Butler, is the most underrated star?
Miami is 20-3 in postseason play after winning Game 1. Can Boston turn history on its head? The series is even at 1-1.
Their aspirations go through stopping veteran Jimmy Butler, the first player in Heat history with three games with at least 40 points in a single playoffs. Is the veteran point guard currently the most underrated star in the NBA?
Also, on Boston’s side…. Does Jayson Tatum have to beat Butler to be considered the best in the Eastern Conference?
True or false: Is Jimmy Butler the most underrated star of these playoffs?
True. There comes a time when we should wonder what else Butler has to do to get the love from the supposed experts who series after series put him on the back burner. In this instance the opponent is Boston and its rising star Jayson Tatum, who captured the front pages after shining against the Nets and Bucks in the early rounds. Tatum was virtually unanimously endorsed as the best player in the series heading into Game 1, only for Butler to come in with his own to steal the show…as he nearly did against LeBron James and the Lakers on the 2020 bubble.
A Heat win over the Celtics to reach their second Finals in three seasons would have to earn Butler the respect and admiration he so desperately craves, right? Probably not. Not when he would once again be the B-side in a potential Finals against Stephen Curry or Luka Doncic. No, the only way Butler will stop being underappreciated among the stars is by winning the championship, and watch out if he has to be the MVP to do it, even if it seems like we’re going from the sublime to the ridiculous.
- True or false: Tatum has to beat Butler to be considered the best in the East.
False. While there will be talk about Tatum’s or Butler’s contribution once the East Finals are decided, I don’t think that’s going to be the determining factor in who qualifies.
The Celtics’ Tatum is in his sixth NBA season, all with Boston, and his growth has been exponential. To mention a figure, in his first year he registered 1112 points in the regular season, in the current one (not counting playoffs) he contributed 2046. Tatum is part of the bright future of the NBA and the Celtics.
Butler is in his 12th season, third with the Heat, where he seems to have caught his second wind and has been key to Miami’s recent success, but I don’t think he has anything to prove or demonstrate.
Why not think of them both as the best on your team at the small forward position?
One other point and not looking to derail the conversation. Tatum and Butler are being talked about now because their teams are in the Eastern Finals, but for many (not including myself) the best in the Eastern Conference is Giannis Antetokounmpo.
- True or false: Defense will determine the winner of this series.
True. The best example of that was during Game 1, when in the third quarter, the Heat recorded five blocks and six steals. That made them just the fourth team in the last 10 playoffs to accomplish something similar.
But, unfortunately for the Celtics, Butler isn’t their only drawback, as even Bam Adebayo does his best Giannis Antetokounmpo impression on both sides of the court. Boston came into the playoffs as the best defensive team in the regular series. But as the games go by, the more additional strain on the legs of a veteran like Al Horford.
The Celtics need to count on Marcus Smart in every game, as evidenced in Game 2. Otherwise, it will be very difficult to match the defensive energy of a Heat that continues to shut their mouths. In any scenario, defense will be the key to a ticket to the Finals.
