler] went into the play-in packing for two months,” Warriors guard Steph Curry said. “We’d love to have that opportunity.”
That year, Butler put the Heat on his back to make the remarkable run. They are just one of two No. 8 seeds to make the Finals, joining the 1999 New York Knicks. Both teams lost, with the Heat falling to Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets and the Knicks losing to the Tim Duncan-led San Antonio Spurs.
Still, the Warriors feel Butler’s presence can help. Many felt their championship window closed after winning the 2002 title against the Boston Celtics. But here they are once again with an opportunity to make some noise in the postseason.
The Warriors have won four titles since 2015 with various rosters.
“I’ve been excited since the trade deadline because of that,” Curry said of the Butler acquisition.
