"It was a bad decision" - Chris Broussard on Jimmy Butler’s shot decision in clutch in Game 7

Jimmy Butler of the Miami Heat played 48 minutes against the Boston Celtics in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals, and he gave it everything he had. He scored a combined 82 points while facing elimination, as the Heat trailed 2-3 at one point in the series. However, the final questionable attempt to go ahead took away all hope of making the 2022 NBA Finals.

Jimmy Butler scored 35 points in the game, shooting 54.2% from the field, and had converted only one of his three attempts from deep – before the final shot. The more you analyse the final seconds, the more you will feel Butler had quite a few options – there was space to drive in or even take a mid-range jumper, but Butler took a chance from deep and missed.

Chris Broussard of “First Things First” called it a bad decision, as he said:

“It was a bad decision. And look, I said it as soon as it happened – watching the game with my father – bad decision, bad move. However, I’m not going to kill Jimmy Butler, cause they were only in that spot because he was so great.”

The Miami Heat started off the game with quite a few misses, before getting into their rhythm – but did not once hold a lead throughout the game. Bam Adebayo was the only other player on the Miami Heat roster, who made a sizable contribution to the scoreboard – with 25 points – as Kyle Lowry and Victor Oladipo struggled from the field.

A major chunk of the Miami Heat roster dealt with injuries throughout the playoffs, Jimmy Butler included. He hurt his knee in Game 3, which led to inconsistent performances till Game 5. However, he turned on the switch in Game 6 – scoring 47 points, including four shots from beyond the arc.

However, Butler was never considered a great three-point shooter, and even mentioned how he prefers driving the ball in instead – early in the series. Chris Broussard highlighted this factor, as he said:

“Overall he shot 18% from three in this series. That three you showed, was the only one of four attempts that he made in that game. He shot 23% from three in the season. So, he’s not a good three-point shooter, but guess what – he’s a great mid-range shooter or driver to the bucket.”

Jimmy Butler led the Miami Heat throughout the season, but fell short

There were multiple factors at play with regards to the Miami Heat falling prey to the Boston Celtics. Time and again, throughout the season, they’ve displayed grit – finishing the regular season as the top-seeded team in the East and making their way to the Eastern Conference Finals with dominance.

However, injury trouble cost them quite a few players – some on reduced time, leaving much of the heavy-lifting in the hands of Jimmy Butler. Butler averaged 25.6 points, seven rebounds and 3.4 assists in the series, including two 40-point games. Bam Adebayo came to his aid on a couple of occasions, but just wasn’t consistent enough to help them surpass the Boston Celtics.

Jimmy Butler has now completed three seasons with the Miami Heat, reaching the NBA Finals in 2020 and now missing the 2022 edition by just one game. However, being the player that he is, Butler is likely to come back stronger and inspire the team once more.