Miami Heat: Why Jimmy Butler Should Closely Study Michael Jordan’s Career

The whole series, Jordan was getting efficient buckets. In ESPN’s The Last Dance, we learned that during Game 5, Michael Jordan noticed that his teammate John Paxson was being left open.

Trust

Jordan trusted Paxson and instead of trying to do too much with his own scoring ability, he found the open man. As a result, Paxson scored a crucial 20 points as the Bulls won their first NBA title.

This trust continued for future seasons, with one example being during the 1993 Finals when, once again, John Paxson was trusted to take the big shots. Later on, it was Steve Kerr that Jordan trusted to help him in the clutch.

If Butler studies how Michael Jordan trusted his teammates, particularly in big moments, it will help to alleviate some of the pressure off of Butler. There are plenty of players on the Heat that can rise to the occasion.

For example, Tyler Herro proved in his rookie season that he is fearless and refuses to shy away from the moment. Jimmy Butler can be “the guy” if he needs to be, but he should understand and trust that his teammates will be able to support him with the help he needs.

Michael Jordan was one of the greatest winners in basketball, especially at the biggest stage. Understanding how he rose to greatness is important, but actually executing what he can teach is much more difficult.

Since Jimmy Butler has a similar mentality to Michael Jordan, he should be able to emulate some of Jordan’s basketball tendencies. If he is able to do that this year, the Miami Heat will have a serious chance to win a championship this year as well.