The Miami Heat delivered a commendable performance against one of the NBA’s top teams this season. At the Footprint Center, Erik Spoelstra’s squad kept the Phoenix Suns on their toes, ultimately losing by a narrow margin. However, the result might have looked different had Jimmy Butler made another choice in the game’s final seconds.
With Phoenix up by three and only moments left on the clock, Butler received the ball from Terry Rozier just inside the two-point line. He quickly repositioned himself to attempt a three-pointer but, surprisingly, decided at the last moment to pass to Tyler Herro. The guard, however, wasn’t able to release the shot before the buzzer sounded.
“I should’ve just pulled back and shot it,” Butler admitted in a post-game interview shared on the @HeatCulture13 account on X. “We kind of knew what was gonna go on,” the forward continued, taking ownership of his decision. “My turnover. Gotta shoot that one.”
Understanding Butler’s choice
While it seemed like Butler had the best look for the game-tying shot, his choice to defer to Herro was perhaps understandable. Passing the ball to Tyler, who has been one of Miami’s most reliable shooters this season, could have been a reasonable decision given the circumstances.
“He’s doing what he does best, putting the ball in the basket,” Butler said about Herro’s performance. The stats support Jimmy’s confidence: Herro has shot 45.9% from beyond the arc this season, and against the Suns, he led the team with 28 points. On the other hand, Butler had a relatively quiet night, finishing with just 15 points.
Spoelstra’s take on the play
Head coach Erik Spoelstra also addressed the final play in his post-game remarks. “I think the only play at that point would have been for (Butler) to shoot the three,” Spoelstra said candidly. “There was a little bit of zig and zag, and then we ended up running out of time.” Still, he left the team with an optimistic note: “We’ll be better with that.”