Sixers’ Jimmy Butler Has Already Taken on a Leadership Role

Getty Images Jimmy Butler during his Sixers debut.

The Philadelphia 76ers already see some significant, positive results from their trade for the star player, Jimmy Butler. Earlier this week, Butler arrived in Philadelphia and immediately won over the Sixers fan base after his introductory press conference. Then, he finally debuted with the team on the road against the Orlando Magic on Wednesday.

While the Sixers didn’t come away with the victory, Butler had a decent debut with 14 points, four rebounds, and two assists. Sixers head coach Brett Brown admitted that Butler saw fewer minutes than desired since he just joined the team two days prior, but it won’t be like that in the future as Butler settles into his role.

Butler may not know the entire Sixers playbook right now, but that hasn’t stopped him from being a vocal leader on the team. As a seven-year veteran, who played on two different teams before coming to Philly, Butler has obtained a ton of knowledge. As an All-Star and an established veteran, it doesn’t take playbook memorization for Butler to become a leader on the team. In fact, he’s already improved the Sixers by becoming a teacher during practice.

Butler Is Already Mentoring His Younger Teammates

On Friday, the Sixers were gearing up for a home game, as they are set to host the Utah Jazz. The matchup will be Butler’s debut on the Sixers in the city of Philadelphia. Of course, the media cannot stop following him around. Luckily, they caught a nice moment of Butler becoming the teacher as he talks up everybody’s favorite bench player, TJ McConnell.

“Anytime I missed a shot, he was helping me with what I was doing wrong to improve my shot.” That’s what McConnell said when he was asked about his training session with Butler during practice. It’s not like McConnell was issued groundbreaking advice, but it sounds like Butler is already giving small tips to his teammates to make them even better.