Every morning, we compile the links of the day and dump them here… highlighting the big storyline. Because there’s nothing quite as satisfying as a good morning dump.
“No,” Butler said, appearing unenthused by the question. “He’s just another opponent that I get the opportunity to go up against. I’m not going to sit here and make it about me vs him, because that’s not the case. I don’t think he can win it by himself with the Celtics. I can’t win it by myself with the Heat. So we’re going to focus in on how we can help our team win, rather than 1-on-1, me vs. him.”
In 2017, when Butler’s Chicago Bulls took on the Celtics, Butler questioned Smart’s toughness, calling the Celtics guard “a great actor, acting tough. It’s what he does. But I don’t think he’s about that.”
Jimmy Butler is saying the right things, but you can rest assured he’ll be butting heads with Marcus Smart in this series. It’s inevitable.
I’m excited to see how Boston matches up with Miami defensively. Will Jaylen Brown guard Jimmy Butler? Might we see Smart guarding Goran Dragic and Kemba Walker shadowing the one-dimensional Duncan Robinson?
Butler averaged 28.5 ppg on 53/43/77 shooting in 2 games vs Boston during the regular season. In 6+ minutes head-to-head vs Jaylen Brown, Butler scored 11 points on 50% FG. In nearly 5 minutes head-to-head vs Jayson Tatum, Butler scored 5 points on 50% FG. In 4 minutes head-to-head vs Marcus Smart, Butler scored 2 points on 33% FG. Butler had just one point in 3 minutes of head-to-head action vs Kemba Walker.
The Heat are exceptional from long-range and Boston’s perimeter defense needs to be up to the task. On the flip-side, the Celtics generated enough offense to beat Toronto without Gordon Hayward and he’ll be on the court for a majority of the games vs Miami.
Related links: BSJ – Eight opening thoughts on Celtics/Heat
On Page 2, Kemba gets another series to redeem himself.
“I struggled last game,” Walker said after Game 7. “I struggled this game, but it wasn’t no quit in me. My teammates, they encouraged me so, so much tonight. They made me keep my head high. And you know, much credit to those guys, I could have easily got down on myself, but they wouldn’t let me. And they held me down. That’s what a team is for.”
Stevens knows how important Walker is to this team’s success. Even as Walker was scuffling through three quarters in Game 7, Stevens drew up a play for him before the start of the fourth and told him to shoot. Walker curled off of a Daniel Theis screen and drilled a 3-pointer that stretched Boston’s lead to 75-71.
While Walker credited his teammates for keeping his spirits up, they credited him for continuing to push forward with an eye on team success. He is a four-time All-Star, but he did not force plays to try to remind everyone of that fact.
Aside from an electric Game 3 (29 points, 60% FG, 57% 3 FG), Walker was mediocre in the Toronto series. Hayward’s return will remove some of the offensive pressure, but Walker needs to return to form if he truly wants to shake the “great player on a bad team” label.
The rest of the links
Globe – Celtics take valuable lessons from Game 7
Mass Live – Tatum proved himself a superstar in the toughest moment
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