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Pat Riley’s move to bring Jimmy Butler to South Beach in 2019 definitely changed the trajectory of the Miami Heat franchise — not that anyone would have expected the Godfather to do anything but swing for the fences. As good as Mr. Buckets has been over the years, though, he reached a whole new level on Tuesday.
In 39 minutes of action during Game 2 of Miami’s first-round series with the Hawks, the six-time All-Star scored a career playoff high 45 points on 15-of-25 shooting, hitting four threes and adding five rebounds, five assists and two steals in the contest.
As a result, Butler joined Dwyane Wade and LeBron James as the only Heat players ever to have logged three 40-point playoff performances
Although he was firing on all cylinders, Butler’s long-range shooting was particularly impressive, given that it’s not typically a major part of his game. In particular, Wade has taken note of Butler’s massive jump in this department during postseason play.
D-Wade Shouts out Jimmy Buckets for Living up to His Name
In the wake of the Heat’s Game 2 win, head coach Erik Spoelstra made a striking comparison between his current star and Wade, his partner for multiple Finals runs. As he sees it, Butler’s ability to elevate himself as a deep threat in the playoffs has been Wade-esque.
“Would you leave Dwyane open in a big moment? You would not,” Spoelstra said, via Five Reasons. “Because he’s a killer. He’s gonna seize that moment. Jimmy has a lot of those same qualities.”
Wade caught wind of what Spoelstra said and gave it an and-one, quote-tweeting the clip and adding, “I read no lies.”
Over more than 1,000 regular-season games, Wade notched a career three-point percentage of just 29.3. During the playoffs, though, that number hit a more respectable 33.8%. He also nailed more than his share of clutch triples during earlier parts of the NBA calendar. This gem during his final season immediately comes to mind.
Through two games against Atlanta, Butler has knocked down five triples in nine tries. During the season, he connected on a paltry 23.3% of his attempts.
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Butler Sounds off on Gave Vincent Stepping Up
Butler isn’t the only player taking things to a new level as the title quest heats up. For his part, Gabe Vincent has been given the unenviable task of helping to defend Trae Young and somehow managed to exceed expectations.
On Tuesday, Young shot just 2-of-10 from three and committed 10 turnovers. And while it was definitely a team effort from the Heat defensively, Vincent held his own and then some. As Butler sees it, though, we shouldn’t be surprised by what the third-year pro has been able to accomplish:
Gabe has been playing that way for us all year long… He’s pesky as hell on the defensive end, making it tough for whoever he is lined up against. He doesn’t back down. We all respect that. We all love him for that and he’s a huge key to us pulling off these two dubs.
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