A lover of tennis, a coffee entrepreneur, an NBA playoff hero—and the NBA preview editor for Sports Illustrated.

In the final moments of Game 6 of the Eastern Conference finals in May of last year, Jimmy Butler looked over at coach Erik Spoelstra from the Heat bench as he dribbled the ball up the floor.

Butler had been in a strikingly similar situation exactly 363 days prior: he had the ball in his hands, was dribbling up the floor against the Celtics, Miami was down two, and had the opportunity to defeat Boston at home.

Butler dribbled up from the right wing in front of Celtics center Al Horford on that previous night—Game 7 of the 2022 East finals—and drained a three-pointer that rimmed out. The Celtics made it to the Finals while the Heat, who were ranked first, lost.

Butler, who had once again carried an eighth-seeded Miami team—which had already defeated the Bucks, the top seed in the whole playoff field—to the verge of an unlikely Finals berth, was not blind to the symmetry of these occurrences. He replies, “Oh yeah, I was always shooting the three.” “I turned to Spo after starting in front of him and said, ‘I’m shooting this three.'”

Butler received a look back from Spoelstra that seemed to say, “O.K., you’re the one with the ball.”

According to Heat president Pat Riley, “[Jimmy] thinks the same way I do.” “He desired to reclaim that one.” He is not afraid of the present. He always steps up to the plate. And for that reason, he is Jimmy. Amazingly. Butler

Horford was forced to move to Butler as he dribbled from the left wing into a screen near the top of the key this time. With less than three seconds remaining, he eventually launched after continuing to dribble into the corner in search of space. Horford bumped Butler this time as he was getting up. Butler stepped up to the line in an attempt to put the Heat ahead.

Butler remembers, “I drew the foul, which was good enough.” “And I made three free throws while up there.”

Unfortunately, Derrick White’s incredible putback shot—which saw him elude Miami’s Max Strus and grab an offensive rebound at the buzzer—forced a Game 7 and sealed the Heat’s fate.

Alternatively, as Butler smiles mischievously and slyly puts it: “And then Max let us lose!” (This is the height of Butler; he can be really serious one minute and then make fun of a close buddy.)

A unique superstar, Butler combines postseason heroism, a roguish sense of humor, and intense passions for sports other than basketball when he’s not on the court. Because of his distinct viewpoint, which sets him apart from most players in the game, we asked Butler to contribute as a guest editor to Sports Illustrated’s preview of the 2023–24 NBA season.