Jimmy Butler saves game for Chicago Bulls with block (Video)

Chicago Bulls small forward Jimmy Butler protects the rim magnificently in the final seconds to seal a win on the road against the Charlotte Hornets.

The Charlotte Hornets and the Chicago Bulls are pressing to get into the 2017 Eastern Conference Playoffs. Charlotte has massively underperformed this year, while Chicago has hovered around .500 for most of the year.

With Monday night’s game on the line between both Eastern teams, Bulls small forward Jimmy Butler has a sensational game-clinching block to help the Bulls steal a game on the road in Charlotte.

Butler is an all-around great player on both ends of the floor. However, he’s rarely asked to be a primary rim protector at any point. Butler does his best work defensively out on the wing. It was cool to see him have the awareness to switch defensively in the low post to come up with the huge block.

Five teams have pretty much locked up playoff spots in the East: Atlanta, Boston, Cleveland, Toronto and Washington. Every team in the East except Brooklyn, New York, Orlando and Philadelphia still has decent playoff hopes.

Charlotte and Chicago fall in that middle six range in the Eastern Conference with Detroit, Indiana, Miami and Milwaukee. Only three of those six teams will qualify for the NBA Playoffs. Charlotte is rapidly fading, but Chicago has to hold off late-season surges by the Miami Heat and the Milwaukee Bucks.

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Butler’s block prevented Charlotte from getting within a bucket of tying or taking the lead. It doesn’t seem like a huge deal now, but that block could be the difference between the No. 7 seed, the No. 8 seed or missing the playoffs entirely for the Bulls. Every win the rest of the way can’t be taken for granted.