Jimmy Butler Takes it Upon Himself to Pull the Miami Heat Within 2-1 of the Los Angeles Lakers in NBA Finals
Throughout most of the season, Miami Heat forward Jimmy Butler has talked about the importance of getting teammates involved on offense.
On Sunday, he took it upon himself to keep the Heat alive in the NBA Finals. Butler had 40 points, 13 assists and 11 rebounds in the 115-104 victory against the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 3. The Lakers lead 2-1 in the best-of-seven series.
"We won," Butler said. "I could care less about triple double. We play this game to win. I'm glad my teammates got a lot of trust and faith in me to go out there and hoop like that. But like I always say, if you guarantee me a win, I could care less."
The victory allowed the Heat to avoid a 3-0 deficit. Butler's epic performance came with the Heat playing without injured starters Goran Dragic and Bam Adebayo. It was also the second straight game Butler played 45 minutes.
"My trainer, James Scott, does a great job of making sure I'm strong enough to play through contact and just be conditioned. That's what we do here with the Heat. We pride ourselves on that. I love it. I love the work. I tell coach all the time, `I'm ready for this.' The biggest stage. Whatever you ask me to do, I can do it."'
Game 4 is Tuesday in Orlando.
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