Miami Heat's Jimmy Butler Had a Huge Impact on the Road to the NBA Finals
It has taken Miami Heat forward Jimmy Butler one year to place his stamp on the organization.
Exactly one year.
Butler was introduced to the South Florida media Sept. 27, 2019. A year later, he helped the Heat clinch their sixth berth in the NBA Finals after defeating the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference finals.
The Heat open the Finals against the Los Angeles Lakers Wednesday in Orlando.
"You need your leaders to embody those qualities, whatever they may be," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. "Jimmy Butler embodies those qualities just like the Heat players of our great past have done before. Alonzo Mourning, Chris Bosh, Udonis Haslem. He just embodies these qualities of professionalism, of work, of accountability, of being reliable. And he leads."
The Heat went 12-3 in the postseason, including upsetting the top-seeded Milwaukee Bucks in the second round. Butler sees no reason the Heat can't compete against the LeBron James-led Lakers. James led the Heat to four straight Finals appearances from 2010-14.
"A lot of ups and downs, obviously with everything that's happened in 2020," Butler said. "From a basketball standpoint, it couldn't be better. This is what you want. We talked about it ... We believed when not too many didn't. We're going to keep believing and get these next four."
After being acquired from the Philadelphia 76ers in a trade last July, Butler immediately bought into the Heat culture.
"Jimmy came onto this team and he wanted to get in where he fit in," center Bam Adebayo said. "... He came in and bought into the system."
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