It doesn’t take much for Jimmy Butler to flip a switch and take over pivotal games. It takes even less for the Golden State Warriors star to find the motivation to go all-out on both ends of the floor, leaving no questions about whether or not he could’ve done more for his team.
Thankfully for the Warriors, Butler was just given new motivation to turn the 2025-26 season into the most memorable year of his career thus far.
Butler is on the shortlist of individuals with a stake to the claim of being the best two-way perimeter players of their generation. His lockdown defense is complemented by extraordinary postseason performances as a scorer and playmaker, thus allowing him to enter all-time discussions at his position.
HoopsHype acknowledged as much when it published its list of the 20 greatest small forwards in NBA history, with Butler narrowly making the cut at No. 20.
“One of the best two-way swingmen of his generation, Houston native Jimmy Butler led two undermanned Heat teams to the NBA Finals and is making a run at our HoopsHype79 ranking with his play over recent years.”
It’s an honor to make the list, but the All-Defense mainstay was just handed new motivation due to one ranking decision: Paul George at No. 18, and Butler at No. 20.
Paul George ranked ahead of Jimmy Butler on all-time SF list
George has pieced together a Hall of Fame résumé that deserves top-20 placement. He’s played starring or co-starring roles on three Conference Finalists, and is a six-time All-NBA, nine-time All-Star, and four-time All-Defense honoree.
As such, there’s admittedly a strong argument for George to be ranked over Butler—albeit with a case to be made that recent seasons have helped the latter star leapfrog his rival.
Butier is a five-time All-NBA, six-time All-Star, and five-time All-Defense selectee. He and George won the NBA’s Most Improved Player award two years apart, and both were on Team USA when it won the 2016 Olympic gold medal in Rio de Janeiro.
They’ve even led the Association in steals in separate seasons, which makes their almost identical résumés seem to lean in favor of George—with one more All-NBA and three more All-Star nods.
The true differentiating factor, however, is their quality of play in the postseason. While George helped lead the Indiana Pacers and LA Clippers to a combined three Conference Finals appearances, Butler took the Miami Heat to the NBA Finals in both 2020 and 2023.
Butler also helped Miami push the Boston Celtics to seven games in the 2022 Eastern Conference Finals, posting 47 and 35 points in the final two battles of the series.
With George ranked ahead of Butler, there’s only one thing the future Hall of Famer can do: Add even more accolades to his already legendary résumé. A championship would certainly change the narrative, as would another All-Star, All-NBA, or All-Defense selection.
Regardless of what transpires, one of the most ferociously competitive players in the NBA was just given a mid-summer reason to go all-out in 2025-26 and prove he belongs ahead of his rival.
