Giannis out or not, Heat’s Game 1 win over Bucks was a Butler-led tour de force by Miami | Opinion

The Milwaukee-Miami series was over in the Bucks’ favor before it ever tipped off, the TNT analysts ruled Sunday evening.

“Should be a sweep,” said Shaquille O’Neal.

“Or a gentleman’s sweep,” added Charles Barkley, allowing the Heat to maybe pinch a win at home.

Then this first-round NBA playoff series began, and sports happened. Reality happened -- which exists to make predictions look silly. Unpredictability happened. Injuries happened, too.

Oh, and Jimmy Butler happened, yes. Jimmy Buckets. Playoff Jimmy.

When it was over No. 8 seed Miami had stunned No. 1 Milwaukee, 130-117, to begin the best-of-seven series -- fueled by Butler’s 35 points -- but the upset and who won was hardly the story.

That was Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo leaving the game injured after only 11 minutes and six points, after landing hard on his tailbone with what they called a “lower back contusion.”

And Heat starter Tyler Herro suffering a broken right hand late in the first half.

Unless X-rays deliver a miracle Herro (they did not), he will be lost for the rest of however long this postseason lasts for Miami.

Antetokounmpo’s prognosis and eventual return in the series was more optimistic. The club reported his X-rays came back “clear,” suggesting a possibility he may even be ready for Game 2 Wednesday night back in Beertown.

Milwaukee swept Miami 4-0 when last the teams met in the postseason in 2021. The teams split four games 2-2 this season, but the Bucks won both in which Antetokounmpo played.

“MVP-caliber player, him going out changes the dynamic of their team,” said Butler. “But you can’t fully make up for what Tyler means to our team. we still think we can be better in a lot of ways.”

Sunday night did not tip the series in Miami’s favor; few would still bet on the Heat across seven games. But the Game 1 road win coupled with Antetokonmpo’s injury leveled the court to make it a fight -- at least hardly the sweep the talking heads foresaw.

“Our guys showed a lot of grit to handler a lot of different things,” said coach Erik Spoelstra.

This is rare territory -- Miami entering the postseason as a barely-in No. 8 seed facing a top-tier No. 1 in the first round. In 24 playoff appearances across 35 franchise seasons this had happened only once previously, in 1996. The Chicago Bulls had gone 72-10. Had a pretty good player named Michael Jordan. The first round still was best-of-5 then and the Heat got swept 3-0, crushed by a combined 69 points.

Butler admitted, “We got to play damn near perfect basketball [to beat the Bucks] ... which we’re capable of.”

Spoelstra arrived in Milwaukee ready for a fight, saying his players needed a “Navy Seal” mentality.

“Our team has not been perfect this year, but I know one thing about the men in that locker room,” he’d said after Friday night’s play-in win over Chicago earned the Bucks in the first round. “I know how categorically and unequivocally our group wanted to get into this damn thing, to get into the playoffs and have an opportunity to compete for a damn title.”

Sunday, they got the rest of the league’s attention.

They got mine, too. Shaq and Barkley weren’t alone in giving the Heat little shot in this series. I wrote after the awful home play-in loss to Atlanta I thought Miami’s season looked “spent, done.”

Then came the 15-1 run to end the must-win over Chicago.

Now comes a thoroughly unexpected series lead vs. Milwaukee.

“Lot of us have had moments this season when we went through uneven waters, “ said Adebayo. “It prepared us for the past week.”

Miami is 20-4 all-time in advancing in the playoffs when it takes a 1-0 series lead in a best-of-seven. (The Heat is only 8-10 when down, although three of those comeback wins happen to be in the NBA Finals in which Miami won its three championships in 2006, 2012 and ‘13.)

Butler led the way with 35 points Sunday but had plenty of help. Kevin Love off the bench had 18 including four 3’s (and a couple of charges taken). Bam Adebayo came alive offensively with 22.

Spoelstra called Butler “just a brilliant competitor,” and noted Love’s “decorated, veteran experiencem,” his Sunday performance just what they’d meant to acquire in February.

Miami shot 15-for-25 from 3-point range, while the Bucks were only 11-for-45.

A Heat team last in the NBA in offensive scoring -- getting 130.

A team that had struggled on 3’s this season, 27th in the league at 34 percent -- hitting 15.

A team that went 17-24 on the road -- beating the No 1 seed away.

This was Miami’s 268th franchise playoff game, and the first time the Heat ever reached 100 points through three quarters.

What a night to go out-of-character.

We’re only one game in, and injuries played a role, but Heat winning Game 1 by 13 on the road?

As Shaq and Barkley might tell you today, there was no predicting it.