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2021 NBA Offseason Thread
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Amazing performance by Butler that I did not expect. Statistically has to be one of the best in Finals history, right? 40 point triple double on 70% shooting to win a crucial game for your underdog team?
Butler clearly outdueled Lebron in the 4th quarter, playing a very similar "point forward" role. Lebron looked geared up for his own history-making performance after he almost singlehandedly kept LA in it in the 3rd. I think LBJ appreciated the moment and would have loved to put on a series-clinching performance where he showed he was better than Butler. But then in the fourth all the problems with Lebron's old man game on offense showed up. He just doesn't have the quickness or burst any more to reliably get to the basket every time, so it's very hard for him to put a team on his back and score every time down against a good defense. That really showed up on some of those turnovers.
As Butler's best game ever, this game really helped me appreciate the case for claiming him as a superstar. Bear in mind this is a guy who has never made it higher than an all-NBA third team, so he has never been officially judged to be a top 10 player in the league. You can see why that is, because he doesn't have any single "freak" talent -- he's not unbelievably athletic, not an unbelievably accurate shooter, doesn't come off as unstoppable on offense, etc. But he's kind of good at everything at once. He's not the quickest guy in the league, but he's very quick for someone so big. He's not the strongest guy in the league, but he's very quick for someone so strong. He's not the greatest passer in the league, but he's a superb passer for someone whose such an offensive threat. etc. And his mental game is tremendous! Never gets rattled, keeps a very upbeat attitude, picks up on what his team needs and just does it, whether its volume scoring, distribution, off the ball movement, or defense, and super smart in terms of things like getting fouls or responding to double-teams. Like a swiss army knife superstar.
Butler clearly outdueled Lebron in the 4th quarter, playing a very similar "point forward" role. Lebron looked geared up for his own history-making performance after he almost singlehandedly kept LA in it in the 3rd. I think LBJ appreciated the moment and would have loved to put on a series-clinching performance where he showed he was better than Butler. But then in the fourth all the problems with Lebron's old man game on offense showed up. He just doesn't have the quickness or burst any more to reliably get to the basket every time, so it's very hard for him to put a team on his back and score every time down against a good defense. That really showed up on some of those turnovers.
As Butler's best game ever, this game really helped me appreciate the case for claiming him as a superstar. Bear in mind this is a guy who has never made it higher than an all-NBA third team, so he has never been officially judged to be a top 10 player in the league. You can see why that is, because he doesn't have any single "freak" talent -- he's not unbelievably athletic, not an unbelievably accurate shooter, doesn't come off as unstoppable on offense, etc. But he's kind of good at everything at once. He's not the quickest guy in the league, but he's very quick for someone so big. He's not the strongest guy in the league, but he's very quick for someone so strong. He's not the greatest passer in the league, but he's a superb passer for someone whose such an offensive threat. etc. And his mental game is tremendous! Never gets rattled, keeps a very upbeat attitude, picks up on what his team needs and just does it, whether its volume scoring, distribution, off the ball movement, or defense, and super smart in terms of things like getting fouls or responding to double-teams. Like a swiss army knife superstar.
Some other things about that game:
Davis was -26 in 33 minutes (!), while Lebron was just -4 in 39 minutes. So the times that Lebron was on without Davis the Lakers outscored the Heat -- that was that period in the 3rd quarter where he brought them back before kind of blowing it in the 4th.
Obviously Davis was tentative and bad, but did anyone pick up on anything specific the Heat did to neutralize him? Or was it more about him playing badly?
Spoelstra did a really impressive job picking his supporting players and sticking to them/having faith. Example is Tyler Herro, who was having an awful game but then went 3-5 for 8 points in crunch time.
Davis was -26 in 33 minutes (!), while Lebron was just -4 in 39 minutes. So the times that Lebron was on without Davis the Lakers outscored the Heat -- that was that period in the 3rd quarter where he brought them back before kind of blowing it in the 4th.
Obviously Davis was tentative and bad, but did anyone pick up on anything specific the Heat did to neutralize him? Or was it more about him playing badly?
Spoelstra did a really impressive job picking his supporting players and sticking to them/having faith. Example is Tyler Herro, who was having an awful game but then went 3-5 for 8 points in crunch time.
ACisKING
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Spo made three huge adjustments to the Heat’s defense. First, they almost entirely abandoned the zone. Second they doubled AD on the catch exposing his poor passing out of double teams. This is his achilles heel as a basketball player. And in game three, he was tentative and turnover prone. He just has to be way more decisive in those situations. Third, the Heat hard hedged every lebron pick and roll attempting to target guys like robinson and herro. That means that the guy whose man is setting the screen for lebron would show to the level of the ball until butler could recover, preventing a switch. In game one LeBron just feasted on Herro and Robinson but tonight the Heat weren’t conceding the switch. Then behind the hedge, the Heat really packed the paint. A few times LeBron split the hedge and drove but most times when the lakers guards ghost screened and popped he just passed it to them but green and kcp couldnt make the heat pay.
The pick and roll coverage is the biggest thing the Lakers need to counter. There’s three things the lakers can do to counter that aside from kcp and green just hitting wide open threes. They could use lebron himself as a screener more for the guards so he’s the guy catching the ball with space, they could set the screens for lebrons with guards with more ball handling ability like caruso and rondo who can do more than just shoot, and they could use the most underutilized weapon in the NBA - the lebron and anthony davis pick and roll. If they use davis as the screener for a lebron, hedging onto lebron means anthony davis either rolling to the rim or popping out for an open shot. Heat could try to switch it but when Davis is at the five that means that either lebron or ad will have a mismatch.
Great analysis AC. It's amazing to me that reporters don't ask about these kinds of key details after games, obviously they are what the players are thinking about and not whatever BS personality story is going on.
Sir'Dom Pointer
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Lebron's just creating a narrative that he should be the FMVP. He hears all the talk about Davis being the better player, etc. It's all part of the plan.
Cavatt
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Make him look bad for a game lol
Sir'Dom Pointer
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Don't underestimate the mastermind that is Lebron.
I seriously think Lebron was really pissed at the end of G3 last night because he saw a real opening to grab FMVP by leading the Lakers comeback win and he blew it pretty obviously in the fourth quarter
Rich
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I've come all the way around on Butler.
The immediate impact his arrival/departure has on teams wins and losses has won me over. This run has been the cherry on top. He goes to a team, they make the playoffs. He leaves, they're in the lottery (or getting swept in round 1).
Maybe this is crazy, but I think I'd take him over James Harden at this point.
Cavatt
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Not crazy.
Rich
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Yea the statistics and individual accolades are not in Butler's favor. He's not someone the advance stats just love.
But...it's just impossible to deny how much he impacts winning and losing at this point. Minnesota is the best example. From the 35 win range to 50 in one season, right back to being a losing team, even though they replaced him with a legit role player in Covington.
And he absolutely shows up in the playoffs.
Cavatt
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Harden is on the other end of the spectrum. You have to have him with his efficiency, but his ability to get it done in the playoffs is very questionable. Rockets fans say he is a choker
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