Three-time All-Star Jimmy Butler tells ESPN’s Sam Alipour that he believes his Minnesota Timberwolves can win the NBA championship:
I want to win a championship. That’s the only reason I play this game. Now, this organization hasn’t been to the playoffs in 13 years, but f— history. It’s a new bunch of guys here, and we all say the same thing: F— history.
…
I’m fortunate. It’s the start of something beautiful here with a young core and an organization that really knows what they’re doing. I got a real chance of winning a championship here. God, like, I wake up smiling every morning knowing that we got a chance to be really f—ing good.
Not even the Golden State Warriors faze Butler:
I don’t give a damn if you’re the Warriors. We got guys who can play. And we got constant mismatches — really big wings in me and Wigs [Andrew Wiggins], and Karl[-Anthony Towns]’s a constant mismatch. What can’t he do? Guy did a windmill the other day in practice. Hell, I almost left the gym. I didn’t know he had it. Then you got Jamal [Crawford], the score lord. You got Taj [Gibson], who does all the little things right.
Last season with the Chicago Bulls, Butler had the best season of his career, averaging 23.9 points, 6.2 rebounds and 5.5 assists per game on .455/.367/.865 shooting.
Eight games in for the Wolves, Butler has seen those numbers decrease to 15.1 points, 5.3 rebounds and four assists per game on .433/.316/.861 shooting.
Butler has never been the sort of player to care about stats, however. He just wants to win. Those numbers will probably jump somewhat, but seeing his per-game averages drop a bit is understandable; he’s playing with Towns and Wiggins now. The Wolves have more weapons than Chicago did a season ago, and the numbers will reflect that.
