3. He could take the offensive load off of LeBron James
Other than maybe a young Michael Jordan in the mid-80s, I don’t know if an NBA player has had to do more things to help his team win than LeBron has in recent years.
He’s leading the Lakers in points, rebounds and assists, and has 1.4 steals a game, putting him a hair behind Lonzo Ball’s 1.5 a game. Unless Rajon Rondo has some big assist games in the next month or so, LeBron will end the season leading the team in at least the three main statistical categories.
LeBron looks healthy and as spry as he looked early in the year, but as he ages, he needs to cede some responsibilities to his teammates in order to age gracefully and stay fresh for the playoffs.
That is what Butler has to offer him and by extension the Los Angeles Lakers.
This season he’s averaging 18.9 points a game on 47 percent shooting, and over the last five seasons, he’s averaged 21.3 points a game with an effective field goal percentage of about 50 percent. While that may not sound super impressive, Butler has a quality that would make him super valuable to the team.
He’s one of those rare players who love to take over in crunch time. Upon getting traded to Philly early this season, he instantly hit two game-winning shots – one against Charlotte, and one against Brooklyn.
Because of LeBron’s advanced age, as well as his longtime inability or unwillingness to assert himself and be a closer, Butler could do that kind of heavy lifting when the game is on the line late, or even when the game is close or the Lakers are behind in the first three quarters.
Butler is a one-on-one player who is good at creating and hitting his own shot, which would also give the Lakers another option late in the shot clock.
In addition, he has averaged almost five assists a game over the last four seasons, so he can also effectively hit the open man whenever he is trapped or double teamed.