It appears that the All-Star guard Jimmy Butler didn’t enjoy his time with Philadelphia 76ers all that much. Speaking on The JJ Redick Podcast with Tommy Alter, Butler described his lone season in Philly as difficult.
The 76ers acquired Butler from Minnesota Timberwolves in 2018, with hopes to sign him to a long-term extension. However, the two sides couldn’t come to an agreement, and the player ended up joining Miami Heat via sign-and-trade.
Now Butler says that his experience in Philadelphia was chaotic to say at least.
“It was difficult. It was so different” Butler shared. “On any given day, me as a person and as a player, I didn’t know who the [expletive] was in charge. I think that was my biggest thing. I didn’t know what the [expletive] to expect whenever I would go into the gym, whenever I go into the plane, whenever I got into the game.”
Despite his mixed feelings about 76ers organization, Jimmy Butler played some great basketball during his time there. Besides averaging 18.2 points, 5.3 rebounds, 4.0 assists, and 1.8 steals per game, Butler also emerged as the team’s main closer. He was credited for lifting the young and inexperienced team in tough moments and almost managed to propel Philly in Eastern Conference finals.
Despite this, reports said that 76ers had certain doubts about Butler’s character, which made them hesitant about giving him a long-term contract. Heat, on the other hand, didn’t have similar restraints and didn’t hesitate to jump on the opportunity.
Butler played 54 games with Heat this season, averaging 20.2 points, 6.6 rebounds, 6.1 assists, and 1.7 steals per game.
