Jimmy Butler has often been a little erratic and has not always commanded the team well. Also, he hasn't exuded a good court presence all the time, taking shots in the wrong instances and forcing plays that aren't there.
This season, he is playing calm and collected. This could be because he has a new veteran to look up to in Dwyane Wade. Wade has been through his fair share of battles in his years of playing and can offer up some valuable insight.
Bulls big man Taj Gibson had this to say in regards to Butler's maturity and Wade's presence, per K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune:
“I'm surprised at how mature he is,” Gibson said. “He's a lot more mature as far as how he's been with the guys, how he's communicating. He's always critiquing the game, but he's always positive.”
“Last year, he had his times where he was a little frustrated and he didn't know how to let out. This year, having (Dwyane) Wade helps him a lot. He can learn from him. He can understand. And USA (Basketball) helped him out big time.”
Butler has averaged 26.4 points, 7.3 rebounds, and 5.3 assists in the seven games since he called himself out after a road loss to the Pacers. The Bulls won five of their last seven games. They seem to be playing some of their best basketball as of recent and head coach Fred Hoiberg had this to say about Butler's utilization:
“He's doing it in so many different ways,” coach Fred Hoiberg said. “We're using him in the post. We're using him as a facilitator. We're using him in middle ball-screen situations. And we're isolating him a lot.”
“You have to give him all the credit in the world for the work ethic and everything he's put in to make him such a complete player. I'd put him up against anybody in the league as far as one of the top two-way players in the game.”
It's safe to say that things are looking up for the Chicago Bulls, as they are starting to jive together. It's a very long season, but if they can keep playing their style of basketball with Jimmy Butler at the helm there is no telling how far they can go in the playoffs and possibly knock off the Eastern Conference favorites, the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Follow Us
Subscribe