Jimmy Butler and the Miami Heat were dealt a tough loss at the hands of the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday.
Despite leading in the final seconds, the Heat couldn’t hold on, as a clutch shot from Royce O’Neale gave the Nets a 102-101 win.
Miami has had a difficult time building momentum this season, and it seems like Butler is aware of that. After the game against the Nets, he said that he hopes the loss will serve as a turning point for the team.
Jimmy Butler on the last play last night.. and a little more pic.twitter.com/8lb8uhVS0e
— Five Reasons Sports 🏀🏈⚾️🏒⚽️ (@5ReasonsSports) January 9, 2023
“We still gotta figure out ways to win games at the end of the day, and I think we can,” Butler said. “I hope that this is the one that flips the switch on us, like it’s go time.”
To Miami’s credit, the team has played improved basketball in recent weeks, going 9-5 over its last 14 games. The stretch has been a nice sight to see following the team’s 12-15 start to the season.
As a result, the Heat are over .500 at 21-20, but they’re still not where they want to be. The team hasn’t looked as dangerous as it did last season and would only make the play-in tournament if the postseason started today.
Butler is certainly doing his part, averaging 21.6 points, 6.4 rebounds and 5.6 assists per game this season on impressive efficiency (51.6 percent shooting from the field and 32.8 percent from deep). Players like Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro are having big seasons as well.
But the Heat could really use some outside help, which is why it’s unsurprising that the team has been linked to several players around the league.
It would be great if the Heat did indeed use their loss to the Nets as a motivator to flip a switch. They’ll have a great chance to pick up a win on Tuesday against the Oklahoma City Thunder, then they’ll be tested in a major way with back-to-back games against the Milwaukee Bucks.
Those games against the Bucks will give the Heat a couple of chances to see how they measure up against one of the biggest threats in the Eastern Conference. If Miami were to beat Milwaukee once or perhaps even twice this week, that would be a very positive sign for the squad.
