Jackie Butler?!

[EJPLAYA]

It looks like Butler is participating in our minicamp. We are in dire need of a cheap big. He seemed to have a lot of upside last year at the Summer League. Any chance this guy could be a good replacement for a Scot Pollard with upside? Does he just duplicate Powe or BBD? Anyone know more about him than the brief things we saw in Vegas?

[DinoRadjaLives]

Jackie Butler had a decent season while wit the Knicks two years ago, not sure if it was becuase of his talent or because of lack of talent on the Knicks. His knock was that he was lazy and out of shape. I was more excited to see the Randolph Morris was in attendanc. He is a big body that could defnatley shine defesivley under the guidance to Tom Thibadeu and KG, Perk and the rest of the C's veterans. He would be cheap and could fill the 3rd center role. Was a HS all american and had a nice career at Kentucy.

[paintitgreen]

Don't know too much about him but I started looking him up. He's taller than Powe or Davis by a couple of inches and has a 7'0" wingspan, so he's a legit center. However, his 260+ pounds hurt him defensively. Hollinger's report on him on ESPN.com notes that he couldn't master its defensive system, in large part because his limited mobility prevents him from rotating properly.

If he can't handle San Antonio's defense, it probably doesn't bode well for his chances to work out in ours. Still, if we can get him cheap, I wouldn't mind taking a chance on him, as long as it doesn't prevent us from pursuing other options.

[dustroia]

Interestingly enough, another reason the Spurs got rid of him was his inability to communicate on the floor. Apparently, Butler has a tendency to mumble out there. Often times, his teammates couldn't figure out what he's saying, which drove Popovich crazy.

[Who]

He has those quick feet like a Glen Davis does ... he's just a lazy so-and-so. That's why he's bad defensively.

[cordobes]

Interestingly enough, another reason the Spurs got rid of him was his inability to communicate on the floor. Apparently, Butler has a tendency to mumble out there. Often times, his teammates couldn't figure out what he's saying, which drove Popovich crazy.

[in order to play good defense] You need players who are capable of speaking while they play (a very underrated skill)...

http://www.celticsblog.com/index.php?option=com_smf&Itemid=64&topic=20414.msg317292#msg317292

I can see that happening.

I probably haven't seen Butler playing for more than a couple of games, but I'm guessing he's a bad defensive player due to lack of fundamentals and, reading your post, communication skills. And no work ethic to improve them.

[acieEarl]

Reminds me of Tracter Trailer from Michigan. and thats not a good thing.

[nickagneta]

Jackie Butler showed me nothing during his time with us before last season. He impressed so many people he couldn't get a job on the NY Knicks, Seattle Sonics, Memphis Grizzlies, or Miami Heat last year.

And all those teams were looking for players to put on the floor and they sucked.

If the worst teams in the league don't think he's that good, if he didn't impress me last year, and if he's pretty much the same player, this whole idea is nothing but an exercise in futility.

Let's not go crazy thinking Butler will be on the roster next year. It's more likely that he was just brought in to guarantee we had enough players to run a proper practice camp and for that reason only is he here.

[EJPLAYA]

Great stuff everyone! Exactly the kind of extra insight I was looking for. We definitely don't want fat and lazy and slow witted...