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Jimmy Butler looked as calm as ever on the bench as he watched the Miami Heat get blown out by the Boston Celtics in Game 5 on Thursday. Heat coach Erik Spoelstra waived the white flag by pulling out Butler and other starters at the end of the third quarter.
The Heat were down 18 at that point and proceeded to lose the contest 110-97 in the end. Miami dominated the series by taking a 3-0 lead, but the Celtics have brought that deficit down to 3-2 after two consecutive blowout wins.
Butler was spotted smirking on the sidelines, something he did towards the end of Game 4.
Here's an image that went viral during Thursday's Game 5 (h/t Overtime on Twitter):
Butler has delivered on his claims in the past. Last season, after the Heat exited the playoffs at the same stage against the Celtics, Butler gave a bold prediction, saying Miami would make the Eastern Conference finals again and prevail.
The Heat are in a good position to do that. Jimmy Butler has come out on top more often than not with his mind games and bold predictions. The sight of him smirking after the Heat's Game 5 loss has fans confident ahead of Game 6.
One fan wrote on Twitter:
"Jimmy knows what he’s doing"
More reactions followed:
Game 6 is a must-win for Jimmy Butler and Miami Heat
The Miami Heat gave themselves the upper hand with a 3-0 series lead in the series. However, they have now blown two opportunities to close out the Boston Celtics, one at home and one away.
Sunday's Game 6 is a home game for the Heat is their best shot at ending this series.
They have a 6-1 record in their building in the 2023 playoffs, which favors them to win this series and advance to their second finals appearance in three years.
If the Celtics managed to force a Game 7, the chances of Miami surviving would appear much bleaker. The C's will have homecourt advantage and momentum with them after three consecutive wins.
Jimmy Butler will need to be as aggressive as ever during Sunday's Game 6 contest. He is the primary reason behind Miami putting itself in the driver's seat to make the finals, despite being the eighth seed.
However, Butler has flamed out these past couple of games. He started Game 4, shooting 3-of-10 before wrapping up his night with 29 points. In Game 5, he could only produce 14 points on 5-of-10 shooting.
The Heat could be without starting point guard Gabe Vincent again, who missed Game 5 due to a sprained ankle.
Jimmy Butler will need to dig deep into his bag to get the Heat a win in Game 6 and send them to the NBA finals, similar to what he did against the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round.
Guess the Lakers players!
