The doors opened early at Sixers practice today, before most of the media could assemble.

Jimmy Butler, first in line to speak, did his Friday availability in front of just two cameras and half a dozen reporters. As with most things Butler, the conversation was candid and off the cuff, and you never know what you’re going to get from him on a given day.

Here’s a transcript of the more interesting stuff, after the jump:

94 WIP: Do you think you need a respite here or there over these last 10 games to be fresh for the playoffs?

Butler: I don’t know. I haven’t talked about it, haven’t even thought about it, to tell you the truth. I think, as coach was saying, they’ll figure out all that stuff, just to make sure everybody’s in a rhythm and healthy. When that time comes and presents itself, we’ll see what happens.

Reporter: Jimmy are you scheduled to play both games in this road trip?

Butler: Am I scheduled to play both games?

Reporter: They’ve been giving some people off here and there.

Butler: Well as I just answered his question, I don’t know. We ain’t talked about it, right now it’s all about winning –

Reporter: Oh sorry.

Butler: You’re all good. It’s all about winning as many games as possible. As long as I feel good, I’m gonna go out there and hoop.

Inquirer: What do you think the difference was against the Celtics in the second half vs. the first half. It seemed like you were more ball dominant and more in the flow. Was it just a matter hitting shots? Something you did schematically?

Butler: I don’t even remember the game, to tell you the truth. We got Atlanta coming up.

Crossing Broad: Do those questions annoy you? The stuff about the first three quarters vs. the fourth quarter? Considering the fact you’re playing well in the fourth, aren’t some people just looking at it and saying, ‘well what if we could get Jimmy to be dialed in for all four quarters’?

Butler: I don’t know.

Crossing Broad: Like what if they’re looking at it from a positive angle, instead of saying that in a negative way, you know what I mean?

Butler: I like the negativity. I embrace negative. I don’t want you to be positive anymore. I want you to dislike me and I want you to find something wrong because then I feel like you’re always paying attention. I’m on your mind, you’re thinking about me in whatever way it may be. At the end of that, that’s winning basketball. We won. So if people can find something bad out of winning, I guess I’m not for you.

Crossing Broad: Are people just looking at this the wrong way?

Butler: I don’t know. To tell you the truth, I really don’t give a damn. I don’t. I truly don’t. We won. We’re winning. Do whatever it takes to win. That’s what the game’s about.

94 WIP: Does that fuel you or motivate you?

Butler: Nope. I don’t be paying attention to nobody anyway. But I feel like when you’re negative, you’re more truthful than you are when you’re positive. Everybody wants to hate on somebody here and there. Not many people wanna congratulate somebody and tell them that they’re doing a good job. So I’ll take the negative over that fake positivity any day.

Crossing Broad: Jimmy, do you think people pay enough attention to this idea that Brett has coached three different teams this year? There was the Dario and Covington team, then you come in, now Tobias is here.

Butler: I don’t think anybody cares. Everybody expects the Sixers to win games no matter who is on the team. We have a really talented group of guys right now. Win, lose, or draw I think everybody expects us to be a good team because of the names that we have, because of the players that we have. It doesn’t matter how many teams we’ve had. They expect us to win.

Ladies and gentlemen, it’s Jimmy Butler.

Happy Friday.