The Boston Celtics and Miami Heat are ready to go at it to define the 2020 Eastern Conference champion, renewing one of the best rivalries in the league during the late 2000s and early 2010s. Now, the year is 2020 and these teams are ready to clash once again in the ECF, just like LeBron James and his Heat did against Paul Pierce and his Celtics.
Well, Bron may be in Los Angeles and Pierce may be retired but these two teams have two figures that can bring a lot of emotions to this series. Marcus Smart and Jimmy Butler aren’t precisely the best friends in the NBA and don’t be surprised if the series gets heated when these two are on the court. Back in 2017, Butler was very vocal about Smart, questioning his toughness during one game between the Chicago Bulls and the Celtics.
“Marcus Smart is a great actor, acting tough. It’s what he does. But I don’t think he’s about that.”
Three years later, these two will have the opportunity to face each other for the right to play in the Finals and settle this thing. Jimmy is confident his team can get the job done and he sees the Celtics as another opponent. When asked if he believed the series was going to be a duel between him and Smart, Butler was quick to shut down that idea.
“No,” Butler said. “He’s just another opponent that I get the opportunity to go up against. I’m not going to sot here and make it about me vs him, because that’s not the case. I don’t think he can win it by himself with the Celtics. I can’t win it by myself with the Heat. So we’re going to focus in on how we can help our team win, rather than 1-on-1, me vs. him.”
Jimmy Butler would not bite on questions about some duel with the #Celtics Marcus Smart. #Heat pic.twitter.com/hKu7oZDtrc
— gary washburn (@GwashburnGlobe) September 12, 2020
Even though Jimmy gave a mature response, everything changes once you step on the court. The Celtics aren’t the Indiana Pacers or the Bucks, who only won one game in two series against the Heat. This team is extremely talented and Miami will need more to beat them.
Once they all are on the floor, emotions surface and everything is different.
