JJ Reddick and Jimmy Butler sat down for Redick’s weekly podcast focused on basketball and everything surrounding the players in the game. JJ has been doing the pod for around a year, so with both of their departures from Philadelphia, the duo pairing to record a pod together should be to no surprise. Redick even returned to Twitter to let the world know Butler would be in the building for his latest installment.
Reflecting on both players from a fan perspective seems semi-decent, many Sixers fans loved JJ, as he was the only real shooter we had during the process and the first real free agent acquisition the team made during the process with winning in mind.
Jimmy seemed like the missing piece to take this squad to the next level. Even though the team could never get on the same page last year, both JJ and Jimmy seemed to put it all out there, amid the struggles in the locker room or on the floor.
On the other hand, JJ and Jimmy both did not seem to be the leaders the front office expected them to be. On the floor, they would lead by example, but the way both JJ and Jimmy acted off the floor is part of the disconnect that the Sixers had as a team.
JJ and Jimmy address the way NBA players don’t necessarily like each other and ways to figure out how to “get along” even if players don’t “fuck with” one another, stating they wished players would tell one another their real feelings to rally together for one common goal – winning a championship. Many Sixers fans think Jimmy is talking about Simmons and Embiid, as they didn’t have a real leader and the feelings between all the stars seemed confusing to say the least.
Everyone at this point had questions in terms of who to look to as the leader, nobody really seemed to step up and take on that presence. The youth of the Sixers is the key problem here, with Ben and Joel not ready to really be the players the Sixers need them to be. Tobias came in and has tried to take that role, but he wasn’t able to play to his potential with a crowded starting core and no real cohesion.
JJ asked Jimmy about his experience last season in Minnesota and Philly and this was his response:
“Yeah, it was difficult, man it was so different, on any given day me as a person, as a player, I didn’t know who the fuck was in charge, I didn’t know what the fuck to expect, I was as lost as the next mo’fucker. I was like yup, I’m just here to work.”
With these remarks, I think it explains a lot pertaining to the Sixers the past few seasons. Obviously, we don’t know exactly who Jimmy is talking about, but from the players, to Brett, to our front office, this is how some players feel, it shows why we have been faced with more questions than answers at this point trying to take that next step as a team.
This isn’t the greatest news to hear with not much Sixers talk as the NBA continues to sit at a standstill with the COVID-19 pandemic.
While Jimmy makes some good points, he is one of the most self-centered players in the league. Even as an amazing player, not every comment Jimmy made in this podcast should be taken as fact. Some of this gives perspective on why the Sixers have struggled with so much talent and expectation following the process and hearing players make remarks like this proves that our young stars need to step up, as well as a full overhaul of the front office.