Can Jimmy Butler lead the Sixers to an NBA championship?
The Philadelphia 76ers had a terrific 2017-18 season under head coach Brett Brown. They finished with a 52-30 regular season record, the first time they reached that mark since the 2000-01 season.
They made a deep playoff run with their young core of Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid, and reached the conference semi-finals, where they eventually lost to the Boston Celtics.
Coming into the 2018-19 season, the expectations were very high for the Sixers. They had a slow start to the season and after 15 games, were 9-6 on the season. The Sixers knew that if they were to turn things around, they would need that missing piece to complete the puzzle.
That missing piece came in the form of Jimmy Butler, a four-time time NBA all-star, a four-time NBA All-Defensive Team honouree and a former NBA Most Improved Player award winner.
Butler began the 2018-19 season as a member of the Minnesota Timberwolves, a team he had requested a trade from prior to the start of the season as he was not happy with attitude of some of his teammates, and wanted to win big.
Butler appeared in 10 games for the Timberwolves where he averaged 21.3 points per game. A 2-month long saga finally came to an end when Butler got his wish and was traded to the Philadelphia 76ers on November 12th, 2018 along with Justin Patton in exchange for Jerryd Bayless, Robert Covington, Dario Šarić and a 2022 second-round draft pick.
The trade immediately made the Sixers title contenders as they formed their own big three in Embiid, Simmons and Butler. Since Butler’s arrival, the Sixers have gone 6-2. Jimmy G Buckets, as he is popularly called around the league, has already made a big impact on his new team.
He has made some big shots, including two game winners against the Charlotte Hornets and the Brooklyn Nets.
Butler brings with him some incredible offense, relentless defense and an alpha dog mentality. The last time the Sixers made it to the NBA finals was in 2001 during the Allen Iverson era and the last time they won a championship was in 1983.
Can Butler be the one to help the Sixers end the long draught and bring home the championship for the Sixers? Let’s wait and watch.