Miami Heat don’t have a star guard jimmy butler They will face the Boston Celtics on Sunday.
Butler is dealing with a death in his family and will be away from the team.
Jimmy Butler of the Miami Heat prepares to shoot a free throw against the Washington Wizards at Capital One Arena in Washington, DC on February 2, 2024. (Kenny Giara/NBAE via Getty Images)
“Jimmy Butler has been granted leave of absence to deal with the death of a family member. Jimmy and his family ask for privacy at this time as they work through this loss. Updates will be provided as needed. ” said Bernie Lee. Butler’s representative said in a statement.
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Miami is currently 28-24, one game out of sixth place in the Eastern Conference, which means they will not be able to qualify for the NBA play-in tournament.
A year after losing to Miami in seven games, the Celtics have the NBA’s best record at 40-12. eastern conference finals.
Jimmy Butler of the Miami Heat (Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
Celtics coach Joe Mazzula took over the team just before the start of the 2022-23 season. Imeudoka He was suspended for the entire season.
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Mazzula was officially named the organization’s 19th head coach last February. boston removed A provisional tag from his title.
Mazzula received some criticism for his game management in his first season as head coach, but the Celtics looked like the best team in the 2023-2024 NBA season.
“I don’t know the ins and outs of game management, I just know they played very good basketball this year,” Miami head coach Erik Spoelstra said Sunday of Mazzula and the Celtics. “They’ve been the most consistent team all year. They certainly present some challenges offensively. They can spread you out. They attack.”
Boston Celtics head coach Joe Mazzula spoke with Jrue Holiday #4 and Derrick White during a game last month. (Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
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“And defensively, I think they’re very underrated. I don’t think many people talk about how consistent and good their defense has been this season.”
Boston has won the first two of three games against Miami this season.
