Having won Game 4, the Los Angeles Lakers now hold a commanding 3-1 lead in the NBA Finals series against the Miami Heat.
One of the main objectives for the Lakers was to limit Jimmy Butler, who exploded with 40 points, 11 rebounds and 13 rebounds in Game 3, which the Heat won. He was still the top scorer for Miami in Game 4, with nearly a triple-double of 22 points, 10 rebounds and 9 assists.
Anthony Davis had the defensive assignment to guard Butler. While doing that, AD made a crucial block on Butler late in the fourth quarter. After the game, the Lakers superstar talked about guarding Butler.
“I the task of guarding Jimmy Butler. So I just tried to be locked in to him. We know that the last game he just took over, imposed his will on the game on both ends of the floor. We just tried to give him a different look. Tried to make him shoot over a contested hand, finish over length at the rim. Just make it tough for him,” Davis said.
“It was very easy for him in Game 3. It was very easy for him in Game 3. We just wanted to switch it up. I just wanted to use a lot of my energy on the defensive just knowing that the other guys are going to make up that on the offensive end.”
