Jimmy Butler consistently leads his teams to the playoffs and sometimes more, which has been clearly displayed during his tenure with the Miami Heat. His talents were again broadcasted to the world when the Heat took down the Philadelphia 76ers in the playoffs, earning the Heat a bid to the Eastern Conference Finals. Two seasons ago, Butler also took Miami to the NBA Finals, but they fell short to the Los Angeles Lakers.
There’s no doubt that Butler is walking into next season as a true superstar.
Top NBA Players 2022-23: #10 Jimmy Butler
Star Consistency
Butler averaged about 21 points, six rebounds, and six assists per game last season. These kinds of numbers have been rather consistent over the past few seasons for him. What makes this more special is that Butler doesn’t need to have the ball at all times for the Heat to be successful. Miami is home to plenty of top players like Defensive Player of the Year candidate Bam Adebayo, the reigning Sixth Man of the Year in Tyler Herro, a veteran star in Kyle Lowry, and a number of top role players.
When needed, however, Butler has all the tools to take a game over.
Going back to the 2022 76ers playoff series, Butler scored 32 points and snagged eight rebounds in the decisive game six. Outside of Max Strus, not many Miami players were on the top of their game, so Butler knew it was his game to control.
Even though he’s not necessarily a guard, Butler also has a knack for creating plays. In that same series, he notched 12 assists in game two. Adebayo, Herro, and Victor Oladipo were playing well, so Butler used his leadership and spread the wealth.
Butler is a serial winner. He can beat teams in a variety of ways and consistently knows how and when to do it.
Jimmy Butler 2022-23 Expectations
For now, the Heat roster hasn’t changed too drastically compared to last season. The team was rumored at a time to have interest in Donovan Mitchell, which could’ve been an excellent pairing for Butler, but Mitchell was eventually traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers.
The Heat know they’re capable of being a contender with what they have, especially with Butler at the helm. Given the roster, expect Butler to contend with Herro as the team’s top scorer. Butler has no issue with not leading the team in certain categories as he solely plays to win. He’ll also do well in the rebounding and passing departments, making him a triple-double threat on any given night.
Butler, of course, is also one of the fiercest competitors and defenders in the entire league. He’ll continue to be just that – a match-up nightmare for opposing teams on both ends of the floor.
It’s not likely that Butler will be in the NBA MVP competition. He doesn’t contribute “enough” statistically speaking. Come playoff time, however, which Miami will certainly be in barring major injury, Butler will once again display his full talents and take over game after game.
