After the Miami Heat lost Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Boston Celtics, some critics expressed their belief that All-Star small forward Jimmy Butler needs to be more aggressive on offense.
Butler, the Heat's best player and leader, is averaging 17.0 points through the first three games of the Celtics series on 12.7 shots per game.
During his media session with Heat reporters on Tuesday at Walt Disney World, Butler addressed those criticisms:
Jimmy Butler, on those who say he needs to be more aggressive early, "As long as we win, there's no problem with anything."
— Ira Winderman (@IraHeatBeat) September 22, 2020
Jimmy Butler has been great for the Heat in the 2020 playoffs. He's putting up 20.6 points, 5.6 rebounds and 4.1 assists while shooting 47.0 percent from the field, 47.8 percent from beyond the arc and 84.2 percent from the free-throw line.
However, there is no doubt that Butler needs to look for his shot more moving forward, especially in the first half of games. The Heat, as a team, have a tendency to start slow and wake up only in the fourth quarter. That trend has to change, and it starts with Butler.
The Heat will look to take a commanding 3-1 lead over the Celtics in Game 4, which is on Wednesday. Miami hasn't lost two games in a row yet at Walt Disney World, so odds are the club will come out firing on all cylinders in the pivotal contest early to put the Celtics away.
Butler, who is playing in his first Eastern Conference Finals series, is hoping to lead Miami to the NBA Finals for the first time since 2014.
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