Jimmy Butler is a dynamic scorer and playmaker who has a diverse set of offensive moves he can rely on.
Now that we have all gotten over the shock of Jimmy Butler being traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves, we can finally figure out what it all means.
Many Wolves fans haven’t seen much of Butler over the years, being that he has played in the Eastern Conference. We have maybe seen him twice a year when the Wolves play the Bulls but outside of that, he might be relatively unknown.
Sure, we’ve seen the highlights, read about how good of a player he is, or know his reputation. However, we have yet to see what he can do with our own eyes- both the good and bad.
That’s what I’m here for. I have scoured over 20 of his games from last season to figure out exactly what he has to offer the Timberwolves. My focus was his scoring arsenal and the efficiency in which he scores from his favorite spots.
One fact was immediately clear: Butler has a diverse game which allows him to rely on many moves and counters to get off his own shot. Especially compared to Andrew Wiggins, whose moves I previously dissected.
More from Dunking with Wolves
- The dream starting 5 for Minnesota Timberwolves 5 years from now
- Anthony Edwards’ latest accolade is a great sign of things to come
- In an OT thriller, Team Canada snatches Bronze from Team USA
- Timberwolves start, bench, cut: Mike Conley, Shake Milton, Jordan McLaughlin
- Which Timberwolves roster additions have upgraded the bench?
Butler isn’t the most physically gifted so he has to allow on sound fundamentals and a high basketball IQ to replace that athleticism. Don’t get me wrong, Butler is a good athlete, he’s just not a great one.
He does a great job of using ball fakes and understanding defensive positioning to maximize his shot attempts and trips to the free throw line.
Butler also understands how to use his body against smaller defenders. He is an opportunist and often takes advantage of mismatches by taking his man down-low.
He still has to do some re-defining on some of his moves but he is already a good scorer. Without further ado, let’s plunge into Butler’s go-to scoring moves.
Turnaround jumper
Jimmy Butler’s turnaround jumper is simultaneously amazing and horrendous at the same time.
On the one hand, he has the footwork and strength to get this shot off anywhere from the block to the 3-point line, making sure defenders are constantly aware it might be coming.
On the other hand, it’s one of the least efficient moves in his tool belt. Because of that, it’s probably a good thing that he doesn’t rely on it very often.
According to NBAsavant.com, Butler only made 9 of 29 turnaround jumpers from 12 feet and out last year. That put’s him at 31 percent shooting, far below his season average of 45.5 percent. If we count all of his turnarounds, even those closer to the basket, his percentage rises significantly to 41.1 percent.
Unlike the video below, most of Butler’s turnarounds came from the right side of the court. In fact, most of his shots, in general, came from that side of the floor. However, on this play, he attempts to take advantage of a size mismatch, with the smaller Russell Westbrook on him.
Some might say Butler settled for this shot and I would have to agree. He ends up attempting a fadeaway turnaround jumper over his right shoulder, the most difficult shoulder for a right-handed shooter. There’s a reason that only two players in the last 25 years are known for this shot.
To start, Butler’s positioning is way off. he catches the ball a lot higher than he wants. Ideally, he would catch the ball on the block. Because of this, he tries to power dribble his way to that block. It’s unsuccessful however as Westbrook doesn’t give up very much ground.
Due to that, Butler quickly counters and spins towards the baseline. He also steps back with his left foot instead of bringing it closer to his lead foot. If he would have brought it closer to his lead foot, it would have allowed Butler to not fade away so much on his shot. I’m sure Butler opted to fade on this turnaround because of Westbrook’s elite athleticism. However, it ended up making the shot that much more difficult for Butler, resulting in a clank off the back of the iron.
This result was typical for Butler as his shooting percentages show. Although, he was inclined to the occasional difficult turnaround from the 3-point line that resulted in a made shot.
Catch and shoot threes
Catch and shoot threes may seem like an obvious part of any players game but it shouldn’t go without being examined. Only the best players in this league can create their own shot but the good players can get a shot off with very little space as well.
The first aspect that struck me about Butler’s catch and shoot game is the inconsistency. In the games I watched, it felt like he had an equal amount air balls as he did makes. This leads me to believe that he is still inconsistent with his mechanics and needs to continue developing his shot.
Overall, Butler shot 40.2 percent on catch and shoot threes last season which accounted for a little under half of his 3-point attempts.
The play below illustrates how far Butler has come during his six seasons in the league.
To begin the play, he makes a simple pass to Robin Lopez at the top of the key. Lopez then dribbles to the elbow as Butler rolls to the top of the key at the 3-point line. This little movement by Butler is key to the whole play. Instead of standing where he was, his movement creates issues for the man who is assigned to guard him as he doesn’t know where he is. He also gives Lopez a better passing angle for the wide open 3-pointer. Butler then has plenty of time and space to knock down a shootaround jumper.
These jumpers may seem simple but it allows Butler to set up other parts of his game and use his ball fakes effectively.
Pull-up threes
For most players, pull-up jump shots are a lot more difficult than catch and shoot. This is also true for Butler.
On pull-up threes, Butler saw his percentage dip to 34.4 percent, below his season 3-point average of 36.7 percent.
However, this is a nice improvement for Butler from previous seasons. In 2013-14 he shot 12.5 percent on pull-up threes, 31.3 percent in 2014-15 and 32.9 percent in 2015-16. This really demonstrates how Butler is coming into his own as a shooter and a creator in the NBA.
The Bulls ran a lot of pick-and-rolls for Butler last season. They often started very high like in the play above, giving Butler plenty of floor space to work with. The other three players, as seen above, usually roamed the perimeter, daring their defender to help.
This sort of play might not work very well in Minnesota unless they add the shooting they desperately need. However, this play perfectly demonstrates Butler’s improvement as a player these past six seasons.
After Lopez sets the screen, Butler realizes that Roy Hibbert isn’t interested in coming out to the 3-point line to play defense. Therefore, he’s able to mini-hop into his jump shot and get his feet set.
He then lines up his shoulders and drills the three. Oh, and the defender gets called for a ticky-tack foul, sending Butler to the line to complete the four-point play.
Backdoor
The more easy baskets you can get in basketball, the more likely you are to be successful. This rings true at every level. Sometimes the players in the game today try to make life a lot more difficult then it has to be by playing isolation basketball.
The truly great teams like the Golden State Warriors and San Antonio Spurs have figured out that ball movement and timely cutting can lead to easier baskets and higher-percentage shots.
Butler too has figured this out. He has an extremely high basketball-IQ and understands how to move without the ball in his hands. He is very underrated in this aspect. There was about one play a game where I noticed Butler would successfully complete a backdoor cut for a layup.
On this play, Butler is supposed to come up to the wing for a dribble hand-off. Instead, he realizes that his defender is overplaying him so he quickly cuts backdoor for a reverse layup. Nikola Mirotic makes a great on time bounce-pass that hits Butler perfectly in stride. Butler then uses the rim for protection and converts a nice reverse lay-up.
It’s plays like these that may seem simple enough but can help an offensive get out of a funk or break the defenses back.
Step-backs and fadeaways
Step-backs and fadeaways have become a staple of any top players scoring arsenal in recent decades. The reason that they are so popular is that they allow an offensive player to create a little extra space and get their shot off.
Butler’s fadeaway wasn’t nearly as frequent as his step-backs but we will start there. For all players, but especially for guys who don’t possess elite athleticism, the fadeaway is an essential shot to have in your tool belt.
Butler isn’t as adept at this move as others as he shot 36.9 percent on fadeaways last year. However, he has shown the ability to knock it down when needed.
The play below is a simple demonstration of Butler’s ability to knock down a fadeaway. In this situation, he gets two ball screens, the second one from Lopez. His defender isn’t able to fight through the Lopez screen, leaving Butler with some room to operate from his favorite spot on the floor.
A pull-up jumper might have been a higher percentage shot but maybe Butler was worried about the defender to his right and the big man lurking on the block. Due to that, he settles for the successful fadeaway bank shot.
The step-back is becoming a staple in Butler’s arsenal of scoring moves as he has shown to be very efficient. He can step-back going both right or left but his step-back going left is far smoother than when he goes right. This is true for most right-handers though, because it’s easier to square your shoulders and get your right foot in the lead.
On the video below, Butler actually steps back after going right. You can see how it isn’t the smoothest shot in the world but he is able to make it work.
This is a hugely clutch shot as it ties the game with under a minute to play. It’s clear this was a designed out of bounds play and a shot the coach had confidence in Butler to make.
Butler is able to create a little separation between himself and the defender by taking two hard dribbles to the right before stepping back behind the 3-point line. The key here is Butler’s feet and shoulders. He is able to take half a moment and get both of them squared with the basket. This is extremely important because of how far away from the hoop he is and his momentum is carrying him even further away.
Butler is able to get his balance in check and therefore garner enough strength to drain the shot. I cannot state enough how difficult a shot this is.
Butler shot 50 percent on step-backs last year and I definitely label this as his go-to move, one he relies upon in clutch situations late in the game.
Right-wing jumpers
Where the step-back jumper is Butler’s go-to move, the right wing is his favored spot on the floor.
As you can see from the shot chart below, an overwhelming majority of his shots come from the right side of the floor. Especially the right wing area.
If you scroll over each zone you can see the percentage he shoots in each area as well. He’s below league average in most of the areas on that right side, which is very surprising. The reason for this is because of the degree of difficulty of most of Butler’s shots.
Butler has a number of moves he can use to get to his spot on the floor. As you’ll see in the video below he took a lot of his jumpers from the Bulls’ logo. Those moves include step-backs, fadeaways, pull-up jumpers and ball screens to name a few.
Hopefully, there will be a similar Wolves’ logo on the new court that Butler can use as a reference point as well.
On this play, Butler uses a ball screen by Lopez to get to the Bull on the floor. He intentionally searches out this spot before pulling up for the jumper.
The key to this play, other than the ball-screen, is Butler’s use of his dribble. After catching the ball, he only takes one dribble and uses it with purpose. Instead of dribbling in place he uses it to go somewhere on the floor. He then hops into his shot, something I see a lot with him, and pulls up in front of the big man. This hop allows Butler to get into rhythm and drain the 2-point attempt.
Next: Minnesota Timberwolves: 5 free agents they should sign
Butler will definitely bring excitement and intrigue to this Timberwolves’ roster. As a veteran who is just now entering his prime, expect his game to continue to grow and develop. Sit back and relax Wolves’ fans, this man is on your team now.