With his scintillating play during the postseason, Heat star Jimmy Butler has had the basketball-viewing world captivated. With another brilliant performance in Miami’s 108–101 win over the Knicks in Game 1 on Sunday, you can count fellow Heat icon Dwyane Wade among those who are impressed.
In the immediate aftermath of Sunday’s victory, Wade greeted Butler as the latter walked off the court following a team-high 25 points and 11 rebounds. When the two met, Wade gave Butler a hug, then asked him a simple question that was certainly on the minds of Heat fans everywhere: “Can I get an autograph?”
D Wade asks Jimmy for his autograph 🤣
— NBA (@NBA) April 30, 2023
Wade was in attendance at MSG as Miami secured a 1-0 series lead.
Game 2 on Tuesday, 7:30 PM ET on TNT pic.twitter.com/OACtFAGwje
What made Butler’s performance on Sunday even more impressive was the fact that he was able to remain in the game for crunch time despite rolling his ankle midway through the fourth quarter. After the Knicks cut the Miami lead to three points with just over five minutes to play, the Heat went on a 9–1 run to clinch the win as Butler fought through pain to finish the game.
Butler has scored 25 points in all six of the Heat’s playoff games, averaging 35.5 points per game on 58.5% shooting from the field. Miami is an incredible 3–1 on the road and will look to take a 2–0 series lead over the Knicks on Tuesday. If their run continues, you can be sure that Wade will have some competition when it comes to trying to secure Butler’s autograph.