Jimmy Butler

The Boston Celtics haven't been to the NBA Finals since 2010 when they lost to Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers in seven games.

With Herro potentially back in the lineup for Miami, the Celtics are going to have to put together their best team effort of the year to avoid what would be the most disappointing C’s loss since that Game 7 against the Lakers back in 2010. The Warriors can now sit back and watch the Celtics and the Heat beat each other up in what will assuredly be a physical Game 7. Well, according to calculations from The Ringer, they were predicted to win the series 83% of the time heading into the game. They committed countless unforced turnovers, picked up brutal fouls and allowed Miami to race to an early double-digit lead that forced them to play from behind for the vast majority of the game. The Boston Celtics haven’t been to the NBA Finals since 2010 when they lost to Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers in seven games. Considering that they have been to the Eastern Conference Finals six times since then, it’s understandable if they thought that they were overdue.

The Miami Heat are not done yet. Thanks to Jimmy Butler's monster performance on the road in Game 6, there will be a Game 7 back in Miami on Sunday.

Teams with Game 7 at home are historically favored to win, which now places Miami at an advantage that perhaps seemed impossible following their Game 5 loss. With this win, the Heat gain not only another chance, but a significant amount of momentum as well. The Miami Heat are not done yet.

'Simply heroic': Butler drops 47 points in 'absolute masterclass' as Heat take series to Game 7.

Boston did all they could in the fourth quarter to close the game out and had levelled the scores at one stage, but Butler came up clutch with some vital points late in the game to nudge the Heat back into the lead. The Heat win now means the series will go to a Game 7 which will take place in Miami. The Miami Heat desperately needed Jimmy Butler to step up and the star has delivered in spades en route to a 111-103 victory over the Boston Celtics in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals.

Jimmy Butler had 47 points, nine rebounds and eight assists and the Miami Heat forced the Eastern Conference finals to a decisive seventh game.

Boston’s Jaylen Brown scored 20 points, missing a pair of free throws with the game tied at 99 after Lowry fouled out. Butler made 16 of 29 shots, hitting 4 of 8 from three-point range and all 11 free throws. Kyle Lowry answered with a three and then added two free throws as Miami scored 11 of the next 13 points.

Battling a knee injury and playing with a depleted roster, Butler put out a potentially pivotal performance in Game 6.

He just has a flair for the moment. Meanwhile the Celtics have to believe that Smart has a better game in him and Grant Williams won’t collect more fouls (four) than points (two) again. They took Games 4 and 6 in Milwaukee to win the last series. He got to the basket. With 41 seconds left he drilled a 20-footer with the shot clock expiring to swell it to six. He just knows how to manage a game.” He finished at the rim. The rest of the way, Butler was magnificent. Midway through the first quarter, Butler knocked down his first three. He made 50% of his threes. He made 55% of his shots. The Heat lost.

A struggling Jimmy Butler strung together three poor outings at a very bad time but made up for his struggles in a big way on Friday night.

Boston hit 44.4 percent of its shots and was 11 of 33 from behind the arc. Miami was 24 of 25 from the free-throw line. So we have to find a way to win." Tucker made three of four free throws during a 20-second span to make it a six-point margin with 1:25 left. "Our backs are on the wall," Brown said. "We didn't contest and get out on shooters as well as we should have. "Everybody thought the series was already over," Adebayo said. "I just have to remember that every time I take the floor." Butler was aggressive, and we didn't match his intensity." Miami guard Tyler Herro (groin) missed his third straight game. "I let my team down a couple of games," Butler said. Shooting 10 of 40 from the field in a three-game span hurt just as much.

BOSTON — In the NBA playoffs, the games need a good story. Without one, they are merely matchups that tip off too late and drag on through too-long ...

And there’s no Jay-Z shout-out to “Jackson … Tyson … Jordan — Game 6″ if Michael Jordan doesn’t hit that championship-clinching jumper against the Utah Jazz in 1998. We don’t get the indelible image of LeBron, hunched forward and eyes menacing, if he doesn’t first save the Heat against Boston in Game 6 of the 2012 conference finals. Overwriting their mistakes with his own story, Butler showed up on the next Miami possession, swooping in from near the right baseline and scoring through Al Horford’s foul. A win and Tatum and Brown would’ve elevated into the rare green air of Celtic lore. With that kind of build up, the audience could further delight in the conclusion: Butler’s sensational night, scoring a playoff career-high 47 points, to go with nine rebounds, eight assists and four steals — on the Boston Celtics’ home court. Expected to win even by its potential opponent waiting in the West; Draymond Green and the Golden State Warriors had just punched their ticket to the Finals on Thursday night when Green predicted on TNT: “We’re going to play Boston.

With most of the NBA world believing the Heat were done, Butler rose up to force a Game 7 in Miami.

This steadiness amid turmoil showed in Butler and the rest of the team. Kyle Lowry showed up on the court three and a half hours before tipoff to try to loosen his ailing hamstring and then gutted his way to 18 points and 10 assists. Over the course of a long series like this, you're going to get pushed, uncomfortably so. There was a light in Spoelstra's eyes and a confidence in his demeanor. Even as the Heat wheezed through losses in Games 4 and 5, struggling to crack 80 points. After aggravating his knee in Game 3 of this series -- he has been battling an IT band issue throughout the playoffs -- Butler was a shell of himself. "You can mis-define him in a lot of different ways, but his competitive will is as high as anybody that has played this game. Instantly another message was apparent: Butler was back -- and so were the Heat. LeBron James' icy stare in the iconic first quarter of his 45-point masterpiece to win Game 6 in Boston in 2012. Marcus Smart, the 2021-22 Defensive Player of the Year, and Derrick White, the would-be hero of a comeback, watched as Butler soared into the air. By the middle of Game 5, the Celtics' defense openly admitted what anyone watching could see as Boston backed off him and paid attention to others: Butler wasn't a threat. "I want to play basketball the right way.

BOSTON — P.J. Tucker, Markieff Morris and Jimmy Butler had a conversation in the Miami Heat locker room before Game 6 of the Eastern Conference finals on ...

When we really needed it, as their defense stepped up, as the game got to four, six, he found a way to get us a really important bucket." "Sometimes, you just need your best players and your guy to make plays," Spoelstra said. Butler and the Heat were not finished. Butler’s performance conjured memories of another brilliant Game 6 road performance by a Heat player in this arena. I want to play basketball the right way," he said. Butler barely had 20 points in the three previous games: 13, six and eight and he missed the second half of Game 3 with right knee inflammation. "Just matching his intensity from the start wasn't there," Celtics coach Ime Udoka said. He accounted via scoring and assists for 24 of Miami’s 29 points in the first quarter. This was an impressive win for the Heat with Tyler Herro (strained left groin) missing his third consecutive game. "I want to win. We need 50 tonight," Tucker said, relaying the story to reporters. "Jimmy just brought his competitive will tonight," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said.

With most of the NBA world believing the Heat were done, Butler rose up to force a Game 7 in Miami.

This steadiness amid turmoil showed in Butler and the rest of the team. Kyle Lowry showed up on the court three and a half hours before tipoff to try to loosen his ailing hamstring and then gutted his way to 18 points and 10 assists. Over the course of a long series like this, you're going to get pushed, uncomfortably so. There was a light in Spoelstra's eyes and a confidence in his demeanor. Even as the Heat wheezed through losses in Games 4 and 5, struggling to crack 80 points. After aggravating his knee in Game 3 of this series -- he has been battling an IT band issue throughout the playoffs -- Butler was a shell of himself. "You can mis-define him in a lot of different ways, but his competitive will is as high as anybody that has played this game. Instantly another message was apparent: Butler was back -- and so were the Heat. LeBron James' icy stare in the iconic first quarter of his 45-point masterpiece to win Game 6 in Boston in 2012. Marcus Smart, the 2021-22 Defensive Player of the Year, and Derrick White, the would-be hero of a comeback, watched as Butler soared into the air. By the middle of Game 5, the Celtics' defense openly admitted what anyone watching could see as Boston backed off him and paid attention to others: Butler wasn't a threat. "I want to play basketball the right way.