The Miami Heat were widely expected to be the 7th seed and face the Boston Celtics in the first round prior to their play-in matchup against the Atlanta Hawks.
Jimmy Butler was excessively confident prior to the game, guaranteeing a win. Unfortunately, the Hawks almost blew the Heat out and led for most of the game. Justin Termine attacked Butler for his incessant trash-talk and inability to back it up.
“We did not expect the Miami Heat to lose and not show up yesterday, that’s exactly what happened… Who else is sick of Jimmy Butler talking nonstop? Jimmy Butler talking nonstop and not backing it up. That brings us to the issue, the Miami Heat started 2-5 and Jimmy Butler says after that start ‘We’re still gonna win the championship. I don’t care what nobody says. Count us out? We’re going to win the f***ing chip.’ That’s verbatim what he said. Once again, Jimmy Butler talked, and Jimmy Butler didn’t show up to back it up. All that talk and Jimmy Butler goes 6-19 for 21 points. In a game that Miami trailed by 24 points on their home floor against a Hawks’ team that fired their coach midseason because they weren’t good enough… Jimmy Butler was brutal last night, Bam Adebayo was brutal last night. Did nothing to back it up.”
"Who else is sick of Jimmy Butler talking nonstop?"
🏀 @TermineRadio thinks it's time for Jimmy Butler to back up his talking…take a listen why ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/X1jgLuIoX7
— SiriusXM NBA Radio (@SiriusXMNBA) April 12, 2023
The Heat will now face the Chicago Bulls in the final play-in game where the winner faces the Milwaukee Bucks as the 8th seed. Both Miami and Chicago have playoff histories with the Bucks, so this will be an interesting matchup. The Bulls just eliminated the Toronto Raptors from contention tonight.
Jimmy Butler Needs To Step Up
Over the course of the 2022-23 regular season, Butler averaged 22.9 points, 5.9 rebounds, and 5.3 assists. Those aren’t remarkable numbers but Butler did turn his jets on in the second half of the season, averaging 25.6 points, 5.9 assists, and 5.6 rebounds since the All-Star break. He needs to return to the production we saw in April and March to give the Heat a chance at competing.
This team is built around Jimmy Butler and relies on him to be their star. If he can’t answer the call against a scrappy Bullls’ squad, the Heat may have some major decisions on their hand in the summer.
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