NBA Pokemon: Jimmy Butler is Dragonite

Dragonite is one of the most powerful Pokemon on the (fictional) planet. He/She is versatile, tough and incredibly difficult to battle.

But, it’s important to remember, it didn’t always seem like Dragonite would be the big, bad beast that it is. Dragonite starts off as Dratini, a decent Pokemon in its own right, but nowhere near the powerhouse it will one day become. Dratini doesn’t evolve until level 30, which probably leads some trainers to believe it never will. And that’s okay, because Dratini is still a good enough Pokemon to keep on your roster.

Then, Dratini evolves into Dragonair, and trainers who have it are thrilled. Dragonair is worth keeping in the starting rotation. It is a real weapon that opponents have to gameplan on how to stop. Its ability to learn moves of many different types allow it to be deadly in any kind of lineup, and it’s incredibly durable.

After evolving into Dragonair, trainers are content with the Pokemon, accepting that this is all it is ever likely to be. It will never be the centerpiece of your lineup, but it is a weapon to compliment your best Pokemon.

Then, at level 55, Dragonair turns into a flying death machine, capable of wrecking havoc on anyone. It instantly catapults itself into the conversation as one of the elite Pokemon in the game, and nobody ever wants to deal with it.

This perfectly describes the trajectory of Jimmy Butler’s career. He came out of college as Dratini, a late draft pick who was thought of as nothing but a defensive wing off the bench. As a senior at Marquette, he wasn’t expected to improve that much, and likely would never be a starter in the league.

Then, Butler got more playing time due to injuries. He decided to start wrecking fools in the 2013 playoffs, and inherited a starter’s role for the next season. When Butler made this jump (to Dragonair), he was much better than the Bulls could’ve hoped coming out of the draft. And most people assumed, once again, this was all Butler could be. He’d be a perfectly fine starter, and that was it.

Except it wasn’t. Butler came out this year in full on Dragonite mode. He somehow took on a much larger offensive role, while getting more efficient. Oh, and he does this about twice a week now.

Just like people assumed Dratini was what he was, people assumed Butler would never turn into this type of star. He also displays the versatility that makes Dragonite such a tough Pokemon to match up against, as Butler is a capable shooter with a nice inside game for a guard and elite defensive skills.

Maybe you didn’t expect Butler (or Dragonite) to be where he is. But that doesn’t change the fact that he is one of the best there is at what he does.