How High Is Jimmy Butler's Ceiling This Season and Beyond?
Chicago Bulls guard Jimmy Butler has been one of the NBA’s biggest surprises this season. Just how good can this guy become? Is this the best he’ll ever be, or is the sky the limit?
Butler has had an interesting career so far. Drafted 30th overall by Chicago in 2011, the Tomball, Texas native barely saw any action as a rookie, playing just 42 games and a total of 359 minutes.
His role would increase dramatically the following year, logging 26 minutes a night and averaging 8.6 points.
Then Butler was supposed to break out last season and make a Paul George-like leap into stardom. That didn’t happen, though, as he was bothered by turf toe. He averaged a disappointing 13.1 points per game, failing to be the go-to scorer for the Derrick Rose and Luol Deng-less Bulls.
Now, Butler is finally having the type of year that Chicago fans had hoped to see. He’s contributing 21.6 points, 6.1 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 1.6 steals per contest. And he’s shooting 50 percent from the field, which is much better than his 39.7 percent from last season.
It wasn’t long ago that Butler was criticized for being a shooting guard who couldn’t shoot. Apparently, those days are over.
What’s the reason behind his monster year? Per ESPN Chicago’s Nick Friedell, Bulls forward Taj Gibson gave his opinion:
"He got away from just being around the practice facility here, Gibson said. He got away from Chicago for a while, got a chance to really go home, be around family, work on his game. Sometimes those things are the key to help a player really get his mind right, help his game grow, and that's exactly how he's playing right now. He worked out on his game all summer, got away and came back with a new mentality, focused.
"
Whatever Butler did during the summer is obviously paying off.
Ceiling This Season
If Butler keeps playing like this, he’ll undoubtedly join LeBron James and others on the Eastern Conference All-Star team. He has blossomed into one of the top two-way players in the league.
We already knew what Butler brings to the table defensively. He’s capable of guarding any non-center on the opposing team and taking them out of their game.
But until now, we weren’t aware of how good of a scorer he could be. Butler has scored at least 20 points nine times this year, including a pair of 32-point efforts. And he reached the 20-point mark only nine times during his first three seasons combined.
Butler is being extremely aggressive, averaging 8.2 free-throw attempts a night (sixth-best in the league). He shot an amazing 18-of-20 from the charity stripe during the 114-109 loss to the Denver Nuggets on November 25.
He’s perhaps the front-runner for Most Improved Player. Look for his strong play to continue for the rest of the season and ultimately pick up the award.
Speaking of awards, Butler could very well finish as an MVP candidate. While that may sound ridiculous, nobody predicted Joakim Noah would be a candidate last year, right?
If the Bulls finish with the East’s best record and Butler is still the team’s leading scorer, there’s no reason his name won’t be included in the MVP conversation.
This could wind up being a sensational campaign for Butler. Possibly winning the MIP award, consideration for MVP and maybe a spot on the All-Defensive First Team are all remarkable accomplishments.
Career Ceiling
When it’s all said and done, Butler will be considered the greatest player in Bulls history not named Michael Jordan.
OK, that’s taking things a bit too far. It is possible, though, that he’ll go down as a Bulls legend. You never know. But that’s, of course, only if he stays with the team beyond this season.
After failing to come to an extension agreement before the October 31 deadline, Butler is set to become a restricted free agent next summer. And you'd better believe a team will sign him to a max offer sheet, hoping the Bulls won’t match.
Butler seems like he wants to stay. Per USA Today's Sam Amick, he doesn't hold resentment with the Bulls for not getting an extension deal done:
"Nah, nah," said Butler, who will be a restricted free agent next summer. "I love the city of Chicago. I think everybody knows that. I just feel like I've just got to help win games, man. I want a championship. The money has never been an issue because I'm from Tomball. The money I make now is more than nothing. I just wanted to prove to my teammates, to my coaches, to the city, that I'm here to stay.
"
Whether he re-signs with Chicago or not, the 25-year-old Butler has an insanely bright future in the league.
Steve Aschburner of NBA.com (via Bleacher Report) believes his ceiling is Andre Iguodala. Although the Golden State Warriors forward is a solid player, Butler has the potential to have a much better career.
Perhaps the 6’7” Butler will morph into a shorter version of George (6’9”). Both players are capable of scoring 20 points a night and also serve as excellent defenders.
Plus, their stats are eerily similar:
No one knows for sure what type of career Butler will have. While he may turn out to be a 25-point-per-game-scoring superstar, he also might cool off and be just an above-average role player. We’ll all have to sit back and see what happens. It's going to be interesting, though.
All stats are from Basketball-Reference.com. and accurate as of Nov. 28.
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