Miami Heat

The NBA announced Saturday that it fined the Miami Heat $25,000 for the actions of players on the bench during Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Boston Celtics on Friday.

In a statement, the league referenced the Heat's "team bench decorum," noting that players "stood for an extended period in Miami's bench area, stood away from the team's bench and were on, encroaching upon or entering the playing court during live game action."

The Heat defeated the Celtics 111-103 in Boston, thus forcing a Game 7 in Miami on Sunday night.

Friday marked a highly important, emotional game for the Heat, who trailed 3-2 in the series and needed a victory to force Game 7.

After playing poorly in Game 4 and 5 losses, the Heat got back on track in Game 6 thanks largely to a spectacular performance from Jimmy Butler.

Butler exited Game 3 with a knee injury, and while he suited up in Games 4 and 5, he was held to 13 points or fewer in both and didn't look like his usual self.

On Friday, Butler went off for a game-high 47 points, as well as nine rebounds, eight assists and four steals, willing the Heat to a win.

Miami also got its best game out of guard Kyle Lowry in the series, as he registered 18 points and 10 assists.

With Butler, Lowry and Co. playing quality basketball, the Heat players had plenty to cheer about from the bench area.

Since the Heat and Celtics are set for Game 7, the atmosphere could be even more raucous at FTX Arena on Sunday when Miami hosts Boston.

The winner will move on to the NBA Finals, where they will face the Golden State Warriors, beginning June 2.

Miami Heat star Jimmy Butler has no doubt about beating the Boston Celtics in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals and reaching the NBA Finals.

After Miami's 111-103 win over the Celtics in Game 6 on Friday, Butler said the following in an on-court interview, via Spotrac's Keith Smith: "We knew we were going to win this one. And we're going to win the next one too."

With the Heat trailing 3-2 in the series, Butler turned in his best performance of the playoffs, scoring a game-high 47 points to go with nine rebounds, eight assists and four steals.

Things looked bleak for the Heat entering Game 6, as Butler suffered a knee injury in Game 3 and played poorly in each of the next two contests.

Miami didn't put up much of a fight in Game 4 or Game 5, losing 102-82 and 93-80.

The Celtics seemed poised to close out the series at home, but the Heat's superstar awoke from his slumber and put the team on his back.

Miami also got much-needed offense out of its starting backcourt of Kyle Lowry and Max Strus after they combined to shoot 1-of-13 in Game 4 and 0-of-15 in Game 5.

On Friday, Lowry and Strus were a much more palatable 10-of-26, and Lowry finished with 18 points while Strus had 13.

The most impressive aspect of Miami's performance may have been that it occurred without guard Tyler Herro, who missed his third consecutive game with a strained groin.

Herro finished second on the Heat in scoring during the regular season with 20.7 points per game (Butler, 21.4), and while it is unclear if he will play in Game 7, he could provide a massive boost.

Boston can't be counted out considering the offensive firepower Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown bring to the table combined with the defensive acumen of Marcus Smart, Robert Williams III and Al Horford.

The Heat have momentum on their side, however, and will have a chance to win the series on their home court at FTX Arena.

Whichever team wins Game 7 will move on to the NBA Finals to face the stacked Golden State Warriors, who are seeking their fourth championship in the past eight seasons.

Miami Heat veteran forward Udonis Haslem had some choice words for Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green after Miami's 111-103 victory over the Boston Celtics in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals on Friday.

Per Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports, Haslem took issue with comments Green made after the Celtics defeated the Heat in Game 5. At the time, Green appeared on TNT's Inside the NBA and said: "I'm going to tell you who I think we're going to play. We're going to play Boston. That's who we're going to play."

Haslem responded after Miami's Game 6 win, saying: "Draymond broke the code. You ain't supposed to say some s--t like that. That's disrespectful. He know better than that."

Now, the Heat and Celtics are set for a winner-take-all Game 7 in Miami on Sunday to determine the Warriors' opponent in the NBA Finals.

Regarding Green picking the Celtics to win the ECF, Haslem expressed his belief that Inside The NBA host Shaquille O'Neal pressured him into making a pick, saying: "He let Shaq peer pressure him into saying some s--t he ain't got no business saying. I didn't sleep much after he said that. That was some bulls--t."

Heat forward P.J. Tucker also seemed to take issue with Green, calling it "crazy" to count a team out.

Miami looked listless at times in Game 4 and 5 losses to the Celtics to fall behind 3-2 in the series, but the Heat turned things around in a big way in Game 6 thanks largely to the play of Jimmy Butler.

Butler left Miami's Game 3 win with a knee injury, and while he played in Games 4 and 5, he clearly wasn't close to 100 percent and struggled.

Game 6 was a different story, as Butler led all scorers with 47 points to go along with nine rebounds, eight assists and four steals.

Miami also got a great effort out of veteran guard Kyle Lowry, who recorded 18 points and 10 assists after struggling for much of the series.

Now, the Heat look to be firing on all cylinders and are heading back home to Miami for Game 7, shifting some of the pressure toward Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown and the Celtics.

Bulletin-board material has long been a topic of discussion in sports, and while it is unclear if Green's comments played any role in the Heat's Game 6 performance, a little extra motivation never hurts.

If the Heat manage to prevail in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals on their home court, they will perhaps bring that motivation with them to the NBA Finals against Green and the Warriors.

Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra praised All-Star forward Jimmy Butler for carrying the team to a season-saving Game 6 win over the Boston Celtics on Friday night.

"Jimmy just brought his competitive will tonight," Spoelstra told reporters. "It was a will that would not let us lose."

Butler tallied 47 points, nine rebounds, eight assists, four steals and a block in a 111-103 Miami victory despite a knee injury that's hampered him throughout the Eastern Conference Finals.

The 32-year-old Houston native looked completely revitalized in Game 6 after scoring just 19 total points while hobbling his way through the previous two contests.

It allowed the Heat to fend off elimination, and now they'll get an opportunity to punch their ticket to the NBA Finals with a home game Sunday night.

Spoelstra, who said there are "no two better words in pro sports than Game 7," said these types of high-pressure situations bring out the best in players like Butler.

"I want our guys just to embrace this moment," Spoelstra said. "Jimmy Butler is a great competitor; he really is. You can misdefine him in a lot of different ways, but his competitive will is as high as anybody that has played this game. He put his fingerprints on this game."

Teammate Kyle Lowry summed it up more simply: "It's f--king incredible."

Butler provided a modest response when asked about his performance, which established a new career high for points in a playoff game.

"I think I did decent throughout the game," he said.

The Heat needed every bit of that "decent" outing to hold off the Celtics, as the other eight members of the roster who saw the floor combined to shoot 40.8 percent from the field (20 of 49).

Miami will probably need another dazzling display from Butler in Game 7 to have a chance to break down the vaunted Boston defense.

If the Heat advance, a few days off before opening the Finals against the Golden State Warriors on Thursday would be a welcome sight for a roster that's been pretty banged up.

Jimmy Butler credited Miami Heat legend Dwyane Wade for providing motivation ahead of the team's Game 6 win over the Boston Celtics on Friday night.

Butler, who scored a game-high 47 points on the road to force a Game 7 in the Eastern Conference Finals, discussed the message Wade gave him:

The six-time All-Star appeared severely hampered by his knee injury over the previous two games, scoring just 19 total points in back-to-back Celtics wins to take the series lead.

He returned to form Friday. Along with pouring in nearly 50 points, he recorded nine rebounds, eight assists, four steals and a block in 46 minutes to keep Miami's season alive.

"It's f--king incredible," teammate Kyle Lowry told reporters.

Wade purchased an ownership stake in the Utah Jazz last year, but he still possesses a strong connection to the franchise where he spent most of his Hall of Fame playing career.

He posted on Twitter about Butler's latest standout performance:

Now the biggest question heading toward Game 7 is what version of the 32-year-old Marquette product will show up in the decider.

Will it be the version of Butler who appeared well less than 100 percent in Games 4 and 5 or the unstoppable force from Game 6?

The answer is likely to determine which team advances to face the Golden State Warriors in the NBA Finals.

Miami Heat forward Udonis Haslem ran over to the ESPN announcers' table after his team's 111-103 comeback win over the Boston Celtics and asked the crew to tell Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green "thank you" after the Dubs star said that he expected his team to play the C's in the NBA Finals.

"Draymond broke the code," Haslem said after Game 6, per Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports. "You ain't supposed to say some s--t like that. That's disrespectful. He know better than that."

Green made his prediction after the Warriors closed out the Dallas Mavericks in the Western Conference Finals on Thursday.

Heat forward PJ Tucker had a similar message for Green during an interview with ESPN's Scott Van Pelt on SportsCenter after the game.

Green could still very well be right. The Heat and C's are playing a series-deciding Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals on Sunday at 8:30 p.m. ET in Miami, and the winner will play the Warriors in the NBA Finals beginning Wednesday.

For now, though, the momentum has swung in Miami's favor after Jimmy Butler dropped 47 points, nine rebounds, eight assists and four steals in a season-saving Game 6 win.

Jimmy Butler delivered a playoff performance for the ages with 47 points, nine rebounds, eight assists and four steals as the Miami Heat defeated the Boston Celtics 111-103 in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals on Friday at TD Garden.

The Heat's season was on the brink after back-to-back losses by a combined 33 points, with the C's entering the night with a 3-2 series lead.

Butler struggled significantly over that stretch with 19 points on 7-of-32 shooting. That came after Butler missed the second half of Game 3 with right knee inflammation.

On Friday, Butler had 19 points by the halfway point of the second quarter.

He finished the night shooting 16-of-29 from the field and 11-of-11 from the free-throw line. Butler also came up in the clutch with 26 second-half points, 17 of which came in the fourth quarter.

Naturally, NBA Twitter caught fire:

We'll see what Butler has in store for an encore when the Heat head home to FTX Arena for Game 7 on Sunday at 8:30 p.m. ET. The winner will face the Golden State Warriors in the NBA Finals.

If the Miami Heat are going to force a Game 7 in the Eastern Conference Finals against the Boston Celtics, they'll have to do it without Tyler Herro.

Herro was officially ruled out for Game 6 about 90 minutes before tipoff. 

"These are not easy decisions," head coach Erik Spoelstra told reporters. "He has made progress but he’s not ready to step into this type of intensity.”

Herro has missed Miami's last two games because of the groin ailment, and the Heat went on to lose both contests to fall behind the Celtics 3-2 in the series. 

The 22-year-old won the 2022 Sixth Man of the Year Award after averaging 20.7 points, 5.0 rebounds and 4.0 assists in 32.6 minutes per game. 

Herro's playing time has declined to 26.7 minutes per contest in the postseason, but he's still been effective. In 14 playoff games, he's averaging 13.5 points, 4.1 rebounds and 2.9 assists.

The Miami offense clearly misses him. With Herro sidelined, Caleb Martin and Duncan Robinson have both seen more playing time off the bench. Martin has averaged 9.5 points over the last two games, while Robinson has averaged 12.5 points. 

That said, starter Max Strus needs to have a much better performance in Game 6 if the Heat want to force a Game 7. Strus is 0-of-16 from the floor over the last two games, and his only points came on four free throws in Game 5. 

Aside from Herro, Miami is far from healthy. Kyle Lowry's hamstring injury appears to be lingering and Jimmy Butler's knee inflammation, which caused him to exit Game 3 early, could still be affecting him based on his lack of production over the last two contests. 

The Celtics are also dealing with injuries. Marcus Smart has been struggling with a foot ailment and ankle sprain, Robert Williams III has been nursing a sore knee and Jayson Tatum appears to be dealing with a shoulder ailment. 

The winner of this series will move on to face the Golden State Warriors in the NBA Finals, which will begin next Thursday. 

Kyle Lowry is an NBA champion, a six-time All-Star and, apparently, a travel agent.

Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports reported the veteran point guard organized a team trip to the Bahamas for the Miami Heat as the play-in tournament unfolded. 

Head coach Erik Spoelstra said:

"Kyle met with me and told me what he wanted to do with the team. He had all the logistics figured out and I gave him my blessings. There are only about a handful of players like Dwyane Wade, LeBron James, Udonis Haslem who've played for this franchise that I know could have pulled off something like this. It shows you how special Kyle is and how much we really respect him as a person and a player."

This is Lowry's first season with the Heat, but it is clear the team has grown fond of the Villanova product.

"Heat players raved about the trip, saying it was a welcomed excursion that provided a nice mental break and a bonding period beyond the ordinary," Haynes wrote.

Unfortunately for Lowry, he has been in and out of the lineup during the playoffs because of a hamstring injury and appears limited when he is on the floor. He missed the first two games of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Boston Celtics and averaged just 4.7 points per night while shooting 21.7 percent from the field over the next three.

Whether he can bounce back ahead of Friday's Game 6 could mean the difference between a decisive Game 7 and elimination for a Miami team facing a 3-2 deficit.