New Orleans Pelicans Rip Jimmy Butler After They Absolutely Dominated the Miami Heat in a 23-Point Rout

“It backfired on them today,” said New Orleans Pelicans guard Jose Alvarado.

When these two teams last met, several players were ejected and suspended after a scuffle broke out in the fourth quarter, triggered when Naji Marshall took exception to Kevin Love’s foul on Zion Williamson.

The Miami Heat came out with a 106-95 victory, and Jimmy Butler emphasized at the time that they were “just the better team” and that they would “beat them the next time too” which obviously didn’t happen.

How the New Orleans Pelicans beat the Miami Heat

After a close first two quarters, the New Orleans Pelicans had an 11-0 run to keep the lead and eventually outscore the Miami Heat 65-46 in the second half. 

CJ McCollum paced the New Orleans Pelicans with 30 points, seven assists, five rebounds, and six three-pointers, while Jose Alvarado was the spark off the bench with 17 points, seven rebounds, and six assists.

The New Orleans Pelicans were without Brandon Ingram, who is out for at least two weeks because of the knee injury he sustained against the Orlando Magic on Thursday, making this win impressive on their part.

Trey Murphy III started in Ingram’s place and had 14 points, eight rebounds, and four three-pointers, while Naji Marshall, who had more playing time in the wake of Brandon Ingram’s injury, also chipped in 13 points and seven rebounds.

Jimmy Butler was the top scorer in the Miami Heat loss with 17 points. He also had five rebounds and four assists in the losing effort. However, Miami is now 7-10 in their last 17 games at the Kaseya Center.