Getty Marcus Smart (right) of the Celtics is ready for Heat star Jimmy Butler.
Jimmy Butler and Marcus Smart have different games. Butler is counted to lead the Heat in scoring, while the Celtics look to Smart for large defensive plays and as a complementary scorer on a club with All-NBA forwards Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown — though Marcus did have a team-high 22 points in that Game 6 victory in Philadelphia.
With their maniacal competitiveness, the two do, however, share some DNA. And if you want to check that through blood samples, there’s no need to get them in a lab. Butler and Smart will most likely leave some on the floor in these Eastern Conference finals.
“The ultimate gamer,” Smart told Heavy Sports of his foe. “I mean, playoff Jimmy is different.”
The numbers agree.
Last season, Butler added six points to his average when the lights got brighter, going from 21.4 points per game in the regular season to 27.4 in 17 playoff appearances, ending in a Game 7 loss to the Celts in this same series. This year, Butler has taken on even more with Tyler Herro injured and out, raising his contribution from 22.9 points in the regular slate to 31.1 as Miami has gone through Milwaukee and the Knicks.
Butler Is Been NBA’s Top Remaining Scorer
That last figure, 31.1 points, places Butler fourth in the league in 2022-23 playoff scoring. And the three guys ahead of him — Kawhi Leonard, Devin Booker and Anthony Edwards — no longer have games on their calendars.
That the Heat are still playing is a fact that beat the odds. They finished with the seventh-best record in the conference, then promptly lost their first play-in game — on their home floor, no less. They had to get through the second-chance game, beating Chicago to get the right to face the team with the best record in the league, Milwaukee.
It’s enough to make someone even as confident as Smart express righteous concern.
“You know, I’ve been telling people that a-a-a-a-a-a-all this time, man. Don’t sleep on those guys, especially Jimmy,” Smart told Heavy. “Jimmy’s just one of those players that’s a baller. He goes out and hoops. He goes out and plays. He has that fight in him. When you’ve got a guy like that, you’ve always got a chance of winning, and it’s no surprise they are where they are.”
Marcus Smart: ‘It’s Not Going to Be Easy’
It’s also no surprise Miami is a serious underdog in this series. The Celtics are expected to get through this set and meet the winner of the Nuggets-Lakers Western war in the NBA Finals.
According to the people who post the lines on such things, the Celts, after taking down the third-seeded Sixers, should have an easy time against the barely-got-in Heat, right Marcus?
“No,” he replied with a laugh, “it’s not going to be easy. It’s never easy. When you make it this far, it’s never easy, no matter team is in front of you. It don’t matter who’s the better team, it’s still not easy. At any given moment, anything can happen.”
And some of that anything can be attributed to Butler and Smart. Said one league scout, “When either of those guys is on the floor, you’re always just one play away from the momentum turning. They’re different, but a lot alike, you know? If there’s a pileup for a ball on the floor, you can bet they’ll be in the middle of it. That’s the kind of thing that changes games.
“Butler is critical for Miami. Smart has more of a supporting role … but if you look at every important game Boston wins, Smart makes at least two or three really big plays — a steal, a shot, taking a charge, something. Of course, same for Jimmy.”
Look for the results on the scoreboard. Look for the blood on the court.