Miami Heat's Jimmy Butler Has Faith In Caleb Martin At Power Forward

The Miami Heat learned the value of forward P.J. Tucker last season.

He was the guy who dove for loose ball, grabbed the tough rebound and could also hit the occasional 3-pointer from the corner. In short, he was their intangibles player.

With Tucker now in Philadelphia, the Heat needed to find a replacement. They feel they've found it in Caleb Martin, who moves into the starting lineup.

Heat forward Jimmy Butler, who jokingly referred to Tucker as a traitor when he signed with the 76ers, said Martin is more than capable of plugging the leak. Last year Martin averaged 9.2 points, 3.8 rebounds while shooting 50 percent in a secondary role, but now needs to become a primary contributor.

"He can play as well," Butler said of Martin. "I think it's some big shoes to fill when you about Tuck. That's still my guy, he's still a traitor and I don't like him. I think Caleb has been doing exceptionally well. I'm talking switching, making shots and being aggressive and being a great teammate. Like I said, it's tough to do what Tuck does but I think Caleb does it extremely well."

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Shandel Richardson is the Miami Heat writer for Inside The Heat. He can also be read in the Sportsbook Review for gambling coverage from around the NBA.