CHICAGO (AP) — Jimmy Butler of the Chicago Bulls was named the NBA’s Most Improved Player on Thursday after making his first All-Star team and averaging a career high in scoring.
The 25-year-old Butler received 92 of 129 first-place votes and 535 total points from a panel of sportswriters and broadcasters. Draymond Green of the Golden State Warriors (11 first-place votes, 200 points) was second and Rudy Gobert of the Utah Jazz (12 first-place votes, 189 points) finished third.
The Bulls are tied 1-1 with Cleveland in the Eastern Conference semifinals after beating Milwaukee in the first round. Game 3 is Friday at Chicago.
“It’s a testament to his work ethic and what he’s done,” coach Tom Thibodeau said. “Each year, he’s gotten a lot better. I think it’s being recognized by a lot of people now. Where he is today, in comparing that to where he was four years ago, he’s made a gigantic jump.”
That the award went to Butler is hardly a surprise given the improvement he showed while helping the Bulls fight through injuries to win 50 games.
In his fourth season, the 6-7 guard went from averaging 13.1 to 20 points. His shooting improved from 39.7 to 46.2 percent, his rebounding jumped from 4.9 to 5.8 and his assists increased from 2.6 to 3.3 per game.
Butler is also in line for a huge payday as a restricted free agent after he and the Bulls were unable to agree to a contract extension before the season.
The award is the next step in a remarkable climb from homelessness as a teen to stardom in the NBA.
Butler got kicked out of his house by his mother when he was 13, in Tomball, Texas, and his father had been out of his life since he was a baby. At the time, Butler had no money and nowhere to go.
He would stay with friends for a few weeks and then move on to another one looking for a place to stay. He eventually settled in with the Lambert family and became a star at Tomball High.
Butler went on to Tyler Junior College and spent three seasons at Marquette before getting drafted with the 30th pick by the Bulls in 2011.
He played little as a rookie but started to show some promise in his second season. The past two seasons, he has averaged 38.7 minutes.
“I’m very happy for him,” the Bulls’ Joakim Noah said. “Very well deserved. Somebody that’s worked extremely hard. I’m happy for Jimmy.”
