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‘It might be the greatest playoff performance EVER’: Shannon Sharpe gives Jimmy Butler the ultimate praise of all after his stunning 56-point display against the Bucks
- Butler led Miami’s Q4 comeback to possibly knockout the NBA’s top overall seed
- Only Jordan, Elgin Baylor and Donovan Mitchell scored more in a playoff game
- DailyMail.com provides all the latest international sports news
Shannon Sharpe probably just gave Jimmy Butler the ultimate praise of all after the Heat forward’s 56-point display against the Milwaukee Bucks, claiming ‘it might be the greatest playoff playoff performance ever’.
Appearing on the latest episode of ‘Undisputed’ on Tuesday, Sharpe told the show’s other co-host, Skip Bayless: ‘Given the degree of difficulty and who he did it against, this might be one of the, [if not], the greatest playoff performance ever.’
‘[Butler] did this against Giannis, who’s the defensive player of the year. He did it against Brook Lopez, who finished second in defensive player of the year this year. He did it against [Jrue] Holiday, who’s got votes for defensive player of the year and has been an All-NBA defensive player on numerous occasions.
‘So three top defensive guys. One of the top defensive teams in all of basketball…he went and got 56 [points]. […] With that being said, he got 22 in the first, he got 22 in the third. He’s only the second player to do that. […] He was sensational.’
What’s more is that Butler’s tally from Monday night’s Heat win (119-144) tied the fourth-best scoring performance ever in an NBA playoff game — and Miami roared back from 14 points down in the final quarter to put the NBA’s top overall seed on the brink of early elimination.
Shannon Sharpe (seen courtside in L.A.) said Butler’s latest playoff display was ‘sensational’
Butler was 19 for 28 overall from the field, 15 of 18 from the foul line and added nine rebounds
The 56 points also became Butler’s career high, as well as a franchise playoff record. And the 14-point fourth-quarter comeback became Miami’s biggest of the season, at the absolute biggest time. The No. 8 seed now leads the No. 1 seed 3-1, something that has only happened four other times since the NBA went to the 16-team playoff format in 1984.
But Butler has willed them there. He was 19 for 28 from the field, 15 of 18 from the foul line and added nine rebounds.
‘I don’t care who the defensive player is,’ Sharpe added. ‘If he gets it going then it’s kinda like Kobe or Jordan or some of these great players…If we don’t look at Jimmy as a great scorer…there’s something that comes over this man, come playoff time ’cause he’s a different animal. […]
‘If [Butler] did this during the regular season…Skip, he’s a top 5 player. He’s a Hall of Famer.’
The only players to score more than ‘Jimmy Buckets’ in a playoff game: Michael Jordan had 63 in 1986, Elgin Baylor had 61 in 1962, Donovan Mitchell had 57 in 2020.
A LEAGUE OF HIS OWN: Butler became the fourth NBA player with 56, joining Michael Jordan, Wilt Chamberlain and Charles Barkley
Butler became the fourth with 56, joining Jordan, Wilt Chamberlain and Charles Barkley.
‘I have never seen somebody start so hot and then finish so hot in the 4th where it seemed like he was making every shot and every free throw,’ Bayless tweeted prior to Sharpe’s claims on ‘Undisputed’ on Tuesday.
‘We knew what we were capable of, even if nobody outside of this building, outside of this roster and outside of this organization believed in us,’ Butler said after pulling off the first 50+-point playoff performance by an NBA player since Giannis dropped 50 in Game 6 of the 2021 NBA Finals against the Suns.
‘That’s fine. We just want to continue to do what we know is possible,’ Butler added.
The Heat now travel to Milwaukee, hoping to get to the second-round of the Eastern Conference playoffs with a Game 5 win against the Bucks on Wednesday night.
