Inside The Heat

Jimmy Butler Thinks Miami Heat Would Have Defeated New York Knicks, Boston Celtics In Playoffs

Shandel Richardson

Jim Rassol-USA TODAY Sports
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Miami Heat forward Jimmy Butler thinks his team would've defeated the New York Knicks had he remained healthy.

Butler was injured in the first quarter of the Heat's loss to the Philadelphia 76ers last month in the Play-In Tournament. He struggled the remaining three quarters, leading the Heat to a loss.

If they won, the Heat would have played the Knicks in the first round. The Knicks are coached by Tom Thibodeau, who was Butler's coach when he was drafted by the Chicago Bulls in 2011. Instead, the Heat played the top-seeded Boston Celtics in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs.


Butler said he felt the Heat would have defeated the Knicks in the first round if it would have happened.


"New York damn sure would be at home," Butler said in a video posted on social media. "I love Tibs but I don't want Tibs. I love you baby but I want to beat you to a pulp. You want me. I don't want you. It's like a one-sided relationship. You in love with me and I love you but I'm not in love with you."

Butler also discussed what would've happened if he were healthy to face the Celtics.

"If I was playing, Boston would be at home," Butler said in a video posted on X, formerly known as Twitter.


After making the NBA Finals last year, the Heat were eliminated by the Celtics in the first round because of injuries to Terry Rozier and Butler. The Heat played the Celtics in the conference finals the past two years.

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Shandel Richardson

SHANDEL RICHARDSON

Shandel has covered the NBA since 2010, with previous stops at The Athletic and South Florida Sun-Sentinel.  He has covered six NBA Finals, one Super Bowl, the NCAA basketball tournament. He has also been a beat writer for the Miami Hurricanes and contributed on every major beat in South Florida since 2003, including the Miami Dolphins and Miami Marlins. He can also be read in the Sportsbook Review for gambling coverage from around the NBA. A native of Bloomington, Illinois, Shandel attended Southern Illinois University in Carbondale. He's also worked for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and Kansas City Star.  TWITTER: @ShandelRich EMAIL: shandelrich@gmail.com You can subscribe to our YouTube channel here Follow all of our Miami Heat coverage on Facebook here