Who won the breakup and why: Philadelphia 76ers or Jimmy Butler?
By Emily Day
In any breakup, there is a ‘winner’ and a ‘loser.’ It has been a couple of years since the Philadelphia 76ers and Jimmy Butler parted way, it is time to call the break-up winner in the Eastern Conference.
A glow-up is nearly a requirement for winning a breakup. At first glance, I would go with the men in blue over Jimmy’s dreads lewk in his 2022-2023 NBA headshot. But… Philly’s glow-up was a costly one. It took some time to unload Ben Simmons and get a new stud on the Philadelphia 76ers. Appearance-wise, Harden’s beard is iconic, he can be seen on and off the court playing around with his teammates, and his bromance with Embiid is adorable.
Poor Jimmy, I have recently seen a meme circling Instagram with Jimmy’s headshot pic and the caption:
Just remember this man made it to the NBA Finals.
I get it, that picture does not reflect the Buckets’ beast mode, but also that is not what his hair looked like throughout the season. Regardless, I’m gonna give the glow-up win to the 76ers, 1-Buckets, 1-Philly.
People say the best post-breakup revenge is to live well. The final criteria to determine a post-breakup winner is to see who is living their best life. Buckets is seen around town and recently got some attention at the tennis courts watching his friend Coco Gauff. Gauff reported this week that Butler told her early on the Heat was going to the NBA Finals, and he has offered her tickets to attend as his guest.
Gauff is not Butler’s only professional female athlete friend. In the latest Michelob Ultra commercial, Buckets, and WNBA player Nneka Ogwumike exchange a competitive tete-a-tete about airballs. Jimmy Butler’s contract with Michelob started long before his 2023 run in the NBA playoffs, he’s been killing it for some time.
Philly ballers have been having some fun living their best lives as well. Embiid has been in a number of commercials in the last couple of years. My favorite was the Google Pixel commercial with the greatest pickup game of all time. Oh and no big deal or anything, but Joel Embiid was this year’s 2022-2023 NBA MVP! That was no small win for Philly, but our excitement deflated fast when Philly lost their series with the Celtics.
Tyrese Maxey has also had an acting role in the new Starry soda commercials with Keke Palmer.
Harden was praised for attending the Eagles’ first home game of the 2022-2023 season, where Big Play Slay handed Harden his interception ball. Then the entire Philadelphia 76ers starting lineup was seen living it up with Kevin Hart at Lincoln Financial Field during the Eagles’ playoff run.
Time to call the tiebreaker.
Jimmy Butler’s face pops up frequently in the media living his best life. The entire 76ers starting line, can’t compete with Bucket’s time in the limelight. Jimmy is out there pursuing his passions and living a better life than he was in Philly. 2-Buckets, 1-Philly.
No matter what happens during the NBA Finals, Jimmy is doing great without us. It’s hard not to look back at all the mistakes we made letting him go. The best we can do is be the bigger person and cheer for the Heat against the Nuggets, wishing Buckets the best.
