NBA Playoff Notebook: LeBron James Fuels Lakers OT Win; Heat's Jimmy Butler Scores 56

The Miami Heat and Los Angeles Lakers both took commanding 3-1 series leads using wins on Monday over high seeded NBA playoff opponents.

The NBA playoffs often serve as a reminder as to why it's important for teams to focus on the day-to-day as opposed to getting distracted by the bigger picture. Sometimes, pulling off a surprise playoff run just takes being in a position to capitalize on favorable circumstances.

There were two matchups that took place during Monday night's NBA action that followed such a theme, including the Miami Heat defeating the Milwaukee Bucks, followed by the Los Angeles Lakers getting another win over the Memphis Grizzlies. Both of the lower seeds now hold a 3-1 series lead over their high-seeded opponent. 

Jimmy Butler Scores 56, Leads Heat Comeback vs. Bucks

The Heat pulled off an incredible 14-point comeback to win Game 4 against the Milwaukee Bucks with 119-114 being the final score. It was the Heat's largest successful comeback of the season. They were led by Jimmy Butler setting a new playoff franchise record scoring 56 points, with 21 occurring in the fourth quarter.

“We knew what we were capable of, even if nobody outside of this building, outside of this roster and outside of this organization believed in us,” Butler said. “That’s fine. We just want to continue to do what we know is possible.”

Butler's scoring effort tied him with Michael Jordan, Wilt Chamberlain, and Charles Barkley for the fourth highest playoff performance ever. The only players that have scored more in an NBA playoff game include Jordan (63 points - 1986), Elgin Baylor (61 points - 1962), and Donovan Mitchell (57 points - 2020).

“We deserved to win that game,” Heat center Bam Adebayo said, “because he played incredible.”

The Heat now hold a commanding 3-1 series lead over the Bucks after taking care of business while Giannis Antetokounmpo was sidelined, then continuing to do so in his return. Milwaukee is now tasked with winning three consecutive games to avoid being eliminated in the first-round despite being finishing with what was by far the NBA's best regular season record.

"The series is still going," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. “And we have great respect for the championship DNA that group has.”

LeBron James Leads Lakers' Overtime Victory vs. Grizzlies

After being "fine in the West" and calling LeBron James "old," the Memphis Grizzlies now find themselves staring down a 3-1 series deficit to the Los Angeles Lakers. James, who scored 

“I just try to be as great as I can be offensively, but more importantly on the defensive end,” James said. “That was the mindset tonight. I was able to make a couple of plays. ... My teammates told me I had 20 and 20. It's the first time I've done it in my career, so that's pretty cool, I guess.”

After the Lakers had been behind for much of the second half, even trailing by seven with nearly five minutes left in regulation. The Grizzlies even led by two after Desmond Bane made a layup with 6.7 seconds left. James responded by executing a tough layup to tie the game with 0.8 seconds remaining despite the NBA's Defensive Player of the Year, Jaren Jackson Jr., rotating as a weak side help defender to challenge the play.

“Obviously, LeBron gets to his right hand, which can’t happen at the end of the game,” Grizzlies coach Taylor Jenkins said. “Some breakdowns for us. Very disappointing loss.” 

James scored four of his 22 points in overtime after his pivotal finish to even give the Lakers the chance to win it. After hauling in 20 rebounds, he even achieved the first 20-20 game of his NBA career. 

“He just took over down the stretch,” Lakers star Anthony Davis said of James. “Got us a bucket to get to overtime. ... All our guys, it was a good team effort. This team is not going to go away.”

James, who is no stranger to making game-deciding plays in pivotal postseason moments, knew it was time to take control of the game. Given the gravity of the situation regarding the series, it was all the more reason. Now, the Grizzlies must overcome a 3-1 series deficit. 

“I’ve been a part of moments where you know you get a dagger play or a killshot,” James said. “I felt like that play — it wasn’t going to close the door, but there wasn’t much light at the end. I just let the emotion come out.”

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