Jimmy Butler is aware of the challenge that the Miami Heat face after going down 3-1 in the NBA Finals against the Denver Nuggets on Friday but believes his squad can pull off the comeback.
“I think we really do believe in one another and ourselves as individuals,” Butler said, according to ESPN’s Nick Friedell. “We’ve done some hard things all year long in this playoff run as well, and now it’s like the hardest of the hard. But like we always say, the things that you want (are) on the other side of hard.”
Miami trailed Denver for the majority of Game 4. Although the Heat got as close as five points away from tying the contest in the fourth quarter, they lost the game 108-95.
Butler led the team in scoring with 25 points, seven rebounds, and seven assists. Bam Adebayo chipped in 20, and Kyle Lowry, Duncan Robinson, and Caleb Martin all scored in double figures off the bench.
“We’ve done everything the hard way, and that’s the way it’s going to have to be done right now, again,” Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra said. “All we are going to focus on is getting this thing back to the 305. Get this thing back to Miami. And things can shift very quickly.”
He added, “It’s going to be a gnarly game in Denver that is built for the competitors that we have in our locker room.”
The Heat are the second No. 8 seed to reach the NBA Finals after the 1999 New York Knicks, who were eliminated by the San Antonio Spurs in five games.
Game 5 is on Monday in Denver with tipoff slated for 8:30 p.m. ET.
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