Chicago Bulls vs. Boston Celtics Playoff Preview

Dennis Wierzbicki-USA TODAY Sports
Dennis Wierzbicki-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
5 of 5
Next
Jimmy Butler, SF, Chicago Bulls ... and Pippen Ain't Easy's MVP of the Bulls this season.
Mar 21, 2017; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Chicago Bulls forward Jimmy Butler (21) relaxes during a break in the action against the Toronto Raptors at the Air Canada Centre. Toronto defeated Chicago 122-120 in overtime. Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports /

All eyes on Jimmy

There are no illusions and no misconceptions about how Chicago needs to operate in this series. They’re only here because of Butler.

If the rumors had their way, the Bulls probably wouldn’t be here and Boston might have Butler. That didn’t happen, yet.

This is going to be the Jimmy Butler Showcase. For Chicago, they don’t have any choice but to run as much of their game as possible through Butler. He’s going to make life easier on the rest of the much less talented guys on this roster and free up some shots for the streaky shooting corps.

Butler has also been waiting for this moment. Do you realize that this is the first time in his entire career that he is going to be the big dog for Chicago in playoffs? They missed the playoffs last season. The year before that it was Joakim Noah’s team. The year before that was still the Derrick Rose era. This is the first time in his entire career that Butler is unquestionably THE Chicago Bull. It isn’t just because Noah and Rose are gone, either. He’s played like one of the best players in the league all season and he has earned the recognition.

More from Pippen Ain't Easy

For Boston, this is going to be their best look at Butler possible. Somewhere between four and seven games, I’m thinking it’ll be about six, of just scheming around Butler and his lackeys. This is the ultimate scouting of a player that Celtics GM Danny Ainge might very much want on his roster next season. And it’ll be the last time they see Jimmy up close before the NBA draft. Did you know that Boston has Brooklyn’s pick, which is likely going to be No. 1 overall this summer?

I’ve been torn all year. I love Butler and everything he brings to this team, but no one else is bringing anything of value. It doesn’t seem like the Bulls are on the path to anywhere good. Maybe they should embrace it, commit to the tear down, and let Butler use whatever time he has left at the peak of his powers helping someone truly challenge the Cavaliers so that the East isn’t a total snooze fest.

The likelihood of a Butler trade, even with Boston, is slim. Unless Ainge steals him from Forman, it’s hard to imagine Danny coughing up fair value in return, he should remain in a Bulls uniform for the foreseeable future.

However, it’ll make for a nice little storyline in this series.

I think I’ve written enough about this series, on to the playoffs.