does jimmy butler have a ring

MIAMI – It'due south tough to step anywhere in Kaseya Center and not be reminded of the greatness that's been witnessed in that location over the years.

The back hallways are flooded with photos of champagne-soaked memories from the Heat'due south title runs from the last ii decades.

Above ane finish of the court, three giant banners hang to commemorate title seasons in 2006, 2012 and 2013. On the other end, several giant jerseys hang from the rafters in award of Oestrus legends Dwyane Wade, Shaquille O'Neal, Alonzo Mourning and Chris Bosh.

Jimmy Butler doesn't have the rings yet, and he'due south non done compiling his case to join the franchise'south Hall-of-Famers, but he's certainly had his share of moments. Now, he may have had the biggest ane of all. His performance on Monday night was unlike anything that any of those Heat predecessors had accomplished on the postseason stage. Now, it is hard to imagine that his jersey won't too be hanging up there one twenty-four hours, likewise.

In a operation that will be remembered for years to come, Butler exploded on Mon night, thrilling a sellout oversupply that got louder and more than raucous with every basket, for a franchise playoff record 56 points as Miami clawed its mode back from a fourth-quarter arrears to pull off a 119-114 win over Milwaukee. The win gives the Heat a stunning 3-1 lead in their first-round series against the East's top-seeded team.

JIMMY BUTLER IS IN #PLAYOFFMODE

56 PTS | 19-28 FG 🔥

Estrus FRANCHISE PLAYOFF RECORD.
T-4TH MOST POINTS IN NBA PLAYOFF HISTORY. pic.twitter.com/dv4iNILXWu

— NBA (@NBA) April 25, 2023

The numbers were eye-popping: Butler became the sixth role player in NBA history to score 56+ points in a playoff game and the kickoff to pull it off in a non-Bubble playoff game since Charles Barkley in 1994. He was 19-of-28 from the field, xv-of-18 from the line and also added nine boards, 2 assists and a cake over 41 magical minutes.

List of players with 56+ points in a playoff game in NBA history (per @bball_ref):

Michael Hashemite kingdom of jordan (2x)
Wilt Chamberlain
Charles Barkley
Elgin Baylor
Donovan Mitchell
Jimmy Butler

— Will Guillory (@WillGuillory) April 25, 2023

But it wasn't just the final stat line that made this night so special.

Butler pulled off this mythical feat against a Bucks team that had the best record in the NBA this season. He did information technology with iii of the best defensive players in the world – Jrue Holiday, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Brook Lopez – watching his every move. He made it happen for a Heat team that barely squeezed into the postseason before losing Tyler Herro and Victor Oladipo in the offset 3 games of this series.

Then much was stacked up against Butler and his Heat teammates. There were and so many reasons why this game should've concluded with a big night from him that resulted in a loss to a superior squad.

Instead, this will go down equally something beyond one of the height private performances in the history of this storied franchise. Considering the stakes and the opponent, information technology'll exist on the short list of greatest games we've e'er seen from one player on the playoff stage.

"I recall we witnessed a guy who continues to be in his prime and playing at a level of basketball that not many players tin get to," said Heat guard Kyle Lowry. "You have to but kind of sit down back and appreciate it. Nosotros tin can't just relish in the glory right now. We've still got a chore to do. But we capeesh what his abilities are."

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The names associated with the top playoff performances in NBA history include LeBron, Magic Johnson, Kobe Bryant or Michael Hashemite kingdom of jordan. As much equally Butler has proven to be one of the top shooting guards of his generation, he'due south ever been considered a tier below those all-time greats. Part of information technology is because it'southward so widely accepted that he'due south a much improve player in the postseason than he is during the regular season.

Butler recoils at playful nicknames similar "Playoff Jimmy" that have followed him around in recent years, partially because they brand information technology audio like his playoff explosions are surprising coming from a player of his caliber.

"Information technology's non a thing," Butler said of his "Playoff Jimmy" nickname. "I but exist hooping."

But this is the same guy who but had two games with at least 50 points in his career before Monday night. The final time he reached that mark was in 2017, when he was still a member of the Bulls.

If anything, the sign of a great thespian is being able to rise to the occasion in games that matter well-nigh. Butler has done that repeatedly throughout his career. Since coming to Miami, he's too proven that he can be the No. 1 option that leads a team to greater heights than the talent on the roster suggests they should.

During the 2019-20 season, he led the 5th-seeded Estrus to the NBA Finals inside the NBA Bubble. Last year, he brought Miami back to the Eastern Conference Finals and was one win away from ii conference titles in iii seasons. During those ii playoff runs, Butler averaged 24.six points, including half dozen games with at least 40 points.

After Monday'southward victory, he may be on the verge of adding some other incredible feat to his resume. With i more win in any of the next 3 games, the Rut would become the 5th No. viii seed in NBA history to take down a No. 1 seed in the get-go round of the playoffs.

There's nevertheless work to practise to make that a reality, but knocking off a team like the Bucks, the overwhelming choice to win the championship inThe Able-bodied'southanonymous actor poll, would be an incredible achievement for a Heat squad that had to fight to go far to this betoken.

Miami, which finished with the 7th-all-time record in the Due east during the regular season, lost its first Play-In Tournament game against Atlanta on April 11 and needed a comeback in the concluding minutes to pull off a win in a do-or-die game against Chicago a few days later to earn the 8th seed. After those two lackluster showings, it seemed as if the Estrus were destined to be another speed bump along the Bucks' playoff journey.

Butler had other ideas.

"I love the competitive aspect of (the playoffs). I think this is where the best players show up and show out. I'm not saying I'm one of those best players. I just want to be looked at as such," Butler said. "I desire to do everything for my team to win, along with everybody else on this roster. I think (Pat Riley) and (Erik Spoelstra) wanted me here for a reason. I feel like this is office of that reason."

For most of Monday night, the Bucks seemed poised to seize command of the serial and squash any hopes the Heat had built up afterwards jumping out to a 2-1 lead.

As expected, Butler was doing super-man things to start the game again, scoring 22 of his team's 28 points in the outset quarter. The Bucks didn't budge, though. They maintained a lead through the first three quarters and were mostly unfazed when Butler started stringing together a few baskets.

Their confidence was heightened with Antetokounmpo back in the lineup later on missing the previous 2 games with a back injury. He finished with 26 points, 10 rebounds and thirteen assists despite playing through some clear discomfort most of the game. Getting Antetokounmpo back on the floor allowed the rest of Milwaukee's players to autumn into their more natural roles, and it helped their criminal offense flow much smoother than it did for nearly of Game iii. Lopez was too a force on both ends, accounting for 36 points, 11 rebounds and 3 blocks.

On the other hand, the Heat appeared to identify entirely as well much on Butler's shoulders with Herro and Oladipo injured. There was a point late in the tertiary quarter when Butler had 35 points, and the residuum of the Estrus roster combined to score 39 on their own.

Jimmy Butler: 35 pts, 13-19 FG, 7-9 FT

Rest of Heat: 39 pts, 15-47 FG, 1-3 FT

— Will Guillory (@WillGuillory) April 25, 2023

Things were getting ugly, and time was running out as Milwaukee built upward a 12-bespeak lead with six minutes left in the fourth.

Then, Miami woke up and started playing with a unlike level of force. They poured in xxx points over the final six minutes of the game, including 19 from Butler. Their get-go pb of the night came with 3:17 left afterward a Bam Adebayo steal turned into a Butler breakaway dunk, which led to a deafening roar from a Kaseya Center crowd that was looking for a reason to believe all night.

A few minutes later, the crowd reached a fever pitch when Butler drilled back-to-dorsum jumpers to put Miami up 112-109 with 58.two seconds left in the game. As the oversupply went into a chaotic frenzy, Butler circled the flooring, screaming at anyone who would listen, "This is my s—!"

JIMMY. BUTLER. 50 Ball. 🤯 pic.twitter.com/A2JSftABpe

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) April 25, 2023

It was reminiscent of D-Wade'south "This is my house!" moment after a cablegram beater against the Bulls a decade and a half earlier. No player in franchise history has had as many of those moments as Wade, and all those neat memories have fabricated him the most dear figure in franchise history.

But Butler is starting to build up a formidable listing of his own memorable moments on Biscayne Boulevard. Games like the one he had on Mon nighttime will be key to him building a legacy that lasts forever, the same way those names who currently hang in the rafters did during their time.

"In many ways, for 40 minutes of this game, it was frustrating. Things weren't going our way," said Heat coach Erik Spoelstra. "Information technology simply shows if you have the correct grit and perseverance, you can notice different ways to win, even if information technology's ugly. It always helps to have a guy like Jimmy Butler."

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Meet Ryan Hoban, the Bucks fan, who fueled Jimmy Butler's Game i masterpiece with coffee

Forth with the playoff switch he's seemingly able to flip on every yr, what separates Butler from so many other keen scorers is his ability to impact the game simply as much on the other end of the floor. I of the most entertaining parts of this series has been witnessing the relentless battle between Butler and Vacation – ii of the all-time two-way guards in the game – as they assail each other on both ends of the floor.

Scoring 56 points on an elite defender like Holiday, rated the NBA's all-time defender inThe Athletic'shistrion poll, should be enough to earn praise from folks around the basketball world. Just doing it while playing shutdown defense on the other end takes this game to a dissimilar level.

After the game, Spoelstra spoke nigh the incredible stamina, mental fortitude and attention to detail required for Butler to perform the way he has this entire series. Co-ordinate to the Rut coach, what makes Butler so great is he'southward calm and measured while simultaneously beingness aroused and vicious.

"In this game, Jimmy literally guarded every single person on the roster at some signal," Spoelstra said. "So, yes, you can count the 56 points or you can count the two-style basketball game, where he's defending literally every single situation. That's what the greatest winners in this league practice."

Spoelstra has witnessed the highest heights in the NBA playoffs, and he's coached some of the greatest to always play the game. Those experiences made him reluctant to get too enamored with putting this night from Butler into greater context. In his mind, the job isn't washed withal in this series.

He understands that history simply remembers winners. The Estrus tin't start jubilant unless they finish off Giannis and this Bucks team that won't lay down just because they're trailing the series iii-1.

Due to the style legacies are measured in the NBA, especially in Miami, it'south notwithstanding to exist determined what Butler's will be when it'south all said and done. Even if he pulls off this historic upset, and even with this moment for the ages now nether his chugalug, it's banners or busts in cities that collect championship trophies.

Volition Butler get to see his championship memories on the walls of Kaseya Centre one day? It seems unlikely at this signal, but so did knocking the Bucks out of the playoffs 2 weeks ago.

Either mode, what Monday's unforgettable showing should remind us is that there's no ane quite like Jimmy Butler. And that'due south a legacy unto itself.

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(Top photo of Jimmy Butler: Megan Briggs / Getty Images)