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Jimmy Butler told reporters after a February victory over the New Orleans Pelicans – which saw him and three other players ejected for an in-game brawl – that his Miami Heat would win the rematch because they were “just a better team” .
So much for that. The Pelicans easily won the second round of the game, 111-88, earning the team some well-deserved trolling rights on social media:
New Orleans Pelicans @PelicansNBA
We are simply a better team#Pelicans | @HancockWhitney pic.twitter.com/TT3sl4qkN6
But Butler didn’t back down from his initial comments:
Clutch Points @Clutch Points
“I’ll stick to what I said, we’re still the better team. We can’t win them all… we’ll be fine.”
Jimmy Butler talks about the Heat’s home loss to the Pelicans ????
The two teams split the season series, although the Pelicans (43-27) hold the better overall record than the Heat (38-32) by a notable margin. New Orleans earned a blowout victory Friday without Brandon Ingram in the lineup and with Zion Williamson managing just four points, although the Heat played the contest without Tyler Herro, Duncan Robinson and Kevin Love.
Recent playoff performances favor the Heat in the debate, even if the NBA is a “What have you done for me lately?” sort of deal. We’ll give this one to the Pelicans via split decision.
