Jimmy Butler is a bitter child.

The same plot as many black players, he has lost his father since he was a child. (Black players have a dad who is an outlier and has a special buff bonus.) ）

Unlike many black players, his mother didn't love him wholeheartedly.

On the contrary, when Butler was 13 years old, his mother thought he was ugly and kicked him out of the house.

Of course, this is probably just an excuse, and his mother may have felt that life was too poor to support him, so he drove him away and let him fend for himself.

After that, Butler boarded with different friends and lived a wandering life without a fixed home.

How cruel this is for a teenager who did not go astray and joined the gang, naturally thanks to basketball.

He made a good friend in the basketball league, and since then he has been taken in by his family, and then worked his way up the ladder to get a basketball scholarship to Marquette University, and then entered the NBA.

Being drafted by the Clippers was really something he didn't expect.

Originally, he hoped that he could be taken by the Houston Rockets.

Because he's a Houstonite, it's great to be able to play in front of his native hometown.

It's a pity that the Rockets didn't choose him, but took the Morris brothers.

Another team interested in him is the Chicago Bulls.

The Bulls want to have a young player at the No. 3 position as a backup for Ruel Deng.

When Butler tried out for the Bulls, the Bulls gave him great feedback.

It's just that the Bulls have a low pick, and they were the first in the league last season.

So only the 30th pick in the first round, the last place in the first round, and the smallest contract amount.

As a result, he was unexpectedly taken by the Clippers in advance, and Butler was not mentally prepared at all.

After coming to the Clippers, Butler heard that the Clippers chose him because Mr. Smart thought he didn't shoot well?

This puzzled Butler, my poor shooting is a shortcoming, why did he choose me because of this?

In short, this rumor bothered Butler quite a bit, and pierced him like a thorn in his heart.

And, at the 13th pick, the Clippers have already taken Leonard, and the two are in the same position.

But Leonard's physical condition is much better than Butler's.

The height difference between the two is not too much, but Leonard's shoulder width, arm span, and palm size are quite terrifying.

Butler is different, his arm span is his hard injury, and his shoulder width is also average, so he can't be a lottery show.

When signing a rookie contract for a press conference, Butler stood next to Leonard and felt a little smaller.

Plus there was Paul George on the team, so Butler didn't attract any attention from the outside world after coming to the Clippers.

Butler has long been accustomed to this, and going against the current is the main theme of his fate, and he doesn't care at all.

With three young No.3s, he's confident he'll be fighting for himself a rotational spot.

It just so happened that before this game, I heard that Coach Smart was going to make a 15-man rotation, so there were more opportunities to perform.

There is a big rotation of 15 people, and there are actually only 12 people who can play in each game, and 3 people can't get into the squad before the game.

Those who didn't make the squad tonight were Jeremy Lin, PJ Tucker and Okafor.

One for a defender, one for a striker, and one for a center.

In the next game, there will be 3 people who will not be in the squad.

Maybe it's because of an injury, or maybe it's just a poor performance.

Butler's goal is, first and foremost, to secure a stable spot in the 12-man squad.

In this way, in the big rotation, you can get playing time in every game, which will be a very valuable training opportunity.

It's just that such a workout opportunity came too early, and Butler was a little caught off guard.

With just over a minute left in the first quarter, Ricky Davis fouled on defense and the ball died.

Just in time, Butler stepped on and replaced Ricky Davis.

The substitution Cole was puzzled and asked softly, "Why Butler?" ”

In daily training, Kerr and other assistant coaches carefully observed and found that Leonard, in addition to his stiff shooting posture, was quite talented and in all aspects.

It's just that his university is not famous, and there is a lack of a stage for performance in the country.

What surprised Cole the most was that Leonard was a strong learner and had a steady temperament.

He's always expressionless, unlike some black players who giggle all day long and can calm down and train and learn.

The arrival of Leonard brought Paul George a huge sense of crisis, and George, who has always been casual, also worked weekdays.

Only Butler, who is one notch less talented than the other two guys, can't see too many characteristics, and is very hardworking.

But there are too many hard-working players in the NBA, and there is no talent to build a foundation, and sometimes it is useless to work hard.

Unexpectedly, Min Congda's first young player in rotation was Butler.

Is there something in him that he can't see?

Cole was doubting himself, how could Min Congda think so much.

He saw a yarn quality that he didn't even remember Butler's name.

It's purely because Butler is low in the ranks, so let him go up and make trouble.

Sure enough, Butler appeared at a loss on the field after his appearance.

Defensive misposition, hesitation to run in attack, lack of ability to open up space.

After a while, the Trail Blazers chased 4 points in a row, narrowing the difference to an odd number.

Min Congda nodded again and again, thinking that a rookie is a rookie, and going up is like a headless fly.

In the final minute or so, the Trail Blazers took the opportunity to beat the Clippers 6:2, 35:26 to end the first quarter.

In the second quarter, Butler remained on the court.

He thought he would take a break, but he didn't expect Min Congda to mean it at all.

He also brought on Milicic, Bonner, Dragic and Leonard.

This lineup is on the field, and the offense is called a constipation, and there is no focus at all.

The Trail Blazers seized the opportunity and continued to chase points, narrowing the gap to 4 points all the way.

At 37:33, the Clippers' only two points came from a Dragic throw.

Cole looked at Min Congda and thought to himself, right?

How can this broken lineup be played? It's going to be flattened! The advantages ahead are all wasted!

But Min Congda didn't call a timeout and continued to let these five people play on the field.

"Haha, this broken lineup, I'll see how this ball is played! After a while, I have to change Curry, and it's too unreasonable to keep him from playing. Lose some more points, lose some more points. ”

Min Congda's small abacus in his heart flew up, just to use this lineup to send points.

Replaced by an average rookie, as well as role players, at this time the court must be confused.

Coach: What do you mean by that? We can't beat it, why don't we call a timeout?

At this time, the Trail Blazers defended for three seconds, and Bonner scored one point on a free throw.

Taking advantage of this opportunity, Milicic suddenly stepped forward and brought several guys together.

The five of them gathered in a circle and discussed something in a whisper.

Min Congda thought to himself, "How many people still whisper? What kind of plane? ”

Then, the game continued.

Butler suddenly holds the ball, without any tactical arrangement, and rushes to the basket!

Caused the Trail Blazers to foul inside, went to the free throw line, and hit both free throws.

Immediately after, Gerard Wallace broke through and ate Leonard!

Milicic stabbed in a diagonal stab, like a truck, and knocked Wallace off the line!

(End of chapter)