NBA EASTERN CONFERENCE FINALS: CELTICS VS. HEAT

September 17, 2020

Jimmy Butler

Miami Heat

Game 2: Postgame

Miami Heat 106, Boston Celtics 101

Q. Jimmy, just talking to Spo, I asked him about putting the ball in your hands in the fourth quarter, how you were able to create and how Goran still hit some big shots. He said you guys are basically position-less at this point. But what is it that you love so much about having the ball in your hands late the way that you were able to impact the game late tonight?

JIMMY BUTLER: I just think it's the way that we work on that every day in practice and we've been working on it all year long. We got comfortable with Goran having it, with Bam having it, T-Herro having it, myself. I think we are all comfortable in that position, and we like whatever we get out of that.

Q. And just to follow up on that, to your point, you're saying that the ball can be in any number of guys' hands. Where is the confidence level of this team right now?

JIMMY BUTLER: It's high. We believe in one another. We know what we're capable of, and I think that's the part that's so fun when we are out there hooping. We get down at times but we never hang our heads because we know if we play the right way, we give ourselves a chance to win.

So with these group of guys, it's always smiles out there on the court.

Q. What do you think the reasons for your victory were tonight? What went into it, down 17 and the ball is not going in and Boston is getting pretty much what they want?

JIMMY BUTLER: I mean, Goran, Bam, Jae, Tyler, D.J. came in and played some big minutes. We just never gave up. We started guarding the way we are capable of. Rebounding the basketball. Always helps to make shots, don't get me wrong. But I think all in all, we didn't give up.

Q. You guys were down 17 at one point, and it's a 4-0 run in the last minute, but it seemed like that was a big stretch for you guys to get three or four stops in a row. Did you feel like that little tiny stretch helped settle things down a little bit?

JIMMY BUTLER: Definitely. They have a lot of guys that can put the ball in the basket and get into that paint and then you're spraying out to your shooters. I think we just finally decided to make multiple efforts. Get our body in front of them and then close out.

You though, in this league, against this team, you've got to be able to do some difficult things. We weren't doing it at first. We started to do it, and turned out well for us.

Q. You've all talked about the culture and what it meant to the group. Do you think that kind of culture can be taught over time when you come to a team or do you think the mental toughness that you guys have has to come from within each individual guy?

JIMMY BUTLER: I think Coach Pat [Riley], he's done a good job of picking those guys, so they already got it. Somehow, some way, they know the guys are going to fit in here and to tell you the truth, to fit in here, you've just got to care about winning. That's the No. 1 thing. Trying to win a championship. And we've got a group of guys that want that, night-in, night-out, every single day. There's only one goal in our mind, and that's to win it.

Q. I know you guys have run zone throughout different spots in the season, but how did it work tonight against Boston especially the third quarter?

JIMMY BUTLER: It was great. We got what we wanted to get out of it. They are going in sweating, come back better, but we'll make adjustments, as well. I think we're really good in that zone because we have guys that have long arms and can get in in the passing lane. I think we've just got to do a better job of rebounding.

Q. You've played for a lot of different cultures. What makes Erik [Spoelstra] so good in these playoff situations where he's able to make in-game adjustments and for results to come back so quickly?

JIMMY BUTLER: He trusts his players, everybody -- and as much as he's commanding us on what to do, he's always asking, "What do you see?"

Whenever you have a coach like that, he knows that we may see the game differently than he may see the game. It helps. He puts a lot of trust in us to go out and play basketball the way we should play it. It works. He makes everybody feel comfortable, and hell, I'm glad he's my coach.

Q. You made three defensive plays in the Final three minutes tonight that were really complex, athletic plays in keeping your body in-bounds on a couple of them, throwing the behind-the-back pass. Tell me about the mindset that goes into being in the right spot and then being able to finish the play rather than just break it up temporarily.

JIMMY BUTLER: I think Spo is always preaching to me to impact winning, every single day, every time we talk, every time we speak, it's, "How are you going to impact winning tonight?" I think I did that on the defensive end, Goran, and everybody else did that on the offensive end but my job tonight was to guard and play those passing lanes, keep the energy level high and do what I can to help win.

You know, make a play on the ball, keep the ball in-bounds and then my teammates will handle the rest.

Q. You've talked about wanting that elusive perfect 48 minutes but you have gotten good about building your way out of these holes? What's the mood like on the team? You're not afraid to call each other out. What's the communication when you're not playing up to par and have to climb out of it and get it right?

JIMMY BUTLER: We look each other in the eye and tell each other when it's B.S. Spo is going to do it; I'm going to do it; Jae is going to do it; Tyler is going to do it; Duncan, all the way down the line, because it's unacceptable.

We know when we're not playing the way that we're supposed to be playing. And as bad as it sounds, it's like a switch. It just turns on, and, oh, there we go right there. I'm telling you, straight face communication, move on and get it done.

Q. I know you talked about him all the time and you talked about him tonight, but what more can you say about Goran?

JIMMY BUTLER: He's a winner, man. That's my guy. Zoki and Goki, that's me and him. That's our nickname together.

I'm glad that he's on my team. He's so mart. Doesn't care about stats. He just wants to win, and I think that everybody overlooks that. He's huge and he has been all year and making sure that everybody is in the right place, everybody is comfortable, and everybody has the most confidence that they can play with on the floor and he's our leader. He is.

Q. Your thoughts on Bam tonight?

JIMMY BUTLER: He knows what makes him tick; what makes him go. He knows why he's playing the game. Spo always says, "What's your why." He gets it. He understands. He knows that we need him to play at an extremely high level to be successful. He's an All-Star, All-Defensive Player. He's everything for us, to us, and for him to know like, okay, I've got to do this, that's why he's another one.

Q. What's your why?

JIMMY BUTLER: For my people. I'm sacrificing for my family. I'm going to bring them a championship. That's my why.

Q. You're not underdogs anymore; people believe. How do you guys keep that with the 2-0 lead and what's the mentality now?

JIMMY BUTLER: We haven't done anything. We haven't. We can't get excited that we're up 2-0 because as good as it is to be 2-0, it could easily be 4-2 Boston. So we’re going to come into the same way knowing that we've got to be better and stay humble about it. Not getting too high. Not going to be too -- stay in the middle, keep playing basketball the way we're supposed to be playing.

Q. When did you realize when you picked Miami, that they had this mentality that you like?

JIMMY BUTLER: I knew it beforehand. I knew it. You know, I'm watching film of these guys, seeing where these guys are coming from and I'm like, look, they are like me in a lot of ways, which is good, because I know how I would talk to myself, so I know how I can talk to them. I know what I would expect out of myself so I know what I can expect out of them, and they are just some good dudes. They just want to win, man, and I'm here for that.

Q. You talk about having fun with this group and you guys love playing the game of basketball, but that defensive impact obviously with the last moments of the game winding down, how much fun is that on that end of the game?

JIMMY BUTLER: That's what it's about, winning championships, defense does that. You know, Bam played great defense tonight as well. D.J. came in and did that. Was taking charges, getting on the floor for loose balls. That's how we're going to win. We have to make it a tougher game. We have to get it out of the mud, as we say, because on a talent level, I think Boston has an edge.

Q. In the second quarter, you guys played a little flat but in the third quarter, ignited and outscored the Celtics. What was said in the half to get the team going?

JIMMY BUTLER: We didn't have to say anything. We already knew. Coach didn't come in there yelling. He came in, was like, "Hey guys, glad we watched the film. But there's nothing to say. We know it. You know it. Let's go out there and act the part. Decided to go play some defense.