Jimmy Butler sends message as Miami Heat look to spark deep postseason run once again
Miami Heat star Jimmy Butler delivered a message on Sunday with the start of the NBA postseason right around the corner.
Butler and the Heat will attempt to make it back to the NBA Finals in the following season. Miami made league history by being just the second No. 8 seed to advance to the championship series in 2023.
The Heat had to defeat the Milwaukee Bucks, New York Knicks, and Boston Celtics—three teams that had more victories at the end of the regular season than they had during 2022–23—in order to secure their spot in the NBA Finals from the previous year. The Bucks, Miami’s first-round opponent, finished with the best record in the league (58-24), but they dropped five games against the Heat and one against Butler.
Miami must first concentrate on securing a postseason spot by winning at least one game during the play-in round before it can concentrate on playing in the NBA Finals for the second time in a row.
Joel Embiid and the Philadelphia 76ers, the No. 8 and No. 7 seeds in the Eastern Conference, will be the Heat’s first (and maybe only) opponents in the tournament.
Regretfully, the Heat was unable to capitalize on the 76ers’ strong finish to the 2023–24 regular season. When Embiid played in games in April, the club went 5-0 and won its previous eight games.
The victor of the match between the No. 9 and No. 10 seeds would face the Heat for the eighth and final playoff position if they lost their play-in game against the 76ers. The matchup between the Atlanta Hawks and the Chicago Bulls is ranked No. 9 vs. No. 10.
Butler’s Heat will once more face overwhelming odds to represent the Eastern Conference in the NBA Finals. But if the Heat make it to the playoffs, no opponent should want to play the Heat in the first round because they are headed by successful players like Bam Adebayo and Butler and have a legendary head coach in Erik Spoelstra.
