Jimmy Butler and the Miami Heat have done it. They are now headed to the 2023 NBA Finals after taking down the Boston Celtics in seven games in the 2023 NBA Eastern Conference Finals. The road the Heat have taken to make it to the grandest stage of the NBA can sound like a dream, but they are truly an all-time underdog that's overperforming way beyond what they should be on paper.
The Heat were on the verge of becoming the first team to lose an NBA Playoffs series after winning Games 1 to 3, as they failed to close out the deal in Games 4,5, and 6 against the Celtics. But Jimmy Butler was not going to allow the Heat to be on the wrong end of history. In Game 7, Butler scored 28 points on 12-for-28 shooting from the field to lead all Miami scorers. He also added seven rebounds, six assists and three steals in 43 minutes of work on the court. It was not just all Butler, though, for the Heat, with Caleb Martin torching the Celtics for 26 points on 11-for-16 shooting.
Heat and NBA fans are all over Twitter at the moment following the success of Butler and the Heat against Boston at TD Garden.
“Jimmy Butler in eight seasons with Chicago, Minnesota & Philadelphia: zero NBA Finals appearances. Jimmy Butler in four seasons with Miami: two NBA Finals appearances. Find your tribe,” tweeted Michael Lee of the Washington Post.
“Jimmy Butler really about to have a second finals appearance. I feel like we just drafted him. Im so happy for him man,” said @KOT4Q.
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