Jimmy Butler #22 of the Miami Heat in action against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden on March 29, 2021 in New York City. Mike Stobe/Getty Images/AFP
Forward Jimmy Butler said Thursday that he’s “ready to go” for Game 1 of the Miami Heat’s first-round playoff series against the host Milwaukee Bucks on Saturday.
“I think I’m stupidly locked in,” said Butler, who missed the last two games of the regular season due to tightness in his back. “They expect me to be a completely different individual player on both sides of the ball in every aspect of the game. You don’t hold anything back and leave it all out there.”
In 52 games for the Heat this season, Butler, 31, led Miami in scoring at 21.5 points per game. The five-time All-Star, who led the NBA with 2.1 steals per game this season, also averaged 7.1 assists and 6.9 rebounds while shooting 49.7 from the field but just 24.5 percent from 3-point range.
The three-time All-NBA performer did not face Milwaukee this season due to injuries. In 26 career games — 19 starts — against the Bucks, Butler has averaged 15.3 points, 4.8 rebounds and 4.3 assists while shooting 45.0 percent from the floor and 31.9 percent from beyond the arc.
The Bucks won two of the three games against the Heat this season, including a 122-108 victory in their most recent meeting on May 15. Their first-round series is a best-of-5 matchup.