TNT’s Miller, Kenny Smith on how Butler has reshaped perception, and other Heat views

Media notes between Games 1 and 2 of the Heat-Celtics Eastern Conference finals:

▪ On a TNT call with a few reporters on Thursday, I asked Kenny Smith and Reggie Miller how their perception of Jimmy Butler changed after his remarkable performances in leading the Heat on three long playoff runs during the past four years. Both offered substantive answers:

Smith: “My perception is honestly he has been a good player and he’s tough to guard. I never knew how easy he can get his own shot off despite the fact that he doesn’t have the jaw-dropping ball handling or the jaw-dropping athleticism. I’m like, man, ‘This guy still gets his shot off super easy.’ The only other player that does it, and he’s even more athletic than [Butler], is Demar DeRozan.

“His ability to get where he needs to go without jaw-dropping ball handling and athleticism, that’s what I’m surprised at, not the fact he’s a tough competitor, shot maker, but how easy he does it.”

Miller: “He is second-team all-NBA; he is a top-25 player in our game. That’s because of the regular season. But in my opinion, he is top 10 and could be top-five playoff performer. There is a big difference between the regular season and when the brightest lights come on.

“To me, I want the guys when the lights are brightest and pressure is the highest, give me those performers. There are a lot of guys on All-NBA teams, come playoff time, they don’t play like how Jimmy Butler is playing right now.” Smith interrupted Miller and said it sounds like Miller was describing himself (Miller).

“Jimmy Butler saves a lot for the playoffs,” Miller added. “He understands the big picture. I understood the big picture. Where your money [is made] is during the playoffs. Historically, we don’t see this. He averaged [22.9] in the regular season. He’s up to [31.5] now. He saves his best for last. Give me those types of players.”

▪ I also asked Smith and Miller about whether the Heat’s talent — particularly Caleb Martin, Gabe Vincent and Max Strus — has simply been underestimated, in part because they’re undrafted.

Miller credited the Heat’s scouting staff for finding them but said there’s no way to know if they would have the same success elsewhere.

“They find a way to win games because the system and the players, they all click,” Miller said. “Would they be this successful on other teams and other organizations? It’s hard to tell. Who knows? But in this particular system, I give all the credit to Pat Riley, Erik Spoelstra and the Heat culture and how they have found a way to get four or five undrafted [rotation] players to compete at a high level and understand and know their roles.”

Smith answered this way: “I don’t think there’s any underestimation of talent level now. I always thought they have more talent three through eight than the Knicks when they were playing in that series. I don’t believe that in this series, but last night they proved to everybody that doesn’t matter.”

▪ Here’s what surprised Smith about Game 1: “I thought defensively Boston would have an easier, not an easy time, but an easier time guarding Miami. I thought that because there aren’t multiple [Heat] guys who take you off the dribble that they would have an easier time defending the three — the Max Strus, Gabe Vincents at times. They did not have an easy time doing that. It was super difficult.”

▪ Miller said Bam Adebayo “will have to play like this six more times. I mean looking for his offense first as opposed to being a facilitator. The [Celtics] are not going to double-team him. They want to stay with Strus and Vincent and not give up those threes. Bam has to play like this six more times, begin aggressive and putting pressure on Robert Williams when they switch, and he punished them in the post.”

But Miller cautioned “we’re somewhat overreacting to one game” and that Boston lost at home against Philadelphia in the last series, in a similar way.

▪ TNT’s Kevin Harlan — who’s calling the series with Miller and Stan Van Gundy — produces more memorable calls of specific plays than any play-by-player in the business, including his “Jimmy Freakin’ Butler” call of a Butler three late in Game 1.

Harlan has called arguably the three most entertaining, dramatic moments in South Florida sports during the past nine months, all big comebacks: 1). Tua Tagovailoa passing for 469 yards and six touchdowns in the Dolphins’ rally from 21 points down to beat Baltimore 42-38 in Week 2; 2). Butler’s 56-point eruption to lead a furious Heat rally against Milwaukee in a Game 4 win in the first round; and 3). Wednesday night’s Heat rally from 13 down to beat Boston in Game 1.

If your team is the one making the comeback, there’s nobody who conveys the emotion of the moment better than Harlan.

▪ Technical issues foiled the final minutes of YouTube TV’s TNT stream of Wednesday’s Heat-Celtics game. Some viewers saw the same ad starting and stopping for several minutes.

The website Sports TV Ratings attributed the problem to TNT using “dynamic ad insertion.”

This should be cause for concern for the NFL, which sold Sunday Ticket to YouTube in a deal that begins this season.

▪ Game 1 was viewed in 8.78 percent of Miami-Fort Lauderdale homes with television sets. As perspective, Dolphins regular season games typically draw 10 to 12 percent.

AROUND THE DIAL

After two months without a sportscasters, NBC 6 finally has one: Sara Cardona. She will anchor at 6 p.m. and 11 p.m.

The station has gone without a sportscaster since Ruthie Polisky and Giselle Espinales left in March.

Cardona had been working as a sports anchor and reporter at the ABC affiliate in Lexington, Kentucky, and previously handled those roles at the CBS station in Gainesville, where she covered Gators sports and anchored a weekly Southeastern Conference football program.

She was born in Medellín, Colombia, was raised in Nashville and received a bachelor of science degree in broadcast journalism from Middle Tennessee State University.

▪ Kenny Albert, Eddie Olczyk and Keith Jones call the Panthers-Carolina Eastern Conference finals for TNT, as Turner continues a stretch of what could be as many 14 consecutive nights with a Heat or Panthers games on alternating nights.

Wayne Gretzky, who works selectively for Turner, will join the studio crew in this round.

▪ CBS hired former Falcons and Colts quarterback Matt Ryan as an NFL studio and game analyst.

▪ Pat McAfee’s popular YouTube show is moving to ESPN.

▪ ESPN’s early season college football schedule won’t be released until the end of the month, but a few games were announced this week, including LSU-FSU on Sunday night, Sept. 3 from Orlando (on ABC), Texas-Alabama at 7 p.m. Sept 9 (ESPN) and Notre Dame-Clemson on Nov. 4 on ABC.