Butler's pro potential

[MattyWarrior]

back in boot camp they had some video clips of butler and one showed him doing a standing broad jump and another vault onto some foam gym blocks
and when i saw the spring and athleticism that young man has i thought he could be a special player, he can absolutely fly... i think he could play at the next level, but first i want to enjoy watching him grow at MU

[GoldenWarrior]

Love Jimmy, but has a ways to go before he lands in the NBA.

[AZWarrior]

Love Jimmy, but has a ways to go before he lands in the NBA.

I agree.  If, however, he improves Jr -> Sr year like he did  So -> Jr, he's got a shot at it!

[MUBurrow]

tell you what, he improves that much again (which I unfortunately dont think is possible) he'll be a lottery pick.

[GregClausenForever]

For a lot of players, much of making an NBA roster comes down to finding the right spot. For example, I don't think anyone projected Matthews to be a starter for a Playoff team. Most thought he'd be a nice 10th-12th man who could eventually get his chance down the road. If he had signed somewhere other than Utah, he might not have had the opportunity to prove he's an NBA-caliber player.

Another example is Steve Novak. He's riding the pine for the Clippers but could probably be a solid contributor for a team like Golden State who heavily favors offense over defense. He might even fit in on a title contender like Orlando who likes to spread the floor on O and has a strong shot blocker to help him out on D.

The best example of this is probably Steve Kerr. He didn't see much action for the expansion Orlando Magic or some sorry Cavs teams, yet he was a solid contributor on 3 title teams in Chicago.

+1 fo sho.  Wes Matthews was exactly the personality fit that Utah wanted. 

However, Novak has been totally underutilized in Houston and LA.  If we was on a run-and-gun style team, he'd be good for 6-8 ppg.

[AZWarrior]

tell you what, he improves that much again (which I unfortunately dont think is possible) he'll be a lottery pick.

So there's a chance.   

[jaygall31]

I think he is better than Wes.  He is practically the same size, but he is more explosive and a better rebounder.  With every bit as good of an outside shot.  I can't really think of one thing Wes did better than Jimmy does.  Maybe ball handling?

Jimmy has 2 inches on wes