The Miami Heat played the second half of Saturday's Game 3 against the Boston Celtics without their best player but were still able to regain control of the series.
Forward Jimmy Butler, who sustained a knee injury in the first half, will likely play in Monday's key Game 4 in Boston.
“He didn’t have his normal explosive burst," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra. He’s been able to manage this. The next two days will be really important. His competitiveness will overtake everything. At halftime, the trainers made the call for him not to play.”
Butler has been arguably the best player in the postseason. In his absence, the Heat held off the Celtics and now hold a 2-1 lead in the best-of-7 series in the Eastern Conference finals.
The Heat were led by center Bam Adebayo, who had one of the best games of his career. He finished with 31 points, 10 rebounds, six assists and a block in 42 minutes. Adebayo was 15 of 22 from the field.
"They beat us like we stole something in Game 2," Heat center Bam Adebayo said. "So that woke a fire up in all of us."
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