Jimmy Butler was a shot away from leading the Miami Heat to their second NBA finals appearance in three seasons. His two forty-plus games in the conference finals led Miami to that moment; just a shot away.
Despite the miss, it was Butler who lifted a hurting Miami Heat team throughout the entire playoffs, and it was Butler who outplayed everybody the Heat faced.
Even after this stretch where once again, Butler, showed that his abilities in the post season make him one of the best players in the planet, ESPN didn’t feel it was enough to rank him as one of the best 15 players in the league.
In fact, Jimmy Butler was ranked behind players he outperformed in the playoffs, including James Harden and Trae Young.
The Hoch and Crowder Show discussed the ranking by ESPN: