“My thought process was… go for that win” Jimmy Butler breaks silence on Game 7 miss that ended Heat’s run in the playoffs
Follow Us
Jimmy Butler Cheering the Miami Heat Fans
Jimmy Butler missed the game-winner which could have sent Miami Heat to their 2nd NBA Finals in 3 years and received heavy criticism for the same. Amid the bundle of critics lining up, Miami megastar explained his shot selection, in the post-game interview.
Miami Heat and Boston Celtics went neck-to-neck in the Game-7 of the Eastern Conference. It was a very tight encounter, as both teams shared the shots, and Miami, trailing for most period tried crawling back into the game. Miami, playing at the FTX arena, had the crowd behind them and their stars like Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo used that energy to hurt the Celtics’ advancements. But Celts kept their composure and kept the lead. Jimmy Butler had strong 1st half and even made an extensive push in the 2nd half to put the game to the rest. In the process, when the game was fairly evenly matched, he tried a game-winning 3-pointer from the right-wing, but it bounced off the rim and the final possession went to the Celtics.
Many, including his teammates, fans, and opponents were shocked by the shot selection. Though it was an open shot and highlight-worthy one, it was a huge risk to take. There were nearly 15 odd seconds left on the clock when Butler missed the 3-pointer.
Jimmy Butler continued with his Game-6 form; talks about the Game 7 winning attempt
Miami Heat won game-6, banking on Jimmy Butler and his effective shooting. He scored 47 points playing the nearly whole game. In Game-7 Miami team was once again depending on Jimmy Butler as Tyler Herro couldn’t recover in time, and other team stars also failed to make an impact on the game.
6-time all-star unfazed by the responsibility played for the whole 48 minutes in the game, following a 46-minute game time in Game-6. He was certainly the influential player from the Miami Heat side, and he proved time-in-time out in the postseason too.
With the Heat down two points and less than 20 seconds left in the contest, Butler stopped for a transition three-point look that could have been an exclamation mark over his whole series performance. But it missed the target and the Celtics got the rebound, good shot or not, Jimmy Butler expressed no regrets about the look.
He said, “My thought process was ‘go for the win’ which I did. Missed the shot. But I’m taking that shot. My teammates like the shot that I took, so I’m living with it.”
Butler was 13-for-24 from the field before that shot, and while the three-pointer isn’t his handpicked bucket, he had drained many game-winners for his team in the past. Coach Erik Spoelstra also supported his franchise player for the shot, and frankly, there was no one to take the final shot in the Miami roaster.
Stay Updated!
Kunal Chawda
(600 Articles Published)