Jimmy Butler's impact has been on full display during recent stretch of strong play for Heat

Once he gets downhill, Butler consistently dislodges defenders with elbows and shoulder nudges. His ability to gain inside leverage with his body, then power through defenders, is a skill rivaled by few players in the league.

That consistent rim pressure opens the floor for everyone else. He's able to spray it out to corner shooters with simple kicks or jump-passes.

Watch how Butler attacks the ICE coverage deployed by the Celtics here. The pacing is what matters. Butler probes a bit with the first dribble, then snakes inside of Jayson Tatum on the second. He's reading Kemba Walker on the weak side, waiting on him to tag Bam Adebayo on the roll. Once Walker makes contact with Adebayo, Butler flings a dart to Trevor Ariza.

When Butler engages rim protectors directly, he's able to slip in lay-down passes with ease.

Butler goes to his patented shimmy-and-go to get Tatum off balance. Watch how low he gets on his second dribble to get under Tatum's chest and create an advantage for himself. Not only does Butler get to his spot with a favorable angle, he also compounds the advantage with an up-fake to get Luke Kornet in the air. From there, he's able to hit Dewayne Dedmon in the dunker spot for a lay-up.

It's amazing that Butler has been able to put up this sort of production -- 21.6 points (career-high 60.6 TS%) and a career-high 7.2 assists -- without a threatening three-point shot. A bounce-back season from mid-range covers some of the gap as his 41.7 percent clip on middies isn't an elite mark, but it's 10 percentage points higher than it was last season.

With the type of production Butler provides as a driver -- both as a finisher and passer -- he doesn't have to be an elite pull-up guy. All he needs to be is timely and competent. He's been that this season. When he's firing on all cylinders -- as he has been during this recent stretch -- there really isn't much you can do with him if you're an opposing defense.

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I have a take.

At a minimum, Jimmy Butler is the best "nail" defender in the NBA. You could also make the argument that he's the best off-ball defender in the league, full stop. 

Allow him to hover around the free-throw line, and he'll junk up everything you want to do. Timely digs on drives, playing between two when there's a trap elsewhere, calculated gambles against unsuspecting post-up threats. Nobody's safe when Butler is around.

The dynamic with Butler and Adebayo is an interesting one. They wreck worlds together, with the Heat defending at a top-five rate when they share the floor. Running actions against those two are rarely fruitful endeavors.

Adebayo rightfully is praised for his defensive versatility. Having a five that can not only hold his own against perimeter players but can legitimately force stops against them is insanely valuable. What gets a little overlooked is the strain that places on the smaller players on the court.

If a big (Adebayo) is on a small, logic dictates that a small is on a big somewhere. Butler's able to hold his own against centers. He's a strong dude, but he's also a smart dude. He consistently positions himself in a way that: 1) Makes entry passes tough to make and 2) It's difficult for larger players to get comfortable.

Butler isn't a shot-blocker, but his combination of strength, positioning and hand speed makes big-on-small post-ups less automatic than they should be. 

Of course, Butler remains a strong perimeter defender. We're treated to less of the bleep-it-he's-mine-for-40-minutes assignments by virtue of Miami's switching principles. That doesn't mean he can't fight over screens and make life difficult for top-tier initiators. 

The priorities have shifted, not just for Butler in Miami, but for what it means to be an elite defender. The fact that Butler is able to toggle between being a free safety, punching up on the block and funneling elite scorers into a swarm of arms is why he's one of the most impactful defenders in the sport.

To that point: the Heat's defense is roughly five points stingier with Butler on the floor, per PBP Stats. 

When you think of who the Heat are, or what they've struggled to consistently be this season, what comes to mind?

A grind-it-out group with a focus on meticulous decision-making. Aggressiveness, versatility, toughness. 

They're Jimmy Butler, essentially.

The team is shaped in his image, down to the culture-filled comments in the postgame presser. It should come as no surprise that, as Butler has been more available, the team is looking more like who they want to be.

And that team isn't just one nobody wants to play. That's a team that could beat just about anyone four times.