Q: Jimmy Butler isn’t the best player on his team too many nights for what he gets paid. I don’t give a damn about five or six playoff matches a year, since that never constituted a ring. He is so average too many times a year and doesn’t make others better. They all play better when he’s out or not holding the ball – PM
A: No, he makes his teammates better with his assist and help on defense, so let’s not let that get lost in the Jimmy Butler equation. But with all the time missed every year and all the twists and turns of some regular season games, it always comes down to what Jimmy Butler always boils down to: you pay him for the playoffs. Jimmy’s salary is what any team would pay a player if they knew that investment would get him to the conference finals in four of his five seasons under contract. So you can consider that Jimmy Butler may not be worth the $551,000 he gets per game (even the ones he doesn’t play) during the 82-game regular season. Or you could think of that as the $3.7 million he gets for each of 12 wins in the first three rounds of the playoffs. So yes, if there is no playoff success, then the money can be in question. We therefore remain in a waiting situation with the 2023-24 results.
Q: Can we all admit that the Patty Mills experiment failed? – Aviv, Miami.
A: Not if you understand that the reason he was signed was for insurance, and to not be the starter he had to be in the last two games, plus the role he played in the previous matches. With Tyler Herro and Duncan Robinson available, Patty Mills serves as insurance, perhaps called upon to make one or two big shots. This widely used role was not the one envisaged when he signed.
Q: It’s interesting to see that now, if you watch the games closely, when the Heat zone passes, teams move the ball, pop someone up the middle and generally get good shots. They understood it. Meanwhile, the Pelicans throw a zone on the Heat and players immediately start throwing 3s. -Douglas.
A: The difference is that when the Heat go to the zone, the other teams have placed enough 3-point shots on the floor to at least create gaps, creases and seams in the zone. With the way the Heat were shooting 3-pointers Friday night and who they had for those 3-pointers, New Orleans could have played in as dense a zone as we’ve seen this season, which also contributed to their huge advantage. on the planks. Basically, the Pelicans were more than willing to allow Cole Swider to try to beat them over the top.
