Jimmy Butler believes that opposing teams aren't interested in facing the Miami Heat during the 2024 NBA playoffs.
"It's the time where people really gotta think about going up against the Miami Heat and myself," Butler said in an interview with Alex Squadron of SLAM magazine. "I know what I'm capable of. I know what my squad is capable of. And don't nobody want to see us in a seven-game series anyways. We know that."
The Heat will need to advance beyond the play-in tournament before a potential trip to the playoffs, as they ended the regular season as the No. 8 seed in the Eastern Conference. However, Miami has grown accustomed to making deep postseason runs regardless of the team's final position in the East.
In 2023, Butler led the Heat to an appearance in the NBA Finals after making the postseason as a No. 8 seed. Miami upset the top-seeded Milwaukee Bucks in the first round, as the six-time All-Star averaged 37.6 points per game during the series. Head coach Erik Spoelstra's team went on to defeat the New York Knicks and the Boston Celtics in order to capture the Eastern Conference crown.
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The Heat have advanced to the conference finals in three of the past four seasons.
While Miami wasn't able to avoid the play-in round, the team dealt with several injuries to key contributors during the regular season. Butler missed 22 games, while former Sixth Man of the Year Tyler Herro only made 42 regular-season appearances.
With both players healthy, the Heat ended the year on a high note. Over the final 10 games of the season, Miami's plus-11.0 net rating was the highest mark in the league (via NBA.com).
It's easy to see why Butler is confident in the Heat heading into the postseason.
