Over the last few years, Jimmy Butler has been the face of a very feisty and competitive Miami Heat team.
Under his watch, they have reached the Eastern Conference Finals twice and the NBA Finals once, and although this has been a very frustrating and disappointing season for them, they are still a dangerous squad.
On Friday, Butler led Miami to a victory over the Chicago Bulls in the play-in tournament with 31 points, and he came on strong in crunch time, as he always seems to.
It seemed to justify his nomination as one of the finalists for the Clutch Player of the Year award.
The 2022-23 #KiaClutch finalists:
⭐️ Jimmy Butler
⭐️ DeMar DeRozan
⭐️ De’Aaron Fox pic.twitter.com/IGgXsCbKYh— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) April 14, 2023
Butler started to make a name for himself several years ago as a member of the Bulls, where he made three straight All-Star teams.
Later on, as a member of the Minnesota Timberwolves, he criticized multiple teammates for being soft, leading to him being considered a toxic influence.
But since coming to Miami in 2019, that fire and brimstone style of leadership has been considered a big asset.
For years now, he has been one of the league’s deadliest players in the final minutes of a close game, and his one-on-one skills, particularly from the midrange area, are seemingly second to none.
He was assisted on Friday by Max Strus, an undrafted 6-foot-5 small forward who scored 31 points and hit a huge 3-pointer late to send Chicago home for the summer.
Miami will now head north to face Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks, who had the NBA’s best record in the regular season, in the first round of the playoffs.
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