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Jimmy Butler # 22 of the Miami Heat reacts during the second half against the Los Angeles Lakers in Game Two of the 2020 NBA Finals at AdventHealth Arena at ESPN Wide World Of Sports Complex on October 02, 2020 in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. Douglas P. DeFelice / Getty Images / AFP
Miami forward Jimmy Butler promised the Heat would not roll against the Los Angeles Lakers despite a second straight double-digit loss in the NBA Finals on Friday.
“We will never give up,” Butler said. “We’re going to fight and we’re going to ride this thing until the wheels come off.
“It’s not over,” Butler insisted. “We are down 0-2. We have to do something special. We are capable of doing it. “
But the Heat were swimming against a fierce tide Friday after Goran Dragic and Bam Adebayo, both injured in Wednesday’s Game 1 loss, were ruled out of Game 2 and possibly beyond in the best-of-seven championship series.
Dragic was the Heat’s leading scorer this postseason and Adebayo was averaging double-digit points and rebounds.
But Butler said it’s not about who’s on the court, it’s about pushing themselves as the Heat try Sunday to avoid falling into a 0-3 hole, from which no NBA team has returned to win a best series. of seven.
“We have to play almost perfect to beat those guys over there,” Butler said. “We still have to do it, and if we don’t do it soon, it won’t be pretty.”
Heat veteran Udonis Haslem carried that message strongly to his teammates on the bench in the third quarter.
“Play harder. Empty the tanks,” Butler said, Haslem urged. That’s what we’ll have to do when we have two stars like Bam and Goran.
“Everyone has to shut down, we have to be in three places at the same time.
“It is very difficult to do, but we have guys who have to do it. That’s what it takes to beat this team. “
Haslem’s exhortations seemed to wake up the Heat, but Miami could do little to stop Anthony Davis and LeBron James, who combined to score 65 points.
The Heat cut deficits from 18 points to the single digits multiple times, but were unable to put the gap below nine in the final period.
Butler said a few adjustments, like shooting more and bouncing better, can make a difference in Game 3.
“I like what we’ve been doing,” he said. “It’s just that we have to play harder, we have to get the ball back, we have to come back, we really have to focus on what we are supposed to do.
“If we do that, we can turn this around.”
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