DENVER ― The weight of a team is never on one person.
That weight is not distributed evenly either.
For the Miami Heat, Jimmy Butler absorbs the heft of championship expectations.
He invites the burden, wants the responsibility.
It’s how he pushed and pulled, carried and dragged the Heat to the 2020 NBA Finals, to seven games against Boston in last season’s Eastern Conference finals, to this season’s seven-game victory against the Celtics in the conference finals and to this season’s Finals against the Denver Nuggets.
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Butler can’t win the NBA Finals against the Nuggets by himself, but the Heat also can’t win the title with Butler having the performance he did in Denver’s 104-93 victory in Game 1 on Thursday.
He had an unaffecting 13 points, seven rebounds and seven assists. He knows he needs to be better in Game 2 on Sunday in Denver (8 p.m. ET, ABC).
“I just think I’ve got to do a better job of getting the ball, demanding the ball, being more aggressive (at the rim),” Butler said. “That’s just that, and that will change come Game 2. …
“They definitely follow suit whenever I’m aggressive on both sides of the ball. So I have to be the one to come out and kick that off the right way, which I will, and we’ll see where we end up.”
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Butler took 14 shots (just five at the rim) and didn’t attempt one free throw, even though he entered the Finals taking 9.1 free throws per game through the first three rounds.
It didn’t help that Miami shot 33.3% on 3-pointers, and Caleb Martin was 1-for-7 from the field and Max Strus was 0-for-10, including nine missed 3s.
But Butler isn’t worried.
“I would like to say that I’m never rattled,” he said. “I’m very calm. I’m very consistent in everything that I do, whether it’s before the game, after the game, during the game, and I think when my guys look at me like that, they follow suit in every single way. I love that about them because they’re never shook. No matter what.”
Butler delivered a masterclass in leadership Saturday, expressing optimism, calm, direction and perspective. He planned to go to an escape room later in the day, perhaps a metaphor for unlocking the door to victory in the Finals.
“We are in there laughing, in there smiling, knowing that we could play better,” Butler said. “We will play better. We have to be better if we want to win. Not too much is said. It’s all about what we’re going to do.”
Butler’s confidence, his belief in his teammates and his teammates’ belief in him are reasons why the eighth-seeded Heat reached the Finals, beating No. 1 seed Milwaukee and No. 2 Boston along the way. They are reasons why no one will discount the Heat against Denver even if it looks like the Nuggets are better.
Asked if he planned to say anything to Martin and Strus about their shooting struggles in Game 1, Butler didn’t hesitate.
“I need to say to them, ‘I’m still going to throw you the ball, and if you miss the next 10, if you’re open on that 11th one, I’m still going to throw you the ball, because you’ll never be the reason why we lose,'” Butler said. “‘It’s always a group effort. I want you to take the same shots because they are going to be there. We are going to throw you the ball. Stay aggressive because you’ve been the reason that we have won so many games before. You are going to be the reason that we win games now.’
“‘And that’s never going to change.'”
Butler credited former teammates for shaping his leadership style and gave a shoutout to former Heat guard Dwyane Wade for pointing him in the Heat’s direction.
“My style of leadership works here,” Butler said. “He had always told me about the culture here and how it fits who I am, what I’m about and how I go about things. You see it everywhere. It really is a match made in heaven. I love it here, and I hope to be here.”
Like LeBron James does, Butler promised he will play the “right way.” He vowed to continue passing the basketball to open teammates while acknowledging he can play with more force.
That’s not a guarantee the Heat win Game 2. But it means they believe in who they are. Butler’s leadership is a perfect fit for the Heat, and the Heat are a perfect match for Butler. Work ethic and team basketball rule, and conflict is fine, even necessary, as long as they’re headed in the same direction.
“We’re OK. We really are,” Butler said. “We are very calm. We are very collected. We have so much confidence, still. It’s not going anywhere. We’re going to believe in one another, always, no matter what, home or away.
“And we’re still going to get four.”
