Jimmy Butler, Miami make history as NBA favourites collapse in playoffs first

The Miami Heat have made NBA history by stunning the championship favourites in another jaw-dropping performance from Jimmy Butler.

The difference between winning and losing. Photo: Getty Images

Jimmy Butler scored 42 points as the Miami Heat staged yet another stunning comeback to send the top-seeded Milwaukee Bucks crashing out of the NBA playoffs in overtime on Wednesday.

Butler, who scored 56 points in a dazzling game four win on Monday, conjured another virtuoso display as eighth seeds Miami completed a 4-1 series triumph with a 128-126 victory.

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It is only the sixth time in NBA history that an eighth seeded team has eliminated the No.1 seeds from the playoffs.

And it is also the first time a team who went through the play in tournament has won a playoff series.

The Bucks, who finished the regular season on top of the Eastern Conference with the best record in the NBA, were left ruing another fourth quarter meltdown as Miami celebrated in Milwaukee’s Fiserv Forum arena.

Milwaukee, who had blown a double-digit lead in Monday’s game four loss in Miami, were ahead by 16 points early in the fourth quarter on Wednesday.

Jimmy Butler does it again. Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images

But with a crucial victory in sight, the Bucks’ fragility was exposed once more as Miami began chipping away at the lead.

The Heat outscored Milwaukee 32-16 in the fourth quarter, with Butler grabbing a sensational alley-oop to tie the game at 118-118 with just 0.5 seconds left on the clock.

Miami then led throughout overtime with Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo giving up a costly foul with 40 seconds of overtime remaining that allowed the Heat to take a 128-124 lead.

We have just witnessed the fourth biggest series upset in NBA history since odds have been tracked to 1988.

1994: Nuggets def. Sonics (-2000)
2007: Warriors def. Mavs (-1800)
2012: 76ers def. Bulls (-1400)

and now...

2023: Heat def. Bucks (-1200)

— Rob Perez (@WorldWideWob) April 27, 2023

That. Was. Insane.

— Rachel Nichols (@Rachel__Nichols) April 27, 2023

Since winning the title in 2020-21, the Bucks have been knocked out in the semi-finals to the Celtics last season and now a first round exit against the Heat.

But Antetokounmpo said the season was not a failure.

“There’s no failure in sports,” he said.

“There’s good days, bad days. Some days you’re able to be successful, some days you’re not. Some days it’s your turn, and some days it’s not your turn. You don’t always win. And this year some other team is going to win.

“Every year you work towards a goal. There’s steps to success. Michael Jordan played 15 years and won six championships. Were the other nine years a failure?”

Giannis was gutted. Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images

He also took the blame of the loss on himself, making just 10 of 23 free throws in the loss.

“I wasn’t able to make shots. That’s pretty much it,” Antetokounmpo said after the match.

“If I’d made those shots it would have been a different case … Some days you make it, some days you miss. Today was one of those days.”

Miami will now play the New York Knicks in the conference semi-finals, with the Philadelphia 76ers and either Boston or Atlanta set to play off for the other place in the conference finals.

Originally published as Jimmy Butler, Miami make history as NBA favourites collapse in playoffs first