Getty Jimmy Butler of the Miami Heat.
Fans finally got to hear from a few members of the Miami Heat, ahead of Tuesday’s Play-In meeting with the Atlanta Hawks. The team discussed the upcoming playoff run, and their hopes to compete for an NBA championship.
Heat forward Caleb Martin told the media that the leaders on Miami’s roster will put the team in a good spot to win.
“The guys that we have,” Martin said via the Miami Herald’s Anthony Chiang. “You got Spo [Erik Spoelstra], the head of the snake with our staff. And you got Jimmy [Butler], the head of the snake on the floor. Those two guys are going to make everything go. At the end of the day by the time our season is over or whatever it is, they’re going to do everything in their power to put us in position to win a championship. We got guys following a guy like Jimmy and we got our staff following a guy like Spo, I always believe we’re going to be in a good spot.”
Butler has become something of a legend in the playoffs, during his tenure in South Beach. Over the course of three postseason appearances for the Heat, he’s averaged 23.6 points, 6.9 rebounds, and 5.5 assists per game, while shooting 47.9% from the field, and 33.3% from beyond the arc. Butler’s extra-charge in the playoffs has propelled Miami to two Eastern Conference Finals in three years, earning an NBA Finals berth in 2020.
Jimmy Butler Sounds Off on Heat’s Playoff Chances
Reporters at Miami’s practice facility Monday, also got the opportunity to speak with Miami’s “head of the snake on the floor” himself.
Butler discussed his view on the playoffs, saying he feels the same as an underdog, as he would as a top seed.
“It’s all the same,” he replied via Locked on Heat host Wes Goldberg. “Nobody picked us to win last year, so who cares. Y’all not gonna pick us to win this year. Don’t give a damn. In 10 years, y’all still not gonna pick us. Still don’t give a damn.”
Jimmy Butler, asked if there’s a diff between being the top seed & an underdog:
“It’s all the same. Nobody picked us to win last year, so who cares. Y’all not gonna pick us to win this year. Don’t give a damn. In 10 years, y’all still not gonna pick us. Still don’t give a damn.”
Kendrick Perkins Says Heat Will Cause Problems in Playoffs
If the Heat are able to come out victorious on Tuesday against the Hawks, then they’ll have a first round date with the second seeded Boston Celtics.
Kendrick Perkins, who won a title with the Celtics in 2008, claimed that Miami would give his former club problems in the playoffs.
“Here’s what I am concerned about,” Perkins said on the April 7 edition of ESPN’s “First Take.” “If the Miami Heat get the No. 7 seed, they’re going to match up with the Boston Celtics, which I believe is going to happen. We saw what happened last year when they went toe-to-toe in the conference finals. They were a Jimmy Butler three-pointer away from getting sent home, and I’m talking about the Celtics. If I’m the Celtics, I’m praying that I don’t see Jimmy Butler, playoff Jimmy Butler, and the Miami Heat in the first round. If I’m the Celtics, I’m praying that I don’t have to see Erik Spoelstra matched up with Joe Mazzulla in the first round, when it comes down to making adjustments.”