Jimmy Butler and Dwyane Wade Beef

BOSTON — P.J. Tucker, Markieff Morris and Jimmy Butler had a conversation in the Miami Estrus locker room earlier Game 6 of the Eastern Conference finals on Fri. The topic turned to what Butler needed to do against the Boston Celtics.

"Yo, nosotros demand 50. We need l tonight," Tucker said, relaying the story to reporters. "He looked at us, didn't say a word. He just nodded his caput, kept going. I was like, 'Oh yes, he's near to play, he'southward locked in.' "

Butler didn't quite go l. But it was prophetic enough.

He scored a playoff career-loftier 47 points and added nine rebounds, viii assists, four steals and a block in Miami'due south 111-103 victory confronting Boston, forcing a Game seven on Dominicus in Miami (8:30 p.m. ET, ESPN).

Butler won Game 6 for the Estrus.

Indeed, the Celtics wasted a grand opportunity at home to win the East and become to the NBA Finals.

But don't go it twisted. It wasn't the Celtics who gave the game abroad or the referees who aided the Heat.

Information technology was Butler'due south masterful functioning — a lesson literally and figuratively of putting your head downwardly and getting to work.

"Jimmy just brought his competitive will this evening," Rut charabanc Erik Spoelstra said. "It was a volition that would not permit us lose."

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The endeavor was Butler's fourth 40-point game of the 2022 playoffs and 2d game with at least 40 in this serial.

This one was the almost surprising. Butler barely had twenty points in the three previous games: 13, vi and eight and he missed the 2nd half of Game 3 with right knee joint inflammation. Nothing in the past three games indicated this was coming, including his 4-for-viii iii-signal shooting when he entered the game just 2-for-12 on 3s in the series.

"Rest, water ice, massage, all of that skillful stuff," Butler said of his regimen between games.

A daytime telephone call from former Heat star Dwyane Wade inspired Butler.

"D-Wade never hits me until his vocalisation is really, actually needed," Butler said. "And information technology was. I texted him and told him I capeesh him for information technology. Simply to let me exit there, continue to build on that legacy and make sure that we win."

Butler is a exercise-whatever-information technology-takes-to-win kind of player. "I desire to win. I want to play basketball the right way," he said. "I'll do whatever my team, teammates need me to do. If it's score, if it'southward laissez passer, if information technology's baby-sit — whatever it takes to get a dub (win), that'due south what I'one thousand trying to do."

Jimmy Buckets was what the Estrus needed, and he fabricated it known from the start that was his objective. He fabricated 2 three-pointers and scored eight points in the paint. He accounted via scoring and assists for 24 of Miami's 29 points in the starting time quarter.

"Only matching his intensity from the first wasn't there," Celtics omnibus Ime Udoka said. "He put his head downwards, got to the handbasket, way too many like shooting fish in a barrel shots or point-blank lay-ups and just poor defense on our role on him when we had been actually good in the past and agreement that he's going to come out and put it on his shoulders, and nosotros didn't match it."

Butler had 21 points in the first half and 26 in the second, including 17 in the quaternary quarter on 6-for-9 shooting and four-for-4 from the foul line.

This was an impressive win for the Estrus with Tyler Herro (strained left groin) missing his third consecutive game. Butler and Kyle Lowry aren't 100%, and the Celtics took a 97-94 lead with 4:43 remaining in the fourth quarter.

The Garden rocked and you weren't alone if you lot thought that was the stop for the Heat on the road against the Celtics.

Butler and the Heat were non finished. A Butler and-ane put Miami up 102-99 and a desperation 3 on an in-bounds pass with the shot clock virtually to expire gave the Heat a 107-101 pb. His two gratuitous throws with 10.9 second to play made it 109-103.

"Sometimes, you merely need your best players and your guy to make plays," Spoelstra said. "He was able to do that in those moments of truth. When we really needed information technology, as their defense stepped up, as the game got to four, six, he found a mode to get us a really important saucepan."

Butler'southward performance conjured memories of some other bright Game half-dozen road performance by a Heat player in this arena. Ten years ago, LeBron James had 45 points and 15 rebounds as the Estrus forced and ultimately won Game 7 in the conference finals.

"To do it on this stage, Game 6, win or become home, do or die, I wouldn't desire to lace them up with whatsoever other people simply this guy," Lowry said.

But does Butler have anything left to give with a Finals advent at stake?

"He'due south going to be able to muster upwardly to whatever he needs to muster up," Spoelstra said, "to get ready for this keen opportunity on Sunday."

Follow Jeff Zillgitt on Twitter @JeffZillgitt.

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Source: https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nba/columnist/jeff-zillgitt/2022/05/28/heat-jimmy-butler-game-six-motivation-from-dwyane-wade-call/9974371002/

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