The Jimmy Butler-Paul George Debate is Over, But Now There’s a New One

There has been an ongoing debate for a while now about Jimmy Butler and Paul George. Both are two-way guys that are top players in the league. But it seems as if one of those guys may have set themselves apart.

After the Los Angeles Clippers meltdown in the Western Conference Semi-Finals, where they blew a 3-1 lead against the Denver Nuggets, it was clear that Paul George would take some heat.

It also didn’t help his case that Jimmy Butler took his team on an incredible run to the finals, stepping up when it really mattered, which is what has continually been in question when discussing Paul George.

Now that this debate is pretty much settled, it seems as if there’s a new one to discuss.

The debate should no longer be is Jimmy Butler or Paul George better. Now it should be is Bam Adebayo or Paul George better. In the playoffs, Bam averaged 18/10/4, while George averaged 20/6/4. Both were the second options, but only one of them showed up to close out a series.

— Brady Hawk (@BradyHawk305) October 13, 2020

Bam Adebayo has proved himself once again in this playoff run, and it seems as if there is more similarities between these two, than Jimmy Butler and Paul George.

Paul George averaged 2 more points in the playoffs this season, while Bam averaged 4 more rebounds. Both of these guys were second options on their respective teams, but only one stepped up when it really mattered.

And it’s obvious that Bam Adebayo is the textbook definition of a two-way guy, since his energy is contagious on both sides of the floor.

Paul George had a better regular season than Bam Adebayo statistically, but that’s clear since that is when Paul George does most of his damage.

Bam Adebayo, on the other hand, is a proven winner who will be a handful for opposing playoff match-ups for many years to come.

It’ll be interesting to see where the majority of people rank these guys in the top players in the league, but for it to be this close with Bam being 7 years younger than Paul is absolutely insane.

Jimmy Butler proved his placing among the top players in the league, and it’s only a matter of time for Bam to do so as well.