Jimmy Butler is the face of the Chicago Bulls despite not being a highly-regarded prospect coming out of high school or heading into the NBA.
Taken with the 30th-overall pick out of Marquette in the 2011 NBA Draft, Butler was all but invisible as a rookie. He averaged 2.6 points, 1.3 rebounds and 8.5 minutes per game. Fast forward to today, and he's averaging a team-high 23.9 points.
Nearly every team that passed on him that drafted a guard prospect — though he's moved on to more of a small forward role in the rotation — surely regrets not taking Jimmy Buckets. He's one of the best two-way wings in the NBA, in the same tier as Paul George.
Indeed, looking at the 12 guards selected ahead of the Bulls star, several teams must kick themselves whenever they glance down the class of 2011.
1. Kyrie Irving — Cleveland Cavaliers
The number one pick out of the draft, Kyrie Irving has definitely earned his place at the top of a draft class with a handful of deep picks that panned out. Uncle Drew is a superstar, and the return of LeBron James helped solidify his status as an elite guard.
8. Brandon Knight — Detroit Pistons
It took a while for another guard to have his name called, but Brandon Knight made his way to the Detroit Pistons. He's bounced from there since, traded to Milwaukee before becoming a Phoenix Sun.
He's now in a crowded backcourt rotation in Phoenix, used as a scoring combo guard.
9. Kemba Walker — Charlotte Hornets
if we're talking pure scorers in this draft class Kemba Walker is near the top of the list. He's a dynamic scoring guard who can handle with the best of them, has a killer crossover stepback, and legitimate three-point range.
He's the rare college blue-chip prospect who translated quite well. He's kept the Hornets relevant and competitive for years now.
10. Jimmer Fredette — Sacramento Kings (draft trade from Milwaukee)
Jimmer Fredette is, in a way, the opposite of Kemba. He was a highly-regarded scorer at BYU who showed seemingly infinite range. That didn't quite turn out to be a thing for him at the NBA level, and now he's on Yao Ming's Shanghai Sharks in China.
Still, hoop heads won't forget the Jimmer Jam that was a college sensation. Oh, and he scored 73 points in a CBA game a few months ago. Naturally:
11. Klay Thompson — Golden State Warriors
Every team that passed on Klay Thompson is probably kicking itself these days. The worst part about Klay slipping to 11th-overall is how obvious it was he would succeed at the NBA level.
The shooting stroke always looked smooth, he has great size for a guard, and he even has a solid NBA pedigree with his father Mychal Thompson previously playing professionally. Blame the teams that passed on him for the rise of the Warriors.
12. Alec Burks — Utah Jazz
The Utah Jazz have been looking for answers in the backcourt for years, and it didn't change much when they drafted Burks. He's never quite found a consistent role with Utah and injuries have seemingly sidelined his career several times already.
17. Iman Shumpert — New York Knicks
The New York Knicks loved Iman Shumpert, but as things fell apart in New York during the '14-15 season, he found himself the beneficiary of a trade that landed him with the Cavaliers. He's a roleplayer these days, but that's not a bad fate with the shiny championship ring he has now.
21. Nolan Smith — Portland Trail Blazers
Nolan Smith may never have been drafted if it wasn't for the fact he played at Duke. He spent two seasons in the NBA but has since fell out of the league. His career averages of 3.3 points and 9.9 minutes is all that needs to be said here.
24. Reggie Jackson — Oklahoma City Thunder
The Oklahoma City Thunder found a gem with Reggie Jackson deep in the first round. Sure, he's since been traded to the Detroit Pistons, but he was a big piece for the Russell Westbrook-Kevin Durant era for years.
25. MarShon Brooks — Brooklyn Nets (draft trade from Boston)
MarShon Brooks is the rare player whose rookie year was the peak of his career. He averaged 12.6 points per game as a rookie and never broke double-digits again. He last played during the 2013-2014 season, where he suited up for three different teams.
28. Norris Cole — Miami Heat (draft trade from Chicago & Minnesota)
Norris Cole spent the brunt of his career thus far riding along the Big Three of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh in Miami. For that, he wound up with two rings. He nearly fell completely out of the NBA after going to China in 2016, but was signed by the Thunder this March.
29. Cory Joseph — San Antonio Spurs
The San Antonio Spurs were able to mine a championship-team contributor with the 29th pick. The Canadian-born point guard leads their national team and now plays for the Toronto Raptors, where he's averaging career-highs across the board.
And then came pick number 30, Jimmy Butler out of Marquette. Coincidentally, he's now sharing the court with another Marquette star in Dwyane Wade.
Clearly Butler would be a lottery pick in a re-draft, and that so many of the players taken ahead of him have fallen out of the NBA is proof that it's not the draft position that matters, but the ability to recognize and develop talent.
Kudos to Jimmy for doing his part in improving from a pretty tough rookie season. He had nowhere to go but up and did just that.