Does Pat Riley, Miami Heat Owe It To Jimmy Butler To Find Help?

The Miami Heat have made the NBA Finals twice in the last four years largely because of Jimmy Butler overachieving. After failing to acquire Damian Lillard, it may be time to lighten the load on Butler

Author:
Shandel Richardson
Sep 29, 2023 4:03 PM EDT

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Miami Heat

Reality has set in the Miami Heat will mostly likely enter this season with nearly the same roster from a year ago.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with keeping together their strong core that led to two NBA Finals appearances in the last four years. But is that enough? Is it time Pat Riley and the Heat brass make a plan to give Jimmy Butler more to work with it?

As SI.com's Rohan Nadkarni perfectly stated, Butler can no longer do this alone.

"With Lillard now out of the picture, though, the bottom line for the Heat is they owe it to Jimmy Butler to find help," Nadkarni wrote.

Butler rising his play in postseason in 2020, 2022 and last season has made the Heat's success look like a mirage. Erik Spoelstra has coached wonderfully. Bam Adebayo has played like an All-Star at times. Tyler Herro has shown he is a strong No. 3 option on occasion.

But let's be honest: the main reason for the Heat's deep postseason runs is Butler is playing well above his ability. His playoffs performance last year shows that. He's never been a scorer but looked like Michael Jordan through two-and-half rounds.

Eventually, fatigue kicked in because Butler is unaccustomed to playing that role. That's why he fizzled during the Finals against Denver Nuggets. He had nothing left.

"Since he joined the team in 2019, Miami has overachieved," Nadkarni wrote. "Butler’s playoff heroics have saved the team from having to make massive upgrades. The Heat keep struggling to add pieces, and Butler drags them deep into the playoffs anyway."

The Milwaukee Bucks are the favorites in the Eastern Conference after trading for Damian Lillard. The Boston Celtics added Kristaps Porzingis. The only way for the Heat to compete is if Tyler Herro and Bam Adebayo rise to another level or if they somehow find another scorer this season to ease the load on Butler.

If not, the Heat could return to being just another middle-of-the-pack team.