Jimmy Butler did everything he could for the Miami Heat. The veteran wing was the driving force of the Heat this season, and nearly lifted them to an NBA Finals appearance. All that stood between the two were the Celtics and Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals. The series came down to one final fast break 3-pointer, the Heat down just two points.
Butler missed. The Heat were sent packing as Boston reached its 22nd NBA Finals. Butler initially drew criticism, specifically from NBA play-by-play analyst Stan Van Gundy, for spotting up from 3=point range for the win instead of driving to the bucket on the break for the tie. Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra addressed the media on these criticisms:30/2022
Erik Spoelstra on Jimmy Butler's pull-up three in the final seconds: "I love that about Jimmy. … That was the right look."
— Anthony Chiang (@Anthony_Chiang) May 30, 2022
Spoelstra kept it simple. Butler had played a hard 48 minutes in an incredibly tiring series. He averaged 25.6 points, 7.0 rebounds and 3.4 assists in 36.4 minutes across seven games versus the Celtics. He made 45% of his clutch shots in this year's playoffs.
Essentially, the odds were in Butler's favor to make the shot, it just wasn't meant to be for the Heat this year.
The Heat must consider if Butler can keep up production in years to come. He will turn 33 before the next NBA season, and his current contract with the Heat will take him into his 17th year in the league. Butler isn't Miami's only contributor, but has acted as such in key moments thanks to the team's struggles with injury this season.
With an Eastern Conference that gets more competitive by the year, the question is: How long can Butler keep this up, and how can the Heat make it so he doesn't have to?
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