In this season's NBA playoffs, to the semifinals of the division, we have already bid farewell to James + Durant + Curry + Harden + Leonard + Embiid + Brother Alphabet and other stars in advance, and the list of the American men's basketball dream team to prepare for the Paris Olympics has gathered 8 people. Surprisingly, the three have been unable to lead the team to dominate in the playoffs or even the playoffs, but more and more new generations have risen quickly to replace them. The four Western Conference semi-final teams: Timberwolves + Thunder + Mavericks + Nuggets are young enough, although the Nuggets are the defending champions, but the most balanced overall strength + the most stars are the Timberwolves, Edwards' ability to raise the file in the playoffs is too terrifying: from averaging 25.9 points and 5.1 assists per game in the regular season to averaging 33.4 points and 5.6 assists per game in the playoffs, neither the Suns nor the Nuggets can stop him.
And the situation in the East this season is even more visible, the Celtics, who advanced early, are dominant on paper, the Knicks and Pacers replaced the 76ers and the Bucks in the second round this season, to put it bluntly, Brunson is more dominant in the playoffs than Embiid, and the Bucks are purely digging a hole for themselves, after Brother Alphabet falls, the team is not competitive at all, and it is only a matter of time before Rivers Sr. leaves class. But there is one team that is easy to ignore, in the past four years, they have reached the Finals twice, the Bubble Park lost to the Lakers, and last season lost to the Nuggets, but they are already one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference playoffs, but this season they are out of the first round early, they are the Heat! And as the core of the house, Butler is to blame! Average 21 points per game, the playoff king has slipped off the altar! The NBA is arrogant and supergiant, you have to pay the price.
It all started last summer. The Heat pursued Lillard and wanted to find help for Butler and Adebayo, and Lillard eventually joined the Bucks; As a result of the regular season in the past few years, the Heat stumbled and played very awkwardly, hovering around 5-8 in the East, to put it bluntly, the team lacked scoring points, and the top scorers in the regular season were Herro and Butler, both with 20.8 points. The 76ers lost in the play-offs, and then beat the Bulls to advance, but Butler suffered a sprained medial collateral ligament in his right knee, and the Heat lost 1-4 to the Celtics in the first round of the playoffs. It's not scary to lose, it's scary to live in your dreams.
Butler has two years left on his contract with the Heat, $48.8 million + $52.41 million (with player options) for the next two years, and according to salary rules, the Heat can extend Butler's contract extension for one year for $58.6 million, or $113 million for two years, according to salary rules. After Butler was out, he suddenly said: If I played, the Celtics would have gone home a long time ago! I will definitely kick the Knicks home in the Eastern Conference showdown! I love Thibodeau very much, but I don't want to see him, I will beat his team to the ground. You know what I mean? This isn't the first time Butler has made a big deal of talking about himself, comparing himself to a playoff Jordan, including all the taunts of last season and the Celtics playoffs, and he's just as arrogant supergiant as Morant.
Last season, Butler led the team to create a myth, the play-offs took the last train of the playoffs, facing the Bucks in the first round of the East, Butler averaged 37.6 points, 6 rebounds and 4.8 assists per game, leading the team to complete the Black Eight Miracle, eliminating the Bucks 4-1, and in the second round, he led the team to eliminate the Knicks 4-2 under the pressure of an ankle sprain. After being chased by the Celtics for 3 consecutive games, Butler scored 28 points, 7 rebounds and 6 assists to lead the team to the finals. But in the finals, the Heat and Butler were vulnerable, 1-4 to witness the opponent win the cup again. Butler is getting older, the Heat roster framework is constantly losing, and they have closed the championship window!
He has been with the Heat for 5 seasons, and has never played 65 games in the regular season, and in these 5 years, the Heat have been out of the first round twice, reached the Eastern Conference finals 3 times, and reached the Finals 2 times. It is undeniable that Butler's playoff ceiling is indeed high enough, but there are two major premises: first, the overall competition in the East is insufficient, the Bucks' championship in the summer of 21 is not convincing, and they rely on referees to win the Nets, and the Celtics are also beaten to the bottom when they reach the Finals. Including the Heat, they can't beat the Western Conference team. Secondly, Butler's use of regular season paddling + playoff power is not advisable in itself, just like Leonard, as he gets older, even if he finishes playing in the regular season, the intensity of the playoffs is really unbearable.
Butler, who turns 35 this fall, is about the same age as Harden, and even if he can move up the playoffs, he can be the team's boss, which is risky. That means they need more teammates to step up and share the pressure during the regular season, but the Heat don't have that condition. In Ade's words, the Heat don't quite accept Butler's maverick personality, and he's too old, so it's likely that the Heat won't work with Butler anymore. Butler is strong, but he has never led a team to a championship, and if he is really going to be abandoned by the Heat, where can he go? Will he go to the 76ers to re-assist Embiid? Say goodbye to the championship, Butler will have to pay the price for his hubris.