Jimmy Butler has been beyond bonkers in these playoffs. Not only is he doing absolutely everything the Heat need him to do, but also doing it his way, getting to the free-throw line whenever he wants to. However, instead of being praised for this aspect of his game, he is being insulted by an NBA scout for it. Of all people, he is being labeled as ‘soft’, despite the presence of Jayson Tatum on the other team, and playing through an ankle injury.
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The postseason has always been a place where there will never be any love lost. Instead, rivalries are forged, and emotions are very much hurt. And it appears that an unnamed scout got his absolutely scarred after Jimmy Butler claimed the victory over the Celtics in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals. After all, why else would there be such a dim-witted take on the Heat star?
Jimmy Butler gets called soft for the way he draws fouls
Jimmy Butler is a very meticulous player. He understands that the easiest way to score is to get to the free-throw line. So, he has mastered different ways to draw fouls and get to the charity stripe, a skill that isn’t easy to learn.
And yet, instead of praising him for it, an unnamed NBA scout has gone a long way to criticize him, as we mentioned prior. Take a look at the tweet by NBA Central below to see what was said.
“He’s going to get you on his hip and ride you. He’s going to put his shoulder into you and separate. But it’s more subtle than you would think. He’s strong enough to get to his spots with a little nudge. He’s a lot like Kawhi Leonard in that way…he has the creativity to get his shot off so many ways.”
An anonymous NBA scout explains why Jimmy Butler is a ‘really soft’ player
“He’s going to get you on his hip and ride you. He’s going to put his shoulder into you and separate. But it’s more subtle than you would think. He’s strong enough to get to his spots with a little… pic.twitter.com/QqA1UniXzr
— NBACentral (@TheNBACentral) May 18, 2023
The irony here is that it is his opponent, Jayson Tatum that seems to get the benefit of the officials’ doubt every time. In fact, you can click here to see the times he has misbehaved with referees, and gotten absolutely nothing called on him. And going the other way, he gets all the softest calls in the world. It has even come to a point where he is openly demanding it as if it were his birthright.
So really, who is the soft one here? The one who gets all the officials’ calls, oftentimes for no reason? Or the one that plays through everything, and forces the officials to make a decision?
Jimmy Butler is playing through an ankle injury
Jimmy Butler picked up an ankle injury earlier during these playoffs. In fact, as per FanSided, it was even left swollen for quite some time. So, for him to come back, and continue to play through significant pain is beyond significant.
As of now, his injury does seem to be getting better at a steady rate. However, after playing through the pain that he is, can he really be called soft?
