Jimmy Butler on Heat’s hot start: ‘We’re for real’

The Miami Heat are off to an excellent start in a season in which many were unsure of what to expect from them, and Jimmy Butler insists the results are not a fluke.

After Butler scored 21 points in Miami’s 124-100 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Wednesday night, he told reporters that the Heat are not going to be surprising opponents for very long. He believes the 10-3 start shows they’re “for real.”

Jimmy Butler on the 10-3 Heat: "We can't keep surprising people. We're for real. I don't think anybody wants to play against us and that's the way we want to keep it."

— Tim Reynolds (@ByTimReynolds) November 21, 2019

Butler has obviously helped turn the Heat into a contender in the Eastern Conference, but the big story so far has been the leap third-year big man Bam Adebayo has taken. The former No. 14 overall pick is averaging a double-double with 13.8 points and 10.2 rebounds per game. He’s also making a major impact with his tremendous defense.

Miami won just 39 games last year and missed the playoffs, and the belief from many was that trading for Butler wouldn’t be enough to get them over the hump. If Adebayo and others continue to step up, it just might be. The East is top heavy after Kawhi Leonard left the Toronto Raptors in free agency, so there’s no reason the Heat can’t compete for a top seed.