Jimmy Butler says he wasn’t wearing a suit at his introductory press conference because things were moving so quickly since the completion of the trade that brought him to Philadelphia along with Justin Patton.

“As you can tell, I’m the only one up here without a suit on because the suit got here late this morning.”

We got some more good quotes from Butler on Tuesday morning, who will make his Sixers debut Wednesday night in Orlando and home debut Friday against Joe Ingles and the Utah Jazz.

It really was a spectacle at the Camden training complex, with a stage set up on the far court and the entire Sixers office staff fanned out behind assembled media. It really did feel like the Andrew Bynum press conference from five or six years ago, though I think Butler is going to be just slightly more effective as a 76er. All he has to do is play 30 seconds for that to happen.

Josh Harris opened the press conference by saying that his team now has three of the top-20 players in the NBA, which is probably true, depending on how you feel about Ben Simmons. Whatever the case, this was an aggressive move to replace a pair of solid starters with one superstar starter.

Say that ten times fast.

Listening back to the 30 minute press conference for the second time, this is what jumped out to me as most relevant:

  • Elton Brand says the Sixers front office reached to Minnesota when they became aware that Butler was available. Brand says he called Wolves GM Scott Layden so frequently that they had a running joke: “hey this is Elton with our daily call.” Brand says that Josh Harris’ relationship with Minnesota owner Glen Taylor helped push the deal to finality.
  • on the topic of his personality and perceived conflict with teammates and coaches, Butler said he loves his teammates and thinks he’s “an incredible human being and teammate” and that he’s looking to prove that to the rest of the squad in Philadelphia
  • Elton Brand says he’s looking forward to having discussions about Butler signing an extension beyond this season, but that both parties are not at that point just yet.

Butler was asked about Markelle Fultz and how he can help the second-year player get over the hump:

“He’s a talented young player. I think that, from what I can tell, a lot of things are mental. In this league, I think 90% of it is mental. If you think you can do something, then you really can. I know how hard he works because I’m in LA and I know he comes by and trains. I know some of the people that know him and they tell me how great he wants to be. As long as he’s going hard and giving it his all every day, the guy has my respect. I just want him to go out there, play hard, be who he is, stick to his strengths, and I know he’s going to thrive and be successful.”

More notes and quotes after the jump:

  • Butler described the Sixers as “an unselfish group of guys” and didn’t seem to have any concerns whatsoever about his fit in this offense.
  • Regarding the open roster spot, Brand said he’s going to take his time and evaluate the NBA landscape. (this sounded like a little bit of a rebuttal to the Kyle Korver rumors)
  • Butler said he noticed how hard the Sixers play and referred to Joel Embiid as “a special work of art” on social media.
  • He says his phone was blowing up regarding the trade, 35 text messages before the people he needed to hear from actually contacted him to confirm that the trade was final.

I asked Butler about his fit in the Sixers’ offense, which values tempo and rhythm and passing. It’s a motion offense, so there’s really not a lot of isolation or pick and roll. Butler has spent all but one year of his career playing for Tom Thibodeau.

Butler:

“It’s different, I won’t lie. I think I had the ball a lot when I was in Minnesota. But that doesn’t mean that I can’t play this style of basketball that’s played here. That was just what I was asked to do when I was there. I don’t think that’s a problem. I think I’m great at sharing the ball, great at moving without the ball. If I need the ball, I’ll go steal it, go to the other end and lay it up, go get an offensive rebound. There’s more than one way to get the ball. I think the way these guys play, sharing the ball, setting screens, slipping, all of that good stuff, I think that’s easier than having to create all the time in iso situations or off of a pick and roll.”

True. Things are more fluid in this kind of offense.

  • Butler reiterated that he’s not here for the money and said that he has enough in the bank for him and his family to be “set” for the rest of their lives. He said he wants to love where he’s at and have a good chance at winning a championship.
  • Brand said he spoke with Jimmy’s ex-teammates, coaches, and staffers, and believes he was loved in the locker room. Both pushed back on the idea that he was a disruptive and negative force.
  • When asked about things the fan base might not know about him, Butler said he “doesn’t do much” explained that he loves country music and cards and dominoes and still drives a minivan.
  • He also reiterated that Tom Thibodeau is “his guy” and that he has a lot of respect for him. Butler says it just didn’t work out and wished his former coach the best.

That’s it.

There is nothing left to say.

Let’s get Jimmy Butler on the floor and see what happens.