Opinion
It’s a difficult question to ask if you are a media organisation and a tough one to answer as a player.
The old “who’s the most over-rated player” debate can be a tricky one but The Athletic recently delved into the murky waters in its anonymous player poll.
It used to be annual cannon fodder for the old Rugby League Week magazine in Australia before it went belly up in 2017 and would trigger outrage about whether it’s appropriate to be asking that question due to the stigma it imparts on the player who ends up with the dreaded title.
After gauging the opinions of more than 100 players, The Athletic conferred the dubious title on Atlanta guard Trae Young.
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He garnered 14.8% of the votes – interestingly only half (54 of 108) voters opted to answer the question.
Trae Young. (Photo by Todd Kirkland/Getty Images)
You can see why opponents think Young is not all that he seems. His game is based around him dominating the ball when the Hawks are in possession and he contributes little at the defensive end.
He’s, directly or indirectly, played a part in two coaches getting canned within the past three seasons and apart from Atlanta’s run to the Eastern Conference finals in 2021, his inability to deliver consistent success led to last year’s panic trade for Spurs guard Dejounte Murray in which the Hawks gave up plenty to find a backcourt partner who does the dirty work that Young is incapable or unwilling to do.
Knicks forward Julius Randle and Toronto All-Star Pascal Siakam were equal second on the over-rated list with Miami veteran Jimmy Butler somehow on the next rung alongside Minnesota centre Rudy Gobert and Memphis big man Jaren Jackson jnr.
Young and Butler are having the last laugh by leading their respective team to unexpected playoff surges.
The Hawks were supposed to be no chance of making any noise in the post-season but after upsetting the Heat in Miami in the opening play-in game, they have given Boston a run for their money to be trailing 3-2 heading into game six on Friday in Atlanta.
They’re still unlikely to get past the second-seeded Celtics but Young has shown his big-game credentials by averaging 29 points per game, including 35 and 38 in their past two victories, as well as 10.2 assists.
Butler has been out of this world as Miami became just the sixth eighth seed in NBA history (and first since 2012) to eliminate the top-ranked team in their conference and they did it in style by bouncing Milwaukee inside five games.
After a career-high 56 in the game-four win in Miami, he was at it again on Thursday as they stunned the Bucks in overtime on their home floor.
His last play of regulation to send the game into overtime was nothing short of spectacular.
It’s safe to say he probably got away with a push on Pat Connaughton as they jostled while waiting for the inbound lob play with two seconds on the clock but to then catch the ball as he tumbled backwards and then bank it home as he fell beyond the horizontal was up there with Kawhi Leonard’s 2019 buzzer beater to sink Philadelphia for recent playoff prayers answered.
Butler refused to lose in the overtime period, owning a court that also contained the massive presence of two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo, to finish with 42 points on 17/33 shooting.
“We were resilient, we were down late. It seemed to be that way a lot during the series,” he said in his walk-off interview after the 128-126 boilover. “We stayed with it, got some stops, made some huge buckets and stayed together and that’s it.
“My teammates need me to be that way right now (to be unstoppable). I will continue to be that way right now. It could be 40 (points), it could be 50, it could be zero and 12 assists, I gotta be able to do it all.”
There will only ever be one Michael Jordan but Butler not only looks like him (which sparked some wild internet theories), he has that “give me the damn ball” mentality that made his Airness so dominant.
Miami star Jimmy Butler torched Milwaukee despite being guarded by the NBA’s best perimeter defender in Jrue Holiday. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images)
You can potentially see why some players might not like Butler because he is renowned for getting under the skin of rivals.
And some probably don’t rate him because he tends to cruise through the regular season.
But when the lights are shining brightest, he never shies away from the moment, as evidenced by the way he led Miami to the 2020 NBA Finals.
He took the fight to LeBron James and Anthony Davis and despite the Lakers having a much stronger roster, pushed them over six games.
It’s implausible that Chicago, then Minnesota (although Butler forced his way out because he didn’t think his younger teammates had winning pedigree) and then Philadelphia had the 33-year-old on their roster but let him go.
Legend has it that he screamed “you can’t win without me” as he showed up his hyped-up Timberwolves teammates while running with the reserves in a scrimmage on his way out the door.
The 76ers basically shunned Butler in favour of Ben Simmons and Tobias Harris, the kind of decision which leads executives to the unemployment line.
Jimmy Butler (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
Next up for Miami is a second-round meeting with the Knicks after they toppled Cleveland in five games as well in a much more minor upset, being a fifth seed beating the four side.
The Knicks will have home-court advantage but the Heat have Butler.
He’s led them to the Eastern Conference finals at least in two of the past three seasons.
While Philadelphia will likely battle it out with Boston in a bruising series in the other second-round match-up, the door is ajar for Butler to get the Heat back to the East finals and from there, anything can happen.
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