Butler's ability to beat his man off the dribble, draw fouls and finish in the paint would have definitely taken some pressure off Dame in that series. NOP couldn't have just sent Davis to double Dame every time down the floor.
Compare Butler's game to C.J.'s:
Butler:
FTr = .461
% of FGA by Distance:
0 - 3 feet = .251
3 - 10 feet = .168
FG% by Distance:
0 - 3 feet = .662
3 - 10 feet = .490
C.J.:
FTr = .166
% of FGA by Distance:
0 - 3 feet = .183
3 - 10 feet = .153
FG% by Distance:
0 - 3 feet = .547
3 - 10 feet = .400
The larger, stronger Butler gets into the paint much more, gets fouled nearly 3x as much and finishes much better in the paint than C.J.
C.J. actually had a good series against NOP, because NOP was willing to let him get his while focusing on double teaming Dame. Other than FTr, C.J.'s numbers in the NOP series were very similar to Butler's regular season numbers - because their rim protector was out on the perimeter doubling Dame. Butler would have killed them in the paint if they would have employed the same strategy with him on the floor.
BNM