Should Jimmy Butler be worried about life post Thibs?

Will Butler throw up his hands without the defensive genius?

There can't be any doubt that Jimmy Butler, along with most of his teammates are happy to see Coach Tom Thibodeau escorted out of the Bulls compound by security this week. Thibs justifiably has earned a reputation for riding players into the ground physically and mentally which wore on Bulls players throughout his tenure. But lost in that narrative is the genius of Thibodeau's defensive schemes.Will his absence hurt some Bulls players more than we think? Probably, but will Jimmy Butler be one?

At first glance, Butler seems to be a perfect fit for Thibodeau's style. He's a legitimate two way player whose defense is ahead of his offense. His progression in Chicago has been terrific. This past season, he finished the year averaging 20 PPG and more importantly, had a PER of over 21 which put him at 26th in the league. Not a bad return for the 30th overall pick in the 2011 NBA Draft.

But the days of evaluating Butler as a late first rounder are over. He's a guy who is going to get a max deal this summer in all likelihood, which will heap additional pressure on the talented wing. The large amount of uncertainty surrounding other Bulls cornerstones Joakim Noah and Derrick Rose make it vital that Butler remain a rock. Throw in the drama of the Thibs departure and the bullseye (pun intended) is squarely on Butler.

So will he miss Thibs? The answer to this question is undeniably yes. For all of Thibodeau's faults, he deserves a ton of credit for Butler's progression. He molded Butler into an incredible defender who routinely guards the opponent's top scorer. On the offensive end, where Thibs is routinely criticized, he was able to develop Butler into a respectable three point shooter and a destructive driver. The system may not have been Dantoniesque but it helped Butler get paid. Give Thibs his due, he nurtured Butler from bubble roster player to max contract. You can't take that away from the man.

But wait, given all his success, why would Butler be glad to see Thibs go? Usage...or in this case, abusage. You can't play a guy, even in his prime, the minutes that Butler has received under Thibs. The last two seasons he's averaged just under 39 minutes a game. Ask Luol Deng how that works out for your long term career. This doesn't even tell the whole abusage story though. What about the long practices? The endless shootarounds? The mental expectations heaped on Butler via the Thibs system's requirement of addition to detail? The guy has to be tired. Without Thibs back, he has a chance to dial the physical and mental minutes back to prolong his career and improve his chances of staying healthy.

So we've established that there are positive and negative outcomes for Butler here. The question simply becomes will Jimmy Butler be a better player next year without Thibs as his coach? My feeling is that he won't be better, but he'll be perceived to have improved regardless. I think Butler will average more points, play more games, and may even shoot a better percentage under Fred Hoiberg. You'll likely see more scoring outburst games that come with the offensive freedom he'll enjoy. What you won't see though, is the same dogged determination and discipline that made Butler special under Thibodeau. Jimmy Butler isn't a max player because of a great offensive skill set. He's a max player because of his tenacity, toughness and overall contributions to the team.While all the attention is paid to improving the Bulls offense, the defensive mindset will slowly fade away. For a guy like Butler, that will lead to bigger stats and maybe even more money over the long haul. What it won't yield is a continuation of the evolution of Butler's games on both ends. That's what Thibs gave him and that's what made him special.

Now don't take this as a criticism of the Bulls. I think they had no choice but to move away from Thibodeau given the rift with the front office and many of the players. I don't even mind Hoiberg as a coaching replacement. He's a risk, but no bigger risk than OKC is taking with Billy Donovan. I wouldn't even be stunned to see the Bulls win more games next year with added offensive freedom and some good breaks in the health department. Just remember, the right move for the Bulls wasn't necessarily the best move for Jimmy Butler.