The Miami Heat shocked the NBA with Jimmy Butler taking over the undermanned squad as they dominated Game 3 against the Lakers.
The Miami Heat isn’t out of the woods just yet. In Game 3, we see that the Heat was doing everything right in both ends of the floor with Jimmy Butler taking over.
Despite not having Bam Adebayo and Goran Dragic due to their injuries, the Miami Heat went aggressive early in the first quarter.
They also put the Los Angeles Lakers in many turnovers and an impressive close out in the fourth quarter resulting in a 115-104 victory with a chance to tie the series 2-1.
Jimmy Butler makes history and breaks records
People over Twitter just exploded after this impressive win from the battered Miami Heat squad after Butler took over.
Jimmy Butler delivered an absolute #NBAFinals masterpiece in Game 3.
40 points (14-20 FG, 12-14 FT), 11 rebounds, 13 assists, 2 blocks & 2 steals.
🔥🎥 #HEATHighlights pic.twitter.com/cu5xiAMZy9— Miami HEAT (@MiamiHEAT) October 5, 2020
Looking over at ESPN Stats & Info via Twitter, Jimmy Butler has joined Dwyane Wade and LeBron James as the only Heat players with 30 points in an NBA Finals game.
Additionally, he also joins LeBron James and Jerry West as the only players to have a 40-point triple-double in the NBA finals.
However, let’s also not forget the supporting cast that Butler had with Kelly Olynyk stepping up in place of Bam Adebayo, scoring 17 points, seven rebounds, and two steals with 31 minutes of playtime off the bench.
Despite having some struggles in the field, Duncan Robinson had 13 points while contributing to the defensive end with two steals and one block. Miami Heat’s wonder boy, Tyler Herro, scored 17 points, including some crucial buckets near the end of the fourth quarter.
What went wrong for the Lakers?
Early in the game, Anthony Davis got into early foul trouble resulting in a poor performance from the Lakers superstar. He only scored points.
The game was so frustrating for LeBron James that he left in the last seconds of the fourth quarter. The King finished off with almost a triple-double with 25 points, 10 rebounds, and eight assists.
LeBron walked off the court with 10 seconds left. pic.twitter.com/zTvwZhHDq5
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) October 5, 2020
However, tarnishing his stat line for tonight was his eight turnovers tied for his worst in a Finals game.
Anthony Davis only scored 15 points as he was off tonight trying to avoid fouls early in the second half, and he also had his share of 5 turnovers.
Despite efforts from Markieff Morris and Kyle Kuzma, who scored 19 points each off the bench, it was not enough to close out the Miami Heat with the dominating performance of Jimmy Butler and the rest of the squad.
If this Lakers squad wants to close the Miami Heat, Anthony Davis and the rest of the team should step up as they already have a clear advantage with a handicapped Heat squad.
Unless this Miami Heat squad maintains this type of intensity in the next games, the Los Angeles Lakers will have an exciting matchup.
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