CAMDEN, N.J. — Miami Heat star Jimmy Butler is an interesting player to watch on a nightly basis. He is a good player during the regular season, but he turns into a different player once the playoffs roll around.
In the 2021-22 season, Butler’s usage rate went up from 26.5% during the regular season to 29.1% in the playoffs. His scoring average went from 21.4 during the season to 27.4 during the playoffs. His 3-point attempts from 2.0 to 4.0.
In 2022-23, his usage rate went from 25.6% to 29.1%. His scoring average from 22.9 to 26.9 and his 3-point attempts from 1.6 to 3.5.
“I think that, obviously you and I certainly know that he has a lot different numbers in the regular season versus the playoffs,” coach Nick Nurse said. “Just his attempts, time with the ball, his 3-point attempts — like everything goes way up for him. You could just simply sum it up as he becomes a lot more aggressive scorer.”
Therefore, it wouldn’t much sense for Nurse and the Sixers to study any film of his regular season. The focus is going to be on what he has done in the playoffs in the past.
“I mean, I think you’re foolish to sit there and look at any of his numbers in the regular season to see what you’re gleaning from that,” Nurse added of Butler. “So yeah, we’ve done some historical study certainly on what we expect to see. We’ve gone back to watch tapes from from series from a couple years ago.”
Butler is a physical player. He’s a smart one who knows how to get to his spots and draw fouls to get to the line and score his points that way. It will be interesting to see how the Sixers attempt to stop him.
“He finds his matchups that he likes,” added Tyrese Maxey. “He knows the spots he wants to get to. He doesn’t get sped up. He knows how to score the ball. He knows how to make plays for his teammates. He’s a competitor at the end of the day. He’s someone that doesn’t like losing so someone like that, you gotta go out there and beat them. You can’t just lay down and expect to win. You gotta go out there and beat him and he’s gonna make it tough for us.”
Regardless, the Sixers will be expecting an aggressive Butler on Wednesday. He will be looking to get the Heat off to a good start and it’s something Philadelphia will have to guard against.
“Again, we’re trying to put our best guess on — but I think it’s safe to guess he’s gonna come out trying to kill us tomorrow,” Nurse finished. “You’re gonna come out and be super aggressive and try to get his team going. For anybody to think he’s gonna be like, ‘Oh, he sure creating a lot and setting up his teammates a lot and not looking for a shot.’ I mean, that’d be one way to look at it, but I don’t know if that’s — I guess that’s the way to look at. I don’t know if that’s the right way.”
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