Philadelphia 76ers: The key stat in the Jimmy Butler trade
Philadelphia 76ers fans have voiced their concerns about dealing Robert Covington and Dario Saric for Jimmy Butler, but one stat validates the deal.
The Philadelphia 76ers dealt Dario Saric, Robert Covington, Jerryd Bayless, and a 2022 second-round pick to the Minnesota Timberwolves for Jimmy Butler and Justin Patton on Saturday, and a solid chunk of Sixers fans feel that Elton Brand gave up too much. Saric and Covington both played important roles for the team, and dealing two starters and receiving one in return is a bold, risky move, but the numbers show the Sixers made the right choice.
In their careers, Covington and Saric have 16 and 7.9 win shares, respectively. Those stats essentially indicate the number of games the players have won for their teams. Jimmy Butler, in his career, has 59.4 win shares, far greater than Cov and Saric’s win shares combined. Butler is in his eighth season, but RoCo and Super Dario have six and three years of experience respectively.
Last season, Butler posted 8.9 win shares, his lowest season total since 2013/14, while Cov posted 6.1 and Saric posted 6.6. It was not Butler’s best year last year, but he posted 13.8 in his final season with the Chicago Bulls, so he could return to that level in a new environment in Philly.
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In terms of win shares per 48 minutes, Saric and Cov are severely lacking this season. They each fall below the average mark of 0.1 for that stat, with the Croatian posting 0.028 win shares per 48 while Covington has posted 0.082. Jimmy Buckets has contributed 0.154 win shares per 48, further proving that he will help the Philadelphia 76ers win games.
Win shares are not everything in basketball, but the numbers reflect that Butler will jump into the Sixers’ offense and be a huge difference-maker. He can create his own shot off the dribble, catch and shoot, and get to the rack, and Philly has lacked that sort of dynamic offensive threat for a long time.
The Sixers finally got their perimeter player who can take over, and his skill set and efficiency as a perimeter scorer will help him win games for his new squad almost singlehandedly.
Butler has contributed more wins in his career than Saric and Covington have in both their careers combined, so his ability to be the difference between a win and a loss will be vital when the end of the season rolls around. Embiid finally has another player who can catalyze a win, and that makes the team much better as a result.
dark. Next. How should the rotation look with Butler?
Jimmy Buckets is a bona fide star in the NBA, and while RoCo and Super Dario served the Philadelphia 76ers well as role players, GM Elton Brand acknowledged the team’s need for a third star to accompany Embiid and Simmons, and the difference in win shares shows he made the right decision on paper. Soon enough, we’ll know whether or not that decision pays off.