Jimmy Butler’s latest lecture on defense eliminates excuses

Minnesota Timberwolves guard Jimmy Butler wants to see his team exert total effort on defense. Known as one of the stingiest defenders in the NBA today, Butler is certainly credentialed to ask his teammates to put a high premium on that side of the ball.

He let his feelings known about it by passionately preaching about the value of playing defense, per Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic.

Jimmy Butler gives a soliloquy on the importance of defense after every game. His latest: pic.twitter.com/GSZiNTJxGN

— Jon Krawczynski (@JonKrawczynski) December 11, 2017

The Timberwolves could definitely do better on defense. They are just 17^th in the NBA with 106.3 points allowed per game. Even worse, the Timberwolves are 25^th overall in points surrendered per 100 possessions (108.0).

If Jimmy Butler is looking which areas Minnesota is struggling on defense, he may begin reviewing the team’s transition defense, as Timberwolves opponents are scoring the fifth most fastbreak points per game (13.4).

Butler is a three-time NBA All-Defensive Team member, so it affects him perhaps more than most of his teammate to see Minnesota put up lousy effort on that end.

Jimmy Butler, who arrived in Minnesota in the offseason after the Chicago Bulls shipped him to the Twin Cities, is averaging 19.0 points, 4.8 assists, and 5.5 rebounds per game this season. He’s also second on the team in on-court plus-minus with a 6.4 mark.