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5 Biggest Knicks questions ahead of rivalry rematch against Heat

ByJames Ryder|
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - MARCH 29: RJ Barrett #9 of the New York Knicks is guarded by Jimmy Butler #22 of the Miami Heat during the fourth quarter of the game at Madison Square Garden on March 29, 2023 in New York City. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Dustin Satloff/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - MARCH 29: RJ Barrett #9 of the New York Knicks is guarded by Jimmy Butler #22 of the Miami Heat during the fourth quarter of the game at Madison Square Garden on March 29, 2023 in New York City. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Dustin Satloff/Getty Images)
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New York Knicks, Miami Heat, Jimmy Butler
Jimmy Butler, Miami Heat. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images) – New York Knicks

Can the Knicks contain Playoff Jimmy?

Jimmy Butler, AKA Jimmy “G” Buckets (the G stands for Gets), is one of the truly elite players that the NBA has to offer. It is hard enough to slow him down during the regular season, and it’s even harder to slow down “Playoff Jimmy.”

Playoff Jimmy is Butler’s postseason alter ego, the most dangerous version of the perennial All-Star. The Milwaukee Bucks were the latest team to be acquainted with Playoff Jimmy, as they fell to the Miami Heat in just five games. Yes, the Bucks were missing their All-Star Giannis Antetokounmpo for some of those games, but Butler was clearly going to be virtually unstoppable either way.

Butler scored 14 of his team’s final 19 points in the fourth quarter of Game 5, capping off the late-game comeback that forced the game into overtime. He scored the last two points of his 42-point performance in OT to end the series. And in Game 4, Butler was even more extraordinary by dominating the final frame in comeback fashion once again and finishing with 56 points.

Clearly, Butler is going to get his buckets, as he did pretty easily against one of the best defenses in basketball. However, that doesn’t mean that the Knicks don’t have a shot at containing him to some extent. For all intents and purposes, Butler is by far the biggest scoring threat for Miami. It will be simpler to form a game plan against Miami to some degree than it was against Cleveland, who had both Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland as major offensive weapons.

New York should be pretty confident that they can neutralize Butler enough while also daring other Heat players to put points on the board. The Knicks are first in defensive rating (101.3) for the playoffs so far, which stands as a testament to how Mitchell and Garland both struggled to score throughout the series. New York’s rim protection in particular has been outstanding, and getting to the paint and the rim is Butler’s bread and butter.

Lastly, there is this fun matchup tidbit:

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