The New York Knicks need RJ Barrett to become what Jimmy Butler is to The Miami Heat
As depressing as last night’s loss was to watch, I did see some things that made me believe our future is still incredibly bright.
RJ Barrett, in my opinion, has the ability to become a Jimmy Butler-esque type of player in a few years, mainly on the offensive side of the ball. The defense could surely get close with proper development over time but I see a ton of similarities in both player’s style of play on offense.
In a recent article, I discussed the idea of eventually having RJ run the point as a primary facilitator and ball-handler with secondary ball-handlers also in the starting lineup to take some of that responsibility off of RJ. If the way Miami runs their offense proves anything, it’s that when you have an elite-level slasher at your disposal and you surround him with excellent shooting, it can take you places in the league.
Jimmy Butler made his first 3-point shot of the season against the Knicks last night which goes to show that if you’re capable of getting to the rim at ease, you don’t necessarily need to be a great shooter to be a 20-point per game type of player. RJ has proven so far that he’s progressing as a shooter which would make him all the more lethal of an offensive threat as time goes by than even Jimmy Butler is now. Several times throughout the broadcast, I heard the commentators compare Butler to a fullback bursting through the line of scrimmage, creating space for his teammates and this is exactly what RJ needs to focus on to bring his game to the next level. As the 20-year old former Duke Bluedevil gets older, he’ll pack on some weight which will make this a much easier task in the future.
Aside from just scoring, Butler runs an offense as well as anyone in the league as his court-vision and offensive awareness has grown leaps and bounds since entering the league in 2011. Butler is currently averaging a career-high 6.8 assists per game this season and while this may have to do with the injuries sustained by Miami’s starting point guard Goran Dragic, it shows that we can get close to 7 assists per game out of Barrett while being one of the team’s leading scorers.